Adam and Cindy Yonch, of Spokane, have bought Beneficial Home Health Care Inc. here from Jeff Divilbiss, and the couple now plans to nearly double the companys employment by the end of next year.


Adam Yonch says he and his wife began managing Beneficial Home Health Care in mid-October, and closed on the purchase of the company last week. The company employed 77 people when they began managing it, but that number since has grown to 85 and is expected to shoot up to between 125 and 150 by the end of 1999, he says.


Yonch, who now is the companys president, declines to disclose the terms of the sale.


The company, which has changed its name to Beneficial Home Care Corp. as a result of the change in ownership, has instituted what Yonch describes as a fairly aggressive recruitment and retention program. He declines, however, to give details of either program for proprietary reasons.


Beneficial Home Care, which provides medical and assisted care in patients and clients homes, also has expanded the amount of space it occupies and has added more computers at its office. The company had occupied about 1,600 square feet of floor space at 220 W. Francis, and now has added another 1,200 square feet there, Yonch says. He says that the expanded space should accommodate the company at least through the end of next year.


The company was founded in Spokane in December 1989 by Divilbiss, who says he decided to sell the company because he was totally, totally burned out.


The company has both a home-health license and a home-care license. The home-health license allows Beneficial to offer skilled medical care in a persons home, whereas the home-care license allows workers who dont necessarily have medical training to assist someone in their home, Yonch says. For instance, under the home-care license, workers might help a person bathe three times a week or prepare a meal daily for a client.


Beneficial Home Care mostly serves clients in Spokane County, Yonch says. He adds that theres currently more business here than can be handled, which is why the company has decided to expand its workforceespecially skilled workers, such as registered nurses and physical therapists.


Yonch, who was raised in Newport, Wash., has more than 20 years of experience as a hospital administrator, both in the U.S. and internationally. Yonch says he and his wife moved to Spokane from Asia in April 1997. In addition to serving as a hospital administrator, Yonch also helped found Seattle-based Biomed Comm, a biotechnology company. Later, he went to work for Yakima, Wash.-based Aspen Benefits Group, which bought biomedical products from a number of companies, including Biomed Comm, put its own label on the product, and then resold it. Yonch became president of Aspen Benefits Group and moved the company to Coeur dAlene, but left later. Shortly after leaving Aspen Benefits Group, the opportunity arose for him to buy Beneficial Home Heath, he says.