Whole Person Senior Care Pioneer Lifesprk Expands Primary Care Model by Forming Lifesprk Health

MINNEAPOLIS, Dec. 13, 2018 /PRNewswire/ -- Minneapolis-based Lifesprk, the pioneer of whole person senior care since 2004, is expanding its service offerings by launching Lifesprk Health, a primary care service. Lifesprk is also pleased to announce it is adding trailblazing geriatrician, Dr. Bill Thomas, to the company.

For more than a decade, Lifesprk has forged a whole person senior care model that provides services to seniors in a variety of settings including skilled-nursing, assisted living, memory care or wherever someone may call home.

While the model was built on a private pay home care platform, in 2016 Lifesprk added skilled home health services for seniors. The company is also a community service provider and partner to more than 20 organizations across the Minneapolis/St. Paul metro area including hospitals and health systems, senior living providers, insurers, member associations and other community-based organizations. Additionally, in May 2018, Lifesprk expanded nationally through a joint venture with Utah-based Intermountain Healthcare.

Lifesprk Health
Lifesprk Health will provide primary care services for seniors in any setting delivered by physicians and nurse practitioners specializing in geriatrics. The addition of Lifesprk Health allows the company to bring a full complement of services that seniors need to address not only their health issues but other social determinants that play an equally important role in a senior's ability to maintain independence and thrive. Currently, Lifesprk Health is only available in a select number of senior living communities in the Minneapolis area but is expected to expand regionally and nationally in 2019.   

"While person-centric care is changing the narrative among healthcare leaders today, whole person senior care has been our practice and passion for the past 14 years," said Lifesprk Founder and CEO Joel Theisen. "We believe in creating solutions that deliver the support, care and resources seniors need to live full, independent and connected lives. Lifesprk Health expands upon our approach by bringing seniors an even higher level of care and expertise to wherever they call home."

As a testament to the model, Lifesprk results are unparalleled with their clients seeing a reduction in emergency room visits by up to 48% and re-hospitalizations by up to 57%. These outcomes provide significant decreases in long-term costs for both seniors and their families, as well as for Lifesprk's partner organizations.

Dr. Bill Thomas Joins as Independence Officer
As Lifesprk continues to advance the cause of whole person senior care and lead the movement to keep seniors living independently, Dr. Thomas joins the company as its Independence Officer. In this role he will lead the development to integrate Lifesprk's primary care with its overall life care model of whole person senior care nationally.

Named by the Wall Street Journal as one of the 12 most influential Americans shaping aging in the 21st century, Dr. Thomas is an author, performer and international authority on geriatric medicine. He is the founder of The Eden Alternative, an effort that de-institutionalized nursing homes in all 50 states and worldwide over the past 20 years. Dr. Thomas also pioneered the Green House Project which developed a new model for long-term care. As a professor at The Erickson School at UMBC, Thomas led development of the nation's first emergency department designed for older adults.

"What makes Lifesprk a leader is that they have founded a patient-centered model that puts the senior in the middle so solutions surround that person," said Dr. Thomas. "Providing whole person senior care is about strength, purpose and belonging so people get the most out of life. While there are many large companies trying to fix a broken system, Lifesprk is already there and I'm excited to work with them to introduce this model nationally."

For more information go to www.lifesprk.com.

About Lifesprk
Founded in Minnesota in 2004, Lifesprk pioneered the concept of whole person senior care which surrounds each senior client with a life plan that includes addressing social determinants along with needed medical care. Lifesprk manages whole person senior care programs for 20 partner organizations in Minnesota. In addition, Lifesprk launched a joint venture with Utah-based Intermountain Healthcare in May 2018 called Homespire which delivers the Lifesprk model of care.

SOURCE Lifesprk