A Little About Us


Family Assistance Network
We make home visits to Manhattan, Bronx, Brooklyn and Queens.

Ellen Lurie Polivy, CSW, BCD is a pioneer in the field of geriatric care management. She has been operating A Family Assistance Network since its inception in 1981. She is a professional social worker with experience in the medical field and in geriatrics, and she has advanced training in psychotherapy and hypnotherapy. She formerly developed employee assistance programs in divisions of several major corporations. She has seen first hand the devastating effects that problems in the family have on the work life of employees. Ms. Polivy sees herself a gap filler. When she notices a need she looks for ways to address it.

A Family Assistance Network was started to fill a gap. Many elders who had retired to Florida aged in place and began to have problems, but they had limited or no professional services to consult. Using A Family Assistance Network, families living at a distance were able to be more effective caregivers for their loved ones in Florida. Ms. Polivy developed a network of private social work care managers in Florida, whom she supervised while being in touch with their families in New York and around the country. Today, she provides direct service to the frail elderly living in the New York metropolitan area and works with a network of eldercare professionals throughout the United States for seniors living elsewhere. Ms. Polivy brings her gap-filling approach to her work with her clients. She maintains a carefully selected group of clients; only those for whom she feels she can provide the best quality of care.


Pension and Retirement Planning and Distribution Services


Howard L. Polivy, M.A.A.A., E.A., is a Consulting Actuary with more than 20 years of experience in employee benefits consulting. He is an Enrolled Actuary, and has made numerous presentations on employee benefit related topics. As a fellow of the American Academy of Actuaries, and as a member of the American Society of Pension Actuaries, he holds the highest qualifications in his field. He has served clients at consulting firms, an insurance company, and a "Big 5" accounting firm. At A Family Assistance Network, he serves as an advisor and financial analyst.

Mr. Polivy specializes in helping clients amass the resources they need to enjoy their retirement and provide for other living needs. This includes design and implementation of long term benefit plans to both accumulate funds and then suitably expend those funds.