Aging & In-Home Services of Northeast Indiana Receives ‘Heart of the Community’ Award from CareSource

FORT WAYNE, Ind. (Sept. 19, 2022) – Aging & In-Home Services of Northeast Indiana, Inc. (AIHS) is honored to receive a 2022 Heart of the Community award from CareSource, a nationally recognized managed care organization. The Heart of the Community award is given to organizations who strive to always be one step ahead in providing access to service for CareSource members and the community. The award includes a $28,000 gift for AIHS to utilize to expand its Family Caregiver Program.

“We are excited CareSource has chosen to honor family caregivers throughout northeast Indiana,” said AIHS president & CEO Connie Benton Wolfe. “Our Family Caregiver Center is expanding rapidly as we are finding that as the older adult population grows, so does the caregiver population. This funding positions us to be able to offer family caregiver support in different ways.”

AIHS will use the $28,000 in funding provided by CareSource to research, compare and analyze multiple available electronic caregiver support tools with the goal of identifying an evidence-based tool to be used to support informal family caregivers. These tools will provide easier access to information and assistance specific to caregivers when they need to access it at all hours of the day.

“CareSource knows caregivers are an incredibly important part of our members’ overall health,” said Steve Smitherman, president of CareSource Indiana. “Supporting their well-being with the cutting-edge innovations AIHS brings to the table will make a lasting difference on entire families caring for their aging loved ones.”

According to a study from AARP, there are 53 million unpaid caregivers in the U.S. This statistic alone points to the greater need for expansion within programs dedicated to supporting our community’s caregivers right here in Northeast Indiana. To learn more about AIHS’s Family Caregiver Center visit www.agingihs.org.

Aging & In-Home Services of Northeast Indiana, Inc. (AIHS), a federal and state designated Area Agency on Aging (AAA) and Aging & Disability Resource Center (ADRC), is a non-profit community-based organization with a mission to promote dignity, independence, and advocacy for older adults, persons with disabilities and their caregivers. AIHS has gained national recognition as a community leader transforming the traditional social services model into an integrated care model which bridges health care, behavioral health and community services to better serve vulnerable, at-risk populations.