Thu, 01/25/2018
Area Agency on Aging-Senior Companion Program
905 W Grand Ave
Hot Springs National Park
Arkansas
71913
915 S. Arkansas Ave. Russellville, AR 72801
5013212811
710521904
Part II
Senior Companion Program
The Senior Companion Program places volunteers over the age of 55 into the homes of the elderly and disabled to assist them with activities of daily living. Our goal is to assist these individuals so that they may remain at home for as long as possible. Often, the difference between living at home or moving into an institutional setting for our clients directly depends on their support system. We enhance that support system by providing respite services, companionship, light housekeeping, transportation, and personal grooming.
7500
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Health & Safety
Our Agency mission is to help seniors lead independent, meaningful, and dignified lives. Through several different programs, we are able to provide care in various forms to our elderly and disabled adult clients. Our vision is to assist seniors to live at home for as long as possible and to enhance their quality of life while preserving their dignity. Our entire Agency revolves around promoting quality care and support for our treasured elderly community.
The Senior Companion Program places carefully screened and trained volunteers over the age of 55 into the homes of the elderly and disabled. We assist them with activities of daily living so they may live happy, independent, and meaningful lives. Our volunteers drive their clients to doctor's appointments, grocery stores, pharmacies, and other necessary places as transportation is a key factor in one's ability to remain living at home. We also assist with personal grooming, light housework, and meal preparation. The most important thing our volunteers do is provide companionship to our clients. We remind them that they are loved and cherished members of our community. In addition to this, our program also provides respite services for our client's primary caregivers. This much needed service is one of the most critical factors in determining one's ability to remain living at home in an abuse free environment. Our program is unique in that we offer our income eligible volunteers (200% of poverty) a tax-free hourly stipend to volunteer with us. We also reimburse their gas mileage. This usually amounts to a few hundred extra dollars for them a month which makes their quality of life increase as well.
The tranquil nature of our state of Arkansas has made it an attractive location for seniors to retire. 20.9% of the population in Arkansas is over the age of 60 (U.S. Census Bureau, 2012). This population burst has created a unique set of challenges to the communities here. Some of the most prevalent concerns with this age group are senior hunger, social isolation, and their potential to become victims of abuse or neglect. Approximately 26% of seniors are struggling with hunger on a daily basis (Meals on Wheels, 2015). Another 25% are isolated seniors, who live alone with few family members or loved ones close by (Meals on Wheels, 2016). The lack of a proper transportation system in Arkansas has contributed to the isolation of seniors as well. The Arkansas Society of Civil Engineers has rated transportation in Arkansas with a D+, which is incredibly low. They estimate that half a million people in Arkansas are in need of access to a public transportation system (Report Card, 2014). This leaves seniors without access to the grocery store, bank, park, and doctor. Additionally, many of these seniors can become the victims of elder abuse and neglect. Approximately 1 out of every 10 seniors has experienced abuse or neglect (National Council on Aging, 2016). Our program works to place volunteers into the homes of the elderly and disabled to provide companionship, meal assistance, transportation, and are trained to help identify potential abuse and neglectful situations. Without the Senior Companion Program, our 300+ clients would not have the companionship, meal preparation, transportation, and abuse prevention that our Program offers. By providing these services, the Senior Companion Program can assist the elderly and disabled population here in the beautiful state of Arkansas.
https://www.ncoa.org/public-policy-action/elder-justice/elder-abuse-fac…
http://www.feedingamerica.org/research/senior-hunger-research/state-of-…
https://www.infrastructurereportcard.org/infrastructure-in-arkansas-ear…
https://www.ncoa.org/public-policy-action/elder-justice/elder-abuse-fac…
http://www.feedingamerica.org/research/senior-hunger-research/state-of-…
https://www.infrastructurereportcard.org/infrastructure-in-arkansas-ear…
The specific need addressed by our program is assisting our clients with various tasks so that they may remain at home. In order to be a client with our program, one has to 1) be an elderly or disabled adult; 2) be home bound (not able to drive or leave the home without the assistance of another); and 3) have a need for a volunteer. This vague terminology allows us to serve a variety of clients with an infinite number of needs. Some of the most common conditions our clients face are dementia, loss of sensory capabilities such as hearing and vision, depression, arthritis, food insecurity, and poverty. Our clients are often sick and lonely; craving attention and care while needing assistance to keep living at home. Our goal is to keep these elders living in their homes for as long as possible and our program allows them to do that.
The need for our program's resources was identified through study and research. Some of the main sources of information came from the following locations:
https://www.ncoa.org/public-policy-action/elder-justice/elder-abuse-fac…
http://www.feedingamerica.org/research/senior-hunger-research/state-of-…
https://www.infrastructurereportcard.org/infrastructure-in-arkansas-ear…
https://www.ncoa.org/public-policy-action/elder-justice/elder-abuse-fac…
http://www.feedingamerica.org/research/senior-hunger-research/state-of-…
https://www.infrastructurereportcard.org/infrastructure-in-arkansas-ear…
$110 will provide 5 background checks (FBI, State, and Sex Offender) for potential volunteers who will be serving the elderly clients.
$240 will provide 20 volunteers with training materials (policy books, confidentiality, handling unique client ailments, abuse detecting and prevention)
$300 will provide our program to reimburse volunteers for 857 miles they will drive to care for their clients and drive them to important doctor's appointments and to the grocery store. We reimburse at $0.35/mile
$240 will provide 20 volunteers with training materials (policy books, confidentiality, handling unique client ailments, abuse detecting and prevention)
$300 will provide our program to reimburse volunteers for 857 miles they will drive to care for their clients and drive them to important doctor's appointments and to the grocery store. We reimburse at $0.35/mile
The United Way funding will be specifically used to assist us in mileage reimbursement for our volunteers. One of our program challenges is that at the current time we only have enough funds to reimburse the volunteers to take their clients into town 1 time per month. This is not frequent enough though; who can buy a gallon of milk only once a month? With additional funding, we may be able to increase the approved amount of client transportation. Our other goal, and the more financially feasible one, is to increase the rate of mileage reimbursement for our volunteers. They currently receive $0.35/mile. This rate has not increased in over 10 years. We have calculated projections to increase them to $0.40/mile, but additional funding would be required for us to implement this. We also would use the funding for training expenses and background checks. We train our volunteers in abuse detection and prevention, dementia care, communication skills, and various other topics. The main expense from our training comes from printed material. Our background check regulations have increased over the past few years. We are now required to do an additional FBI background check which has resulted in us needing to budget more money into this category.
As stated previously, Arkansas is rated a poor D+ for transportation. Being able to get to doctor's appointments, to the bank, to the pharmacy, and grocery store are vitally important tasks and our seniors often lack access to reliable transportation. The Senior Companion Program does what we can to help these seniors with this task, but there is a need for increased rate reimbursement and additional trips for our clients. We are stuck at our current levels unless we can secure funding from additional sources.
Our program is sustainable. 90% of our funding comes from a federal grant; the other funding assists us in providing specific program improvements. We apply for the grant on a 3 year cycle, and the notice of funding availability has already been sent out for our next cycle. Our program can manage on our federal budget, but we can not meet all of the needs of our clients without the additional supplemental funds.
Our program has a significant impact on our target population. In the past 6 months, 54 volunteers have served their clients for a total of 25,219 hours. Those are precious hours spent providing companionship, nutritional support, personal grooming, housework assistance, transportation, and respite. This supplemental care enables the client to live at home as opposed to moving into an institution. Isolation is one of the greatest threats to our client's mental health, and our program ensures that our elderly community members are checked on, loved, supported, and provided for. Our volunteers make referrals for their clients who might need more care, medical equipment, food, or any number of other things that inevitably pop up. We also watch for and prevent elder abuse and neglect. The volunteers are trained to report suspicious behavior, missing medications, client neglect, home safety hazards, and declining health. We may never know how much abuse has been prevented by our presence but we do know that we are changing lives every day.
The funds from United Way won't be matched exactly; rather United Way will assist us in meeting our 10% federal grant match requirements.
The Area Agency on Aging of West Central Arkansas in conjunction with the Senior Companion Program partners with numerous entities in the surrounding areas. Every county in our service area is classified as rural according to the US Census Bureau which makes building community a top priority for us. Local input into program design and evaluation comes from several key areas. The Advisory Council for the SCP is made up of a diverse group of community members who all have a shared interest in our local seniors. The members of our Advisory Council include senior services case managers, an Alzheimer’s Support Group Leader, an experienced Senior Companion Volunteer, a nursing home ombudsman, and a local University Professor. This diverse yet cohesive group of individuals ensures that our ties to the community are broadened and strengthened with their input to the program. Community partners are everywhere when it comes to the Area Agency on Aging and the Senior Companion Program. We work closely with our Senior Centers with activities, recruitment efforts, meeting spaces, office spaces, socialization of our clients, referrals back and forth, and transportation. Several of the local churches have generously donated their community spaces for us to hold inservices and meetings. When a church meeting room is not available, we utilize the local Chamber of Commerce to hold special functions or meetings. Since we are members, they let us have the room at an amazingly low cost, while providing lots of recognition of our program to the community. We have used the services of our local police force, EMTs, fire fighters, librarians, and nurses to conduct informational inservices for our volunteers. Our volunteers then take this information from these local community resources and share it with their clients. There are numerous community groups who provide us information to pass along to our clients including Arkansas Hospice, Inspirations (a local day treatment facility), Phases (an inpatient Geriatric Psychology Unit), Adult Protective Services, and Medicaid Transportation, the Office of the Attorney General Leslie Cutleridge, to name a few. We have presented our program to the Lion’s club, Kiwanas club, our local Quorum courts, the Senior Networking Group, and the Quilter’s Club. Our volunteers are trained on local human services offered such as SNAP, free cell phone, AR Choices, Adult Protective Services, abuse and neglect of seniors, emergency preparedness, Medicaid, and Medicare benefits. (In the case that a volunteer suspects that one of these services are needed, they will make a referral to a trained case manager.) Often community fairs offer us a booth at no or low cost and that helps us pass out or brochures and talk to people about the service that we offer.
The volunteer training and education portion of our program is where our community collaboration is most helpful. We rely on the expertise of our local community leaders to keep our volunteers informed of the proper care techniques and services available in our communities. We also use the community groups to promote our services and recruit volunteers. Working with these groups is a vital part of our program.
Part III
The Senior Companion Program has many resources that are used to achieve outcome goal objectives. Our most important asset is our volunteers. These men and women are the reason we are able to serve our current 126 clients. We also have 3 full time project staff to facilitate the coordination of our program. We are also very fortunate to have a sponsor like the Area Agency on Aging of West Central Arkansas. This company allows us access to a full IT team, business accountants, case managers, billing experts, and a marketing team.
Our program will increase the amount of transportation provided to our clients by 37% per month. We currently average 73 client transports per month; we would like to increase that number to an average of 100 client trips per month.
Our program will increase the amount of respite services provided to our clients by 28% within the next year. Currently, we have provided 1,167 hours of respite care in the past 6 months. We would like to reach a goal of 1,500 within 6 months and 3,000 within the year.
Our program will increase the amount of respite services provided to our clients by 28% within the next year. Currently, we have provided 1,167 hours of respite care in the past 6 months. We would like to reach a goal of 1,500 within 6 months and 3,000 within the year.
In order to reach our program objectives, several things need to happen. First, we must recruit more volunteers into our program so that we can serve more clients and their primary caregivers. Our staff members have been rejuvenating our marketing plan in an effort to expand our program. We recently added a new staff member to serve this specific purpose. Second, we will utilize our monthly training opportunities to keep our volunteers aware of mileage allowances. Third, we will inform all of the Agency case managers (they screen all client referrals for our program) that we are specifically looking to serve those individuals that need respite care. They will assist us in drawing these specific clients out so that we may be of assistance to them.
We currently have 31 clients being transported 73 times per month.
We currently have 10 clients receiving respite services per month.
We currently have 10 clients receiving respite services per month.
We use a very specific tool to measure the success of our program goals. It is called the Task Sheet Report. This Report is a summary of the monthly task sheets that each volunteer turns in that indicates how many and what type of service the client received on each visit. Through this report, we will be able to easily count how many caregivers received respite services per month and how many hours were served in this capacity.
The volunteers are required to complete monthly paperwork that details the amount and type of service provided on their Task Sheet Report. This will allow us to monitor on a monthly basis our success rates. In addition to this, we also have a semi-annual satisfaction survey that is asked of all our clients to ensure our program is meeting expectations and quality standards. This survey allows us opportunities to improve our approach so that we may reach our goals more efficiently.
"My name is ___. I was born on July 29, 19** to ___ and ___ as their only child. When I was 17 I was stricken with Polio. I have had many set backs in my life. I am a Polio survivor, cancer survivor, and a broken leg. I have spent time in a nursing home after all of this for rehab. Thank God I am still here at home now. I am in a power chair and have an accessible van. I do not drive anymore. In 1996 I became a client with the Senior Companion Program. I have been blessed to have 6 different volunteers over the years. I worked and saved to build my home and I pray that God will see a way for me to be able to live here until my time comes. I am sure there are many others who are againg who hope to be able to remain at home. Thanks to all the volunteers and the SCP who make this possible. I thank God for them. i am able to stay in my home because of their help. My companion is my very best friend." --Letter from an actual client.
Part IV
The uploaded Program Budget is our plan for the Fiscal 2018 year which runs from July 1, 2017 until June 30, 2018. This shows our budget and our actual expenditures up to the end of December 2017.
The Senior Companion Program has it's own board that we call an Advisory Council. We meet quarterly to assess program goals, budgets, revenues, future planning, and program improvements. We have a full council in Hot Springs that represents our Southern 5 counties. Our Advisory Council is very invested in our program and contribute greatly to our success.
We meet once a quarter. We have met 4 times in the past 12 months.
- Were you able to pay all regular operational expenses within 60 days of the due date?
- Have you been able to maintain your 501 (c) 3 Tax Exempt Status?
Jenny Riley Bain
Part V
Part VI
For the calendar 2018 year, our special events are listed below:
Mayor's Day, April 3, time and location to be announced, Jenny Bain is the Coordinator-The local Mayor issues a proclamation on the importance of volunteerism in our communities.
Volunteer Appreciation Banquet, in the month of May, exact date and location TBA, 11 AM, Jenny Bain-This is a large awards celebration honoring our volunteers.
Ice Cream Social-Date and Time TBA-The SCP hosts an ice cream social at our local Senior Activity Centers at various times during the month. Jenny Bain Coordinates.
September 11th Day of Service-Coordinated by Jenny Bain. We will bake homemade treats and deliver to first responders at various times. We may partner with a local group to do a special event in Garland County.
Mayor's Day, April 3, time and location to be announced, Jenny Bain is the Coordinator-The local Mayor issues a proclamation on the importance of volunteerism in our communities.
Volunteer Appreciation Banquet, in the month of May, exact date and location TBA, 11 AM, Jenny Bain-This is a large awards celebration honoring our volunteers.
Ice Cream Social-Date and Time TBA-The SCP hosts an ice cream social at our local Senior Activity Centers at various times during the month. Jenny Bain Coordinates.
September 11th Day of Service-Coordinated by Jenny Bain. We will bake homemade treats and deliver to first responders at various times. We may partner with a local group to do a special event in Garland County.
Part VII
It is very likely that we will have clients (and volunteers) that need food and basic necessities during this time.