your impact: older adult

When There Is No One Else

The hospital staff had done everything they could. After weeks of treatment, 76-year-old Robert* was medically ready to leave the hospital. His doctors had stabilized his health, and the next step should have been straightforward: discharge him to an appropriate care setting where he could continue his recovery. 
But there was a problem. 

Robert had no family nearby. No trusted friend who could advocate for him. No one could help make decisions about his care, coordinate services, manage paperwork, or ensure he would remain safe once he left the hospital. 

Without someone to act on his behalf, Robert was trapped in a place designed for medical care, not long-term support. Each additional day in the hospital added stress, uncertainty, and the risk that he would leave without the services necessary to remain stable. 

This is where Lutheran Family Services Rocky Mountains’ Older Adult Guardianship Program plays an essential role, providing a professional guardian to step up and fill the gap to meet Robert’s needs. The guardian worked with hospital staff, care providers, and community partners to assess Robert's needs and identify an appropriate discharge plan. They helped secure a safe living arrangement, coordinated essential services, ensured necessary benefits were in place, and became the advocate needed to navigate a complex system. 

Most importantly, Robert was no longer facing those decisions alone. For many of us, family members quietly perform these responsibilities every day. They answer phone calls from doctors, review paperwork, attend appointments, and help make difficult decisions during times of crisis. 

But for many vulnerable adults, there is no family member available to call. When that happens, a guardian often becomes the difference between stability and crisis. 

Every day, hospitals across our community’s care for patients who are medically ready for discharge but cannot safely leave because there is no one available to advocate for them or ensure their ongoing well-being. 

Many are older adults living with cognitive impairment, serious health conditions, mental illness, or a lifetime of circumstances that have left them isolated and without support. Without guardianship services, these individuals face increased risk of neglect, exploitation, homelessness, repeated hospitalizations, and poor health outcomes. 

The Older Adult Guardianship Program exists to bridge that gap. Guardians help ensure vulnerable adults have someone making informed decisions in their best interests, coordinating care, accessing services, and protecting their dignity. They provide stability during moments of uncertainty and help some of our community's most vulnerable individuals find safe pathways forward. Your support makes that work possible. Because everyone deserves someone in their corner. 

Someone who will ask questions on their behalf. 
Someone who will help navigate difficult decisions. 
Someone who will ensure they are treated with dignity and respect. 

When there is no family member to answer the phone, no trusted friend to step forward, and no one else to advocate for a vulnerable adult, LFSRM is there. 

And because of donors like you, they do not have to face life's most difficult moments alone.