Maine Aging Partners

12/17/2025

Most families don’t enter the elder care system until after a hospitalization.

By then, the timeline is compressed, the choices are narrower, and the costs—financial and emotional—are higher.

If nothing feels urgent yet, that’s not a reason to wait.
It’s actually the best moment to understand how this system really works.

12/16/2025

I’ve been thinking a lot about what’s happening in Maine’s aging services — and how often we rush to fix one visible problem without stepping back to look at the whole picture.

Pharmacy access is the issue getting attention right now. And yes, it matters. A lot.
But what it’s really pointing to is something bigger: how fragmented our aging system has become, and how easily responsibility gets shifted without enough planning, support, or coordination.

I wrote this as a reflection — not a hot take — on what happens when urgency pushes us to “do something” before we’ve asked the right questions about capacity, safety, and long-term impact.

If you work in aging, care, healthcare, or if you’re a family trying to make sense of all of this, I think this will resonate.

Here’s the piece:
👉 https://www.maineaging.com/blog/before-we-leap-questions-about-maines-pharmacy-crisis-and-our-path-forward

I’d genuinely love to hear what others are noticing right now. Where are you seeing systems stretch — or crack — for older adults in Maine?

The Press Herald opinion piece this week about Maine's impending long-term care pharmacy crisis raises urgent concerns for 22,092 seniors who depend on these services. Rep. Robert Foley is right that changes to Medicare Part D reimbursements taking effect January 1st could devastate long-term care

12/12/2025

If you’ve ever helped a family look for senior care and thought, “Why does this feel so rushed and confusing?” — this is why.
Here’s a quick breakdown of what really happens when families start searching online, and how it affects care on the other end.

12/02/2025

Maine led the way for young families with the Harold Alfond Foundation’s investment in every child.

Now it’s time to lead again—this time for older adults.
Our care systems can’t hold if decision-making weakens at the top of the age spectrum.
Strengthen families. Strengthen aging. Strengthen Maine.

12/01/2025

Aging services in Maine aren’t one system — they’re three.
And during Medicare open enrollment, most families don’t realize they’re choosing how these systems will work together later.
Here’s the truth:
👉 Medicare = medical care
👉 MaineCare = long-term care + support for Medicare for those who qualify
👉 Facilities = housing, staffing, meals, safety — completely separate
Open enrollment isn’t just about insurance.
It’s about protecting your thinking before a crisis ever happens.
And you actually have a choice in how you get support:
Private agents → help you choose a plan
SMAAA → helps you understand the system
Two paths.
Both valid.
The key is choosing the kind of support that matches how you make decisions.
If you want help making sense of how all of this connects to assisted living, memory care, or long-term planning — that’s where I come in.

11/29/2025

When you're looking at senior care facilities, everyone talks about staffing ratios. But that number doesn't tell you what you actually need to know.
It doesn't tell you about turnover. It doesn't tell you if the staff has been there six weeks or six years. It doesn't tell you what happens at 2 AM when your parent needs help.
Don't just trust the headline. Ask about retention. Ask about training. Ask to see incident reports. Ask what happens in the middle of the night.
Nobody is going to protect your family like you will. Dig deeper.

11/26/2025

I keep noticing the same pattern in different parts of life — politics, social media, senior care, even in relationships.

When a system is overwhelmed and stops responding (what I call a numb system), the loudest person in the room becomes the one who “leads.”

Not because they’re right.
Not because they’re stable.
But because they’re the only one anyone can hear.

It happened nationally.
It happened in our senior care industry with A Place for Mom.
I’ve seen it play out in smaller systems too — families, workplaces, marriages.

A volume k**b on a numb system doesn’t create direction. It creates distortion.

The noise gets louder, but nothing gets better.

I think this matters for Maine right now — especially around aging.

Because the more exhausted and overstretched our care system becomes, the easier it is for the wrong voices to fill the vacuum.

The fix isn’t to shout louder.

It’s to rebuild systems that can actually feel, respond, and correct themselves again.

That’s the future I’m working toward.
— Kaitlyn

11/25/2025

Navigating senior care shouldn’t feel overwhelming — but for most families, it does.
If you or someone you love needs help sorting through assisted living, rehab discharge plans, or what I call “second retirement,” I’m here.
I’m opening space for 3 new clients this week.
Whether you’re planning ahead or facing a quick decision, reach out.
You don’t have to navigate this alone.
— Kaitlyn
Maine Aging Andwell Health Partners

11/21/2025

Families in Maine feel the cracks in our aging system long before anyone in power does.
And the hardest part isn’t the crisis — it’s the silence around it.

The corruption hurting older adults isn’t loud.
It’s subtle.
It shows up in what gets covered, what gets ignored,
and in systems so tangled that even good leaders can’t see the collapse happening underneath them.

This is why families feel invisible.
Why they blame themselves.
Why the burden falls on daughters, sons, and spouses who are already carrying too much.

Here’s the truth:
when institutions lose sight, families pay the price.

I’m not switching sides —
I’m stepping out of any frame that refuses to see what’s breaking right in front of us.

If people want to keep talking about “chairs,” that’s their choice.
At Maine Aging Partners, we’re focused on the earthquake —
and helping families through it with clarity and dignity.

11/20/2025

Age-friendly volunteers can’t fix a statewide care gap alone. We need backbone. Municipal support, real funding and a plan. I’ve seen what Age-Friendly groups carry on their shoulders. Goodwill is not a long-term care system.

11/06/2025

Here, we still show up for our neighbors.
That’s what Maine Aging Partners was built on — local guidance, real conversation, no pressure.
Whether you’re caring for a parent in Portland or planning from Presque Isle, the first step is knowing you’re not alone. 💛

10/21/2025

Looking forward to class tonight at Kennebunk Free Library.