ResCare provides services to those with unique needs

By ROBERT PIERCE
• Leader & Times

With more than 40 years of experience, ResCare offers daily living support services and in-home care, vocational training job placement, pharmacy, rehab and behavioral health services for people of all ages and skill levels.
ResCare has several locations in Kansas, including one in Liberal, and Jennifer Maddox, the director for the local office, said the company provides targeted case management and residential and day services for clients with disabilities.
Maddox said targeted case management focuses on advocation for services for consumers or for just about anything else a consumer needs.
Maddox compared ResCare’s day services to a typical 8 to 5 job.
“They come into our day service site, and depending on their level of needs, we work with them from daily living skills,” she said. “We do crafts. We have paid jobs. We have community outings. For those that are seeking employment, we will assist them in finding employment in our community and assisting them in retaining that employment.”
Maddox said ResCare currently has six 24-hour locations, and the company deals with a wide variety of needs for its clients.
“We have some consumers that are totally hands on, where we get them out of bed,” she said. “We assist them in eating. We cook, we clean, we do laundry for them. We have other consumers who need minimal supervision. Make sure that they’re living in a safe and healthy environment. They’re taking their medications, and they’re eating properly.”
Maddox said the person’s needs dictate what services ResCare gives.
In addition to Liberal, the company has locations in Garden City, Dodge City, Goodland and Great Bend. Maddox said ResCare is always looking to grow.
“I believe we give a good quality service for people out there that are needing those services,” she said. “Our case managers can also help people get qualified for our services. They have to have an intellectual developmental disability to be qualified. They know that process, so they can assist with that process.”
The ResCare company itself has $2 billion in assets, and Maddox said this means resources are available well beyond the Liberal office.
“A consumer needs a bed, doesn’t have the funds, we have the means of going out and buying that bed and ensuring they have everything that they need to have a happy life,” she said. “You name it, we’re able to provide a resource that assists our consumers in doing that. We have very hands on staff. I have hands on managers and program managers that are in our homes daily doing their jobs and meeting our consumers’ needs.”
Maddox said ResCare takes on tougher cases when it comes to intellectual and developmental disabilities.
“We do well with harder to serve people that nobody wants to open their doors to and give them a chance,” she said.
Maddox said ResCare takes Medicaid and private pay insurance.
“We have a few foster kids that the foster care system pays for,” she said. “They’re 18, so they are allowed to come into our services. That’s considered private pay. The majority of our consumers are Medicaid.”
Maddox said day and residential services are focused on people 18 years of age and older, but targeted case management can be done with children as young as 5.
In addition to providing services to its clients, Maddox said ResCare, through both staff and consumers, gives back to the communities where it has offices.
“For Christmas, we donated $500 worth of presents to our local foster care system,” she said. “We’re sponsoring Special Olympics dances in Garden City. Our Liberal folks ride up for that. We want to be involved in our community and help support our community and give back to our communities that we’re in. At the holidays, we donate five ham meals at Thanksgiving, and at Christmas, we give turkeys out to the homeless shelters. We try to teach our consumers to give back and also our staff to give back to our community.”
ResCare’s Liberal office is located at 418 S. Washington Ave. For more information, call 620-624-5117.