Agenda - 01-21-1997 - 8g - Laserfiche WebLink

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ORANGE COUNTY 1 BOARD OF COMMISSIONERS Action Agenda Item No ACTION AGENDA ITEM ABSTRACT Meeting Date: January 21, 1997 SUBJECT: Approval of Funding Applications for In-Home Volunteer Assistance to the Elderly Project DEPARTMENT Aging PUBLIC HEARING YES NO X BUDGET AMENDMENT YES NO X ATTACHMENT(S): INFORMATION CONTACT: Jerry M. Passmore TELEPHONE NUMBER: Hillsborough 732-8181 Chapel Hill 968-4501 Mebane 227-2031 Durham 688-7331 PURPOSE: To provide funding for a volunteer in-home assistance project, called"Community Connections," which will serve those older adults in the county who need, but cannot afford, non-personal care assistance, such as errands and companionship. BACKGROUND: It is generally understood that the population of those adults aged 60 and over in Orange County, as elsewhere, is growing rapidly. Most older adults in Orange County prefer to live independently as long as possible. As their population grows, so too does the demand for help with in- home related tasks, such as errands, companionship, mail sorting and reading, and meal preparation or delivery, that generally delay dependence. For example, if a disabled older adult cannot get to a pharmacy to pick up her medication, her medical condition may be exacerbated, requiring medical attention, and possibly rest home or nursing home care. Institutional care is expensive for everyone because government programs are inevitably tapped. In the same vein, if an older adult has sight limitations, she may have difficulty reading her mail and may consequently miss utility bills, resulting in their nonpayment and her heat or water being turned off. In Orangp County, there are few options_for older adults who need this kind of help but cannot afford it. Public programs generally restrict assistance to the very poor or to those with personal care needs, such as bathing and dressing. The help that is available is minimal and costly to the public. The Department has attempted in the past to provide this kind of assistance; however, at an hourly rate of at least $10 to provide a trained aide from an in-home aide agency, the costs to the county are high. If volunteers were used to provide this non-personal care assistance, it would save the county dollars and available funding could be targeted to those with greater needs. Currently, there is no coordinated system of volunteers for this purpose in the county. The University and area churches have small programs, but they are limited by such factors as student schedules