Alzheimer's Disease Education

This project began in October, 2005 through a grant from the Illinois Department of Healthcare and Family Services. We help educate individuals and community groups about the Alzheimer’s Disease and the primary care centers (memory & aging clinics) in the area.

Comprehensive Care in Residential Settings
Affordable Assisted Living

This project began in 1997 in Pulaski County, expanded into Jackson County in 1998 and into Williamson County in 2001. This project combines independent living with the provision of social and personal services from within specialized apartment buildings in three communities – Ullin, Murphysboro, and Herrin. The services provided include individual needs assessment, homemaker, meal service, 24 hour on-site staff, emergency response system, intermittent health services and assessment, counseling, transportation, personal care, and recreational and social activities among other services.

Many of these assisted living apartments (30-50 in each building) are reserved for low and moderate income older adults and have rent controls.

The purpose of this project is to:

• Meet the service needs of low and middle income, frail senior adults in an apartment building setting,
• Determine if the provision of services can be improved, expanded, and delivered in a cost effective and efficient manner,
• Promote independent living and self sufficiency,
• Reduce isolation,
• Tailor services to meet individual needs, and
• Maintain a single point of coordination of services.

For more information, go to our web page on assisted living.

Congregate Community Care
in public housing high-rise buildings

This project began in 1993 in Saline County, and promotes social and nutrition services from within three public housing high rise buildings (50-60 units each) to older, frail residents, many of whom have lived in the high rise buildings for many years. The services included under this demonstration include individual needs assessment, homemaker, adult day services, meals, health promotion services, transportation, personal care, recreation, and social activities among others.

The purpose of this demonstration is to:

• Determine whether rural, geographically isolated, and small public housing units can successfully sustain Congregate Community Care services,
• Develop links between social service and housing providers,
• Meet the service needs of older, frail adults who have lived in a public high rise building for many years and who wish to remain in the same community setting,
• Determine if the provision of services can be improved, expanded, and delivered in a cost effective and efficient manner,
• Promote independent living and self sufficiency,
• Reduce isolation,
• Tailor services to meet individual needs, and
• Maintain a single point of coordination of services.

Home Again
Enhanced Transition Project

This project began in July, 2005 in an effort to enable nursing home residents who want and are able, to return to their homes and apartments in the community. This project works in consultation with Shawnee Alliance for Seniors, Illinois Department on Aging, nursing home staff, and physicians. Staff for this project provide services which enable nursing home residents to transition back to the community, when it can be done safely. Services include the following –

• assessment,
• case management,
• family counseling,
• financial assistance,
• gap-filling services, and
• homemaker services.

Mental Health & Aging

Mental Health Services are not usually delivered to senior adults in ways that benefit them. Agencies regularly find situations that are prime for mental health interventions of various types for both senior adults and their families. Unfortunately, the range of mental health services which are needed by senior adults and the ways they need them delivered, are by no means universally available throughout the state.

This project began in 1999, and is based on agency “one on one” partnerships between aging and mental health. Participating mental health agencies perform assessment services in both crisis and non-crisis situations, and perform these services in the client’s home, if necessary.

A team approach is used to accomplish this; in most cases a staff member from the aging agency is accompanied by the mental health staff member to the client’s home. After the initial assessment, both agencies are asked to collaborate together on determining client needs and a care plan. Specific results from this process are expected to be a client diagnosis, care plan, and documentation of specific client outcomes.

In addition to the direct benefits to clients which is hoped to be gained from this process, “systems” issues will be examined. Agencies are asked to evaluate, with each case, what works well and give suggestions for improvement. The planners of this project will meet again at the end of the demonstration period and discuss, at that time, what went well with this project, what did not go well, and what the barriers were to services as discovered through this project.

Senior Medicare Fraud Patrol

Supported through a grant from the AgeOptions Area Agency on Aging, this project began in 2006. We receive reports of fraud and abuse of Medicare, and refer these reports to the appropriate agencies. We train local advocates and social workers who volunteer to help us identify and report fraud and abuse.

Transportation

The project began in August, 1997 in Pope, Hardin, Gallatin, and Saline counties. This project was developed to meet the need for transportation of older, frail adults. Clients of this project are chosen from those receiving Homemaker service, as screened by the case management agency.

The purpose of the demonstration is to determine whether:

• Public transportation can be used safely by older, frail adults,
• Transportation can be expanded in an effective and cost efficient manner,
• New public transit routes can be developed around the transportation needs of an older, frail population with medical transit needs,
• The lack of a workforce of homemakers can be overcome by transferring the transportation needs of their clients to a public transit provider.