|
December 2006 Newsletter In This Issue:
In October, congress passed - and the President signed - the eagerly anticipated 2006 reauthorization of the Older Americans Act, first enacted in 1965 and re-authorized every five years. The new act sustains funding for many of the community-based services older Americans rely on from meals and other services at senior centers to home-delivered meals, transportation, case management, homecare and caregiver services. The Act also looks toward the future. For example, it calls for the development and implementation of comprehensive, coordinated systems for providing long-term care in home and community settings. This is a clear acknowledgement that tomorrow's seniors will be aging in place and will need strong community-based supports. Another important new focus in the 2006 reauthorization is mental health. Health promotion, too, is recognized as an aging network priority, along with improved access to services and entitlements particularly for seniors with limited resources. I welcome the reauthorized Act. At the same time I want to remind readers that its passage is only the beginning. There is a lot of work ahead, not only to implement the new policies and directions, but also to ensure that future policies continue to address the needs of older Americans and promote their well being. Please email or write to me at any time. I look forward to hearing from you. Also, call 311 to learn about the Department's services for seniors or read more at nyc.gov/aging.
DFTA's Medicare Prescription Drug Counseling and Assistance Centers Prepare for Open Enrollment The new season for open enrollment for Medicare's prescription drug benefit - known as Part D - began November 15 and will end December 31. DFTA's 45 information and enrollment centers across the five boroughs will be busy during this period providing counseling and enrollment assistance for seniors eligible to select a plan for the first time and seniors who want to change their current plan. During open enrollment seniors can select new plans that fit their changing prescription or financial needs. There are 61 plans this year-up from 47 last year. This year plans range from $9.50 to $88 per month. If seniors elect not to change their current plan, a new rate may take effect beginning January 1, 2007. "Our counselors are ready to help thousands of older New Yorkers understand their options and choose a prescription drug plan that best fits their needs," said Commissioner Edwin Méndez-Santiago, LCSW. "There are centers in every borough that seniors can visit to talk one-on-one with a counselor about their needs, compare and select Medicare prescription drug plans, and enroll in the plan they feel is right for them. Counselors at these 45 sites speak the languages you hear in the community, so language should be no barrier to a senior's getting help." Counselors and seniors use laptops with wireless internet capability to access Medicare's website. Seniors, relatives and caregivers can locate a DFTA information and enrollment center by calling 311 or by going to nyc.gov/aging for a list.
Nation's Largest Alzheimer's Disease Conference Scores Again
In recognition of their efforts to introduce new patient-centered models of nursing home care, Cobble Hill Health Center in Brooklyn and Isabella Geriatric Center in Manhattan received the Commissioner's Award for Innovation at a pre-conference breakfast. "New models," the Conference theme, was also the subject of a plenary session panel. Simultaneous translation of the plenary sessions and select workshops was available in Spanish, Chinese, and Russian. The Annual Mayoral Conference is the oldest and largest municipal conference of its kind in the nation, dedicated to examining the critical issues family and professional caregivers encounter when caring for Alzheimer's patients. The conference was launched under former DFTA Commissioner Janet Sainer in 1984, the same year the Department created its Alzheimer's Unit. Read more about DFTA's services for caregivers at www.nyccaregiver.org.
ACCESS NYC Checks Eligibility for Benefits and Entitlements Quickly and Easily
The ACCESS NYC screening process can be conducted in Spanish, Russian, Korean, Haitian Creole and Arabic. Users enter information about their households, including members, income, resources, expenses and housing information, and ACCESS NYC provides potential eligibility determinations. Users can also print forms, find out how to apply for the benefits, search for respective offices, or save their information for later. ACCESS NYC does not complete the application process. Seniors who need help with the application process or who want information about other programs not yet included in the ACCESS NYC system should call 311 or visit their nearest case management agency or senior center. For questions regarding ACCESS NYC, click the "Contact Us" link within ACCESS NYC, or dial 311 and ask for "ACCESS NYC."
Preparations Begin for Summer 2007 Heat Waves The Department of Health's investigation into heat-related deaths last summer has city agencies working together to enhance preventive efforts in future heat waves. Heat stroke deaths were more common among adults who were older, had multiple medical/psychiatric problems, or lacked air conditioning. The Department will be mounting a campaign to educate people about the signs of heat stroke and the availability of its cooling centers. Since more than half of those who died were living with someone at the time of their death, a particular educational target will be family members and friends, with a message about the importance of getting seniors who don't have air conditioning to cooling centers. DFTA provides information to the public about heat waves and preventing heat-related deaths. The Department of Health's report is available.
Former Graduate Student Intern Receives Award for DFTA study
In a related initiative coordinated by the Department this fall, a team of graduate students in a Hunter College Urban Development Workshop investigated the role of intergenerational programming in meeting the needs of residents of Manhattan's lower eastside - an ethnically diverse high-needs community. The assessment focused on the community's settlement houses, which provide services to people of all ages although they do not currently offer ongoing programs that bring generations together. Students found a high level of interest among all stakeholders in developing resources for programs that would cross generational lines. Read more about DFTA's Intergenerational Programs at nyc.gov/aging.
Reaching Out to Grandparent Caregivers through New York City's Schools Planning is going forward on a partnership between DFTA and the Department of Education (DOE) to help grandparents raising grandchildren. The project has been made possible through a grant from the Relatives as Parents Program (RAPP) of the Brookdale Foundation to DFTA's Grandparent Resource Center (GRC). Focused on African, Caribbean and Latino grandparents and other relatives who bear the day-to-day responsibility for a school-age child, the project aims at linking these overburdened caregivers to the direct services of the GRC and increasing their involvement with the child's school. The GRC met recently with a Special Assistant in DOE's Office of Parent Engagement to decide first steps in implementing the project in selected public and charter schools serving children of the targeted ethnicities. Among the services that will be offered grandparent caregivers are information and referral, advocacy, and social work services ranging from brief intervention to case management. New school-based caregiver support groups may be formed in communities where there are no existing grandparent caregiver support groups. DFTA maintains information for grandparent caregivers at www.nyccaregiver.org or call 311 and ask for DFTA's Grandparent Resource Center.
Caregiver Website Up and Running for Russian, Spanish and Chinese Users
Flexible Loans for DFTA Network Available Seedco Financial Services (SFS) is offering the first and only fund tailored to the needs of New York City nonprofit human services organization. Seedco's New York City Human Services Loan Fund provides below-market rate loans that range from $100,000 to $500,000 to help nonprofits meet their cash flow, one-time equipment, renovation, construction or program expansion needs. A national community development financial institution, Seedco works with local partners. Since the launch of the New York City Program, SFS has lent over $1.8 million to human services non-profits in the metropolitan area. For further information on SFS' New York City Human Services Loan fund, contact Kimberly Bernard at (646) 843-6516 or visit SFS' website at www.seedco.org and click on Seedco Financial Services.
Program Spotlight: Fort Washington Houses
Another set of services offered by FWHSE is tailored to frail homebound seniors who cannot attend the center. Social workers in the FWHSE Community Case Management program visit frail seniors in their homes and provide help with everything from money management to linkages to shopping, laundry, cleaning and escort help. To meet the needs of elders with special needs, FWHSE has two adult day service programs. Now in its fifteenth year, Open Door is a small program for older persons with developmental disabilities. It offers group activities such as music therapy, yoga and pet care, and opportunities for participants to join in activities at the senior center. Putting a new face on caring is how the organization describes its adult day services program for people with memory loss, Community Caregiving. This Spanish-specific dementia program operates four days a week completely in Spanish; it is also available two days a week in English. In response to the success of the Community Caregiving program, FWHSE began a major expansion project on November 13. The addition will include rooms for program activities, a circular corridor that can be safely used by restless participants, a security system tailored for wanderers, a kitchen and an activity room for food preparation and service, and a bathroom with a handicapped accessible shower, toilet and a hair-washing sink so that the program can provide additional assistance. Read more about Fort Washington Houses Services for the Elderly at www.find-us.net/Ftwashington/
|
The 22nd Annual Mayoral Conference on Alzheimer's Disease on Tuesday, October 31st was a resounding success. More than 1,000 family caregivers and geriatric, social work, and mental health professionals attended the day long symposium of workshops, exhibits and plenary sessions at the Javits Center. The Conference was presented by the New York City Department for the Aging, the Aging in New York Fund, and the Fisher Center for Alzheimer's Research Foundation, in collaboration with the New York Chapter of the Alzheimer's Association.
New York City residents of all ages now have a quick, electronic way to find out about potential eligibility for health and human service programs online. ACCESS NYC is a free online public screening tool that is available at www.nyc.gov/accessnyc. New Yorkers can use this program - anonymously if they choose - to determine through a single set of questions the programs or entitlements for which they might be eligible. Over 20 City, State and Federal programs are part of ACCESS NYC, and more are planned. Current programs include financial assistance programs, Food Stamps, health insurance programs and housing programs. The SCRIE program (Senior Citizen Rent Increase Exemption) administered by DFTA is one of these programs.
What impact does participation in intergenerational programming have on young people and on seniors? What is the measurable equivalent of a smile? Last year DFTA began an evaluation of process and outcomes in its intergenerational programs to provide answers to these questions. In October, the NY State Society on Aging announced an award to Rhonda Rosenberg, who worked on this evaluation during her graduate social work student internship at DFTA. Rosenberg won the award for her paper on factors that influence positive youth attitudes toward the elderly. She found that relationships between youth and elders nurtured through frequent contact create a more positive attitude than relationships based simply on kinship or being neighbors. This finding suggests an important role for structured intergenerational programs.
The 
Helping seniors in Inwood, Washington Heights and Harlem through bilingual Spanish/English programs, Fort Washington House Services for the Elderly (FWHSE) has deep roots in these communities and a twenty-one year history of meeting community needs. The senior center sponsored by the program, open six days a week, offers not only lunch but also mental health services provided in partnership with SPOP and free legal consultations through Volunteers of Legal Services (VOLS), as well as help accessing entitlements and lots of activities and trips.