It is a little known agency serving the needs of Southwest Washington’s age 60-plus residents and the disabled. Yet the Southwest Washington Agency on Aging and Disabilities (SWAAD) is positioned to have a profound effect on Clark County’s rapidly growing aged population.
Population projections predict a doubling of residents age 60-plus by 2025 in Clark County—from roughly 63,000 in 2008 to almost 127,000 by 2025. Southwest Washington’s 60-plus population is projected to increase by 88 percent—from 90,000 in 2008 to 169,500 in 2025.
The agency is playing a leading role in advocating for advanced planning to accommodate the aging boom. “If we fail to plan, we will not be ready when the boom hits,” says Executive Director David Kelly. SWAAD is also the key player in addressing the number one concern of older seniors and their loved ones: remaining in their own homes as opposed to institutional care.
“The state of Washington has made it a point to keep people in their own homes as long as possible,” says Kelly.
SWAAD is part of the national network of area agencies on aging, a public service agency solely dedicated to helping persons aged 60 and over, and adults with disabilities and their families to access needed community services in Clark, Cowlitz, Wahkiakum, Klickitat and Skamania counties.
A major agency goal is to promote consumer independence and community options designed to allow older people and the disabled to remain in their own homes or to find dignity and safety in residential care.
The agency’s primary functions are to provide information on available services and contract with agencies to provide the services. The agency also evaluates and improves the quality of service delivery; administers federal, state and private funds; develops new funding resources; and advocates for its clients at federal, state and local levels.
In a sense, the agency is funding or providing services that everyone will eventually need, in one way or another. “There are four kinds of people,” Kelly states in quoting Roslyn Carter, wife of former President Jimmy Carter: those who have been caregivers; those who are currently caregivers; those who will be caregivers; and those who will need caregivers. Everybody is going to wind up either giving or receiving the care we are talking about.”
Karin Woll, vice chair of the agency’s 14-member advisory council, cites herself as an example of how a healthy individual may need the agency’s services. “I was always very active and spent a lot of time in the gym” she explains. “Then I had a bad fall a couple of years ago and just destroyed my knee,” Woll said. Without tremendous family support, Woll says she would have required help with daily tasks. “You don’t have to be extremely frail to have an event like this occur,” she explains.
During the last 15 years, the state of Washington has placed a priority on keeping “as many people as possible in their own homes,” says Kelly. This has placed major priority on case management, which provides assistance in finding services for older persons or their caregivers with diminished ability. A staff of 39 case managers, about 48 percent of the agency’s 82-person staff, assesses the needs of individual clients and then develop a plan to coordinate and deliver services.
The state of Washington made a commitment to “keep people in their home as long as possible,” says Woll. “It’s where people are more comfortable, more secure. It’s where they want to be.”
Kelly says the focus on “aging in place” is “good for the people and makes good economic sense. It is really what society should do for each other.”
He is quick to point out that the agency returns an estimated $300 million annually in tax savings that would have otherwise gone to caring for the individuals in elder care facilities. “If we as a society would have continued to funnel people on Medicaid into nursing homes, it would cost a tremendous amount of money.”
The agency receives about $10 million yearly in state and federal funds to provide services in the five-county area. Main funding sources include the Older Americans Act, Medicaid and the state’s Senior Citizens Services Act.
Information and Assistance (I & A) is perhaps the most well-known and most used service, receiving 4-5,000 calls a month. I & A provides information on community services, service referral and client advocacy. It also screens individuals to determine if an older person should be referred to case management for a comprehensive assessment.
“It’s basically one-stop shopping,” Woll says. “By calling I & A and working through case management, we can design services to allow people to age in place at home.”
Other major services provided or funded through SWAAD include: Medicaid personal care; in-home services; personal emergency response systems for high risk seniors and adults with disabilities; minor home modifications and assistance; adult day care; family caregiver support and respite services; congregate and home-delivered meals; geriatric health screening; medication management; transportation; senior legal assistance; and elder abuse prevention. A comprehensive guide to agency’s services is available at www.helpingelders.org.
In 2008, the state of Washington de-certified the Human Services Council as the sponsor of SWAAD. Oversight of the agency shifted to a five-county Southwest Washington Council of Governments on Aging and Disabilities (COG). The COG meets bi-monthly to address matters such as allocating services across the counties, major equipment purchases, staff benefit issues, adding or terminating services, selection of advisory council members, and legal and liability issues affecting SWAAD.
County commissioners serving on the COG include: Chairperson Axel Swanson, Cowlitz; Marc Boldt, Clark; Rex Johnson, Klickitat; Jamie Tolfree, Skamania; and Dan Cothren, Wahkiakum.
An advisory council composed of representatives from the five counties advises SWAAD as it develops and administers its four-year area plan. A majority of Advisory Council members must be 60 years of age and older. Clark County members include: Elizabeth Brown, Vancouver; Roxanne Jones, Washougal; Shanti Potts, Vancouver; Michael Teefy, Vancouver; Ginny Wilberg, Vancouver; and Woll,Vancouver.
The agency’s 2008-11 area plan sets several goals for serving the five counties. Among the many goals for 2010, Kelly is especially enthused about the introduction of new and innovative services, such as the TCARE (Tailored Caregiver Assessment and Referral).
TCARE is “an organized method to help unpaid caregivers maintain themselves,” Kelly explains.
Unpaid caregivers, such as a husband or wife caring for a spouse, undergo a tremendous amount of stress, Kelly said. “The unpaid caregiver sometimes gets as sick as the person receiving the care,” he explains. TCARE will provide assistance to these caregivers.
TCARE is an important element of the federally-funded Family Caregiver Support Program. Other elements of the program include information and assistance, support groups, respite care services and parenting classes and group respite for grandparents and relatives raising children.
According to the plan, the expected boom in aging population will have significant impact on the program. “With 80 percent of in-home care being provided by informal family caregivers, the agency will need to focus on strategies that strengthen caregiver support and services,” states the plan.
Other activities planned for 2010 include: improve education and support for family caregivers; expand the options for physical activity in rural areas for older adults and family caregivers; and expand health promotions and disease prevention events.
The agency also plans to broaden the scope of information provided by Information and Assistance. “With the upcoming baby boomer generation entering the senior demographic, access to information about a variety of senior related issues and services will become more important than ever,” states the plan. For example, the program could provide information about preventative measures for healthy lifestyles in conjunction with hospitals, medical clinics and other health care professionals.
For further information about SWAAD, contact Information & Assistance at 360-694-8133 or Klaus Micheel, planner, Southwest Wash-ington Agency on Aging and Disabilities, 201 NE 73rd Street, Suite 201, Vancouver, WA 98665, 360-735-5752, michekd@ dshs.wa.gov
