**Assessment**
The Area Agency on Aging will complete a functional assessment to
determine if the consumer requires placement or in home service. Assessments consist of all activities from the point of intake on to
determine the appropriate response for the consumer. An assessment includes:
- Intake
- Screening
- Comprehensive Needs Assessment
- Completion of the LOCA
- Obtaining needed medical information as deemed appropriate.
- Obtaining other information that is deemed appropriate.
- Referral of consumer to an appropriate service system or Care Management
Unit
Once the assessment is completed, the applicant may be eligible for the
following:
- Services offered by the Area Agency on Aging.
- Supplement Security Income (SSI) if the consumer is applying for placement
in an approved/licensed personal care home or dom home.
- Medical Assistance for Nursing Facilities (including those people
who are currently eligible for Medical Assistance and are applying
for Nursing Facilities placement, Nursing Facilities residents who are
admitted as private pay and are applying for Medical Assistance coverage,
consumers who apply for Nursing Facilities who become eligible for some
Medical Assistance reimbursement immediately upon entering the Nursing
Facility, and all OBRA targeted individuals entering a Medical Assistance
certified Nursing Facility).
- Services from the Department of Public Welfare's under Age 60 Waiver
Program.
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**Care Management**
Older persons who have complex problems, who
are in need of multiple services, who are confused about their needs, who
are in need of protective care services, or who request assistance are
provided care management through the Area Agency on Aging. Care
Management provides assistance, nursing home placement, Dom Care placement
and assistance in receiving a coordinated continuum of community based care
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**Congregate Meals**
Congregate meal is provided daily at
our centers that are open daily around the county. It is for consumers to
dine together to share a prepared meal in a community environment. On
special occasions, the Congregate Meal will occur outside of the center
environment, at the picnic park or the local fair ground. Congregate Meals
may also include the provision of nutritional educational activities and/or
materials or diet instruction to the consumers who comes to the Centers.
The meals are planned to provide one-third of the recommended the daily
allowance of nutrients.
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**Domiciliary Care**
Dom Care providers, open up their
homes to individuals who need supervision, support, and encouragement in a
family like setting. Dom Care homes are smaller than the traditional
personal care home. Providers care for no more than three Dom Care
residents. Dom Care residents are eighteen years of age and older, who
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**Family Care Giver**
The Family Care Giver program is designed to reduce the stress on a caregiver
while reinforcing the care being provided to the older person living at home. The
program is directed at caregivers who are caring for an older, functionally
dependent relative living with them in the same house. Emphasis is
placed on reinforcing the caregivers who are generally capable of managing the care
for their relatives with minimal dependency upon human service agencies.
The caregiver is viewed as the principal manager of the older person's
care. The basic components of the Family Care Giver program are:
- A comprehensive assessment of the needs of the care receiver.
- A comprehensive assessment of the care giving environment.
- The development of a care plan responsive to the caregivers needs
and burdens.
- Ongoing casework services as needs arise.
- Benefits counseling.
- Caregiver training and education.
- Financial assistance with ongoing care giving expenses.
- Home modifications and assistive devices that will help the older
individual to remain at home.
The Family Caregiver Support Program has the following unique characteristics:
- The emphasis is on the caregiver as the consumer.
- The comprehensive integration of service and financial incentives
used to care for relatives at home.
- Giving caregivers more choice in the selection of available support
and their source through direct reimbursement for care giving expenses.
- The use of a cost-shared benefit plan which permits the extension of
the program to middle income families.
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**Socialization/Recreation/Education/Health Promotion**
Socialization, recreation,
education and health promotion services include any organized socialization,
educational, enrichment, recreation or entertainment activity. These
activities may take place within the senior center environment or outside of
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**Home Delivered Meals**
Home Delivered Meals provides
meals to eligible consumers in their homes. Home Delivered Meals may also
include the provision of nutritional educational activities and/or materials
or diet instruction to consumers who are receiving home delivered meals.Back to
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**Information &
Assistance**
Information and Assistance service consists of the direct provision of
information about services and facilities offered by the Area Agency on Aging with
a defined responsibility and specifically identified staff for providing
this service to all persons requesting it. Service activities may include:
- A brief assessment (screening) of the inquirer's problem is needed to make
an appropriate
referral possible
- Provide information to the consumer about community resources that provide
the needed service
- Follow-up with the consumer to see if they received the service that they
were requesting, as appropriate
- Brokerage activities matching older persons with resources such as
nursing homes, boarding homes, unsupervised
housing, casual labor, etc...
- Any activities related to the provision of information through the
mass media or general public information methods
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**Legal Assistance**
Legal Assistance includes legal
advice and representation by an attorney. Representation and/or counseling
is also feasible to an extent by a paralegal or law student under the
supervision of an attorney. These benefits and rights to counseling or
representation by a non-lawyer to older people with social and economic
needs is also accepted. These services are only on a non-fee generation
issue unless adequate representation is unavailable from private attorneys.
Additionally, legal assistance may include the following activities:
- Legal assistance to the Area Agency on Aging in its advocacy program
on behalf of older people
- Development of a component of the local lawyer referral service specially
geared to older people
- Provision of education and training on legal problems confronting
older people and dissemination of information on these issues
- Development of resources of the local bar association through coordination
and referrals of older people for services on a pro-bono or reduced
fee basis
- Coordination of cooperative participation by the local bar association
with established legal service providers
- Use of community service providers
- Assistance, where available, with law reform or changes in administrative
regulations on issues of primary concern to older adults
- Direct legal representation of older adults alleged or substantiated
to be in need of protective services
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**Outreach**
Outreach is a service offered by JCAAA that is designed to seek out and
identify those older citizens that are hard to reach because they are
either geographically or socially isolated. Outreach also identifies those
individuals that have the greatest need of nutrition and/or other services
that are provided by the Agency so they have the opportunity to participate
in the needed services. There are a variety of activities that are designed
to help the individual obtain the necessary needs. These activities include:
- Locate the functionally disabled, low income, minority and/or isolated
person who may be in need of services.
- Inform the individual of all the services the Agency has to offer
them.
- Encourage the individual to participate in services and programs offered
by the Agency.
- Follow up with individuals who are found to be in need of the
different services the Agency offers and to offer encouragement to the
individual to continue to use these services that are available.
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**Ombudsman**
The Ombudsman Program is designed
to provide an advocacy force to protect and enhance the health, safety,
welfare, and rights of older individuals that are receiving long term care.
This is accomplished by investigating and seeking a resolution over
complaints that are made by and/or on behalf of older individuals. The
Ombudsman will also advocate to bring up major issues that are needed to
change the laws, regulations, policies, and practices which will assist
large numbers of older citizens. These changes will help secure the benefits
and rights to which older citizens are entitled. An Ombudsman is anyone who
has completed training approved by the Office of State Long Term Care.
Some of the detailed activities of an Ombudsman include but are not
limited to:
- Investigation of complaints made by and/or on behalf of older individuals
receiving long term care services.
- Routine visits to long term care facilities for the purpose of enhancing
program visibility.
- Informational activities and in-services to educate residents, providers,
and the public about the Ombudsman program, the resident's rights and
other relevant issues.
- Assist in the development of resident and family councils.
- Participate in surveys and exit conferences of long term care facilities.
- Monitor facilities that have had licensers actions brought against
them.
- Participate in ongoing professional development and training activities.
- Keep records of complaint data and other relevant Ombudsman information.
- Inform the Office of State Long Term Care Ombudsman and other government
agencies on systems and facility-wide issues that impact residents in
long-term care facilities.
- Keep abreast of the laws, regulations, and policies that impact
program implementation in long term care facilities.
- Carry out Ombudsman activities consistent with federal and state
law, including, but not limited to: the Older Americans Act and the
Title VII Elder Rights requirements; OBRA and the Nursing Home Reform
Act; the Aging Program Directive for Ombudsman Program and other requirements
the Secretary of Aging and the State Long Term Care Ombudsman may deem
appropriate.
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**Personal Care Services**
The Personal Care Service is only
authorized for those consumers who's primary need for "hands on" personal
care are at a higher level of care. This level must be reflected in a care
plan, which has to be established beforehand. In addition, some degree of
amount of personal care must be provided during each home visit. The
services that must be provided include: bathing, dressing/undressing
(including assistance in the application and removal of previously
self-applied personal appliances and adaptive devices), feeding, toileting,
grooming, transfer, ambulating and assistance with medication. These kinds
of activities are considered
primary. Other types of services that are provided under personal
care service are considered secondary. These type of services
include: incidental or supplemental home maintenance tasks (laundry,
shopping, or housekeeping). Meal planning and/or preparation may also be
included as a Personal Care Service although the preferred means of this
service is to have a home delivered meal dropped off. Again, the primary
need for personal care must be established and be provided in some fashion
during each visit by the providing agency.
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**PDA Waiver**
The PDA Waiver
program is a program that is set up to allow money that is traditionally
used for nursing home care to be used for care for individuals who want to
remain at home. This is an alternative to using nursing homes. To qualify
for this service, the individual must:
- Be over 60 years old
- Reside in Jefferson County
- Meet certain financial criteria
- Require a level of care offered by a nursing facility
- Choose a community-based service rather then being placed in a nursing
facility
The In-home service the individual receives while using the waiver
program are:
- Hands-on care to assist with personal hygiene and home maintenance
activities
- Specialize therapies with a physician's order
- Medical supplies and equipment
- Caregiver Relief Services
The Medicaid Waiver program offers persons and their families an option
of receiving care at home rather than being placed at a nursing facility.
Family members can remain in-touch with their family members and they
do not have to worry about traveling long distances to visit a nursing
home. In-home care will enable the older person to remain in familiar
surroundings and with their families.
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**Protective Services** 
Protective Services is a service
that is set up to investigate any report of elder abuse. Elder abuse is
physical abuse, emotional abuse, sexual abuse, financial exploitation,
neglect and any other form of mistreatment. In order for a Protective
Service case to be started, the consumer must meet the following criteria:
- At least 60 years old
- Cannot perform or obtain services necessary to maintain physical or
mental health
- has no responsible caretaker at the time of the report
- is at imminent risk of danger
A caseworker will then be assigned to the Protective Service call to
investigate the report and to try to help the individual by getting
them the help they need.
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**Transportation Services**
Transportation is available through the Area Transportation Authority
of North Central Pennsylvania and the County's MA provider. There are some times that volunteers will drive other seniors to special events.
ATA : Clearfield and all
Clearfield and Jefferson County (800) 252-3503. Also on the web at
www.ATATrans.com you can get more
information about Call-A-Bus (C.A.B.),
Fixed Routes (FR),
Routes with Deviation (RD)
and bus schedules.
Aire-Ride :
(800) 647-4331
Medical Assistance Transportation Program :
Contact Community Action at (814) 938-3302 or (800) 648-3381 or
visit them on the web at
http://www.jccap.org/newer/matp.asp to find out more about the
program.
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**Volunteer Services**
The Volunteer Services program provides a variety of
opportunities for seniors to serve other seniors as well as their
communities at large. This service also provides a meaningful opportunity
for people of all ages to participate in while providing a service for all
older individuals as well as their communities. The Volunteer Service
program provides placement of persons in a variety of volunteer roles. These
services include:
These services can provide short and long-term projects that involve
persons of all ages who can assist the Area Agency on Aging in delivering a service to all older individuals.
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If you need any help with any of these services,
or would like more information
Please call the Jefferson County Area
Agency on Aging at:
(814) 849-3096 or 800-852-8036
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