LifeCare Alliance is a not-for-profit organization that provides a comprehensive array of health and nutrition services to older adults and individuals living with a medical challenge and/or disability in Champaign and Madison Counties. The LifeCare Alliance’s Meal-on-Wheels and Senior Dining Centers programs improve clients’ health, nutrition, well-being, and financial status through the provision of healthy food access.
Meals-on-Wheels provides nourishing meals, prepared by a registered dietitian, and a daily visit/well-being check-in to home bound individuals five days per week. Meal options include: hot, cold, frozen, specialty diet, kosher, vegetarian, pureed, and mechanical soft. Senior Dining Centers provide congregate meals, socialization opportunities, and enriching programming to older adults at its congregate meal sites in Champaign and Madison Counties. The program strives to increase the number of older adults who achieve a high level of successful aging, defined as the avoidance of disease and disability, maintenance of high cognitive and physical functioning, and engagement with life.
LifeCare Alliance clients also average five fewer days annually in hospitals than those with comparable demographics. When individuals receive appropriate nutrition levels and health assessments, potentially debilitating and costly health outcomes are prevented.
According to the 2015 Meals-on-Wheels America survey “More Than A Meal”, 87% of seniors needing home-delivered meals are physically unable to shop for their groceries.
Many Agency clients have also faced the difficult decision between paying rent to avoid eviction and buying groceries. By providing healthy food access and socialization regardless of an individual’s ability to pay, LifeCare Alliance helps to free up clients’ finances so they can pay their rent/mortgage bills, avoiding unnecessary eviction and foreclosure.
The Meals-on-Wheels program is ongoing and operates 365 days per year. In 2017, this program served 16,388 home-delivered meals to 131 clients and 6,462 congregate meals to 183 clients in Champaign County. These individuals had a demographic profile as follows: 92% were age 65 or older, 57% were female, 54% were living on an annual income of less than $20,000, and 7% were minorities. In Madison County (2017), LifeCare Alliance served 27,573 home-delivered meals to 185 clients and 4,942 congregate meals to 28 clients. These individuals had a demographic profile as follows: 92% were age 65 or older, 61% were female, 67% were living on an annual income of less than $20,000, and 5% were minorities.
