Elderly Guardianship: Recommendations for a Facility-Based Nonprofit Model

It is my intent with this project to begin to offer solutions to the need for guardianship services in the metropolitan Salt Lake area. This project begins by introducing some general concepts of guardianship and a number of the challenges that the guardianship arrangement faces. Elements of public and private guardianship services are highlighted and the needs of families and residents of institutions for guardianship services are underscored. Private guardianship services exist for those who can pay for services from the funds of their estate. Public guardianship services are offered through a state agency, and in Utah, that agency only accepts clients who display only the direst of need for protection. The result of this information is a recommendation for a nonprofit design for an institutionalized clientele. The purpose of choosing to serve this vulnerable segment of the older population is based on their need for and lack of ability to obtain guardianship services. The design of this nonprofit model works to supply needed guardianship services for those who are not wards of the state in Utah and yet do not have the finances to hire a private guardian. This nonprofit model also offers guardianship services at a reduced rate for those who do have an estate.