October 31, 2005 Public Hearing Minutes

The Office for the Aging held its annual Public Hearing on October 31, 2005.

The following are the minutes from that meeting:

MONROE COUNTY DHS/OFA

2005 PUBLIC HEARING MINUTES

1. I. Introduction—Corinda Crossdale, Director
   See attached presentation notes and attendance list.
2. II. Speakers
   • Dorothy May
     Transportation for seniors in the suburbs of Monroe County is in crisis. There are so many regulations. Usually bus stops are quite a distance from homes, and walking is a challenge to many. What happens to the seniors that don’t meet the regulations for subsidized transportation? This issue causes them anxiety. Seniors need independence, to feel more comfortable that they can have doctor’s and dentist’s appointment when needed. Social aspect of transportation is that it is needed to keep up with friends and relatives. They have contacted legislators without much success, been on Channel 13, written to newspapers, without much success. Most facilities have no evening transportation, so they are at the mercy of the government.
   • Marilyn Leash
     She presented a report from Ogden seniors. The lunch menu is too repetitious. She would like beef stew, Jell-o, pudding, etc on the menu. See written statement.
   • Linda Hale
     Baby boomers will become seniors in the community. Now we have healthy active seniors. It is important to change image that we have of seniors. We need to tap resources that we have. She loves her senior center, as it is a wonderful source of camaraderie. Give talks at church, elks club, etc. Match seniors and their expertise with community opportunities. Look to future with progressive ideas and new mindsets. Promote buddy telephone system for people who live alone. Regarding meals, repetition is biggest complaint. There are bad food groupings. Let the chef create menus based on a budget, nutritional requirements, and health concerns. Sweden would be willing to run a pilot program. Give survey to seniors to create variety. Let seniors critique meals. Seniors want more freedom in menus. Create a committee regarding seniors, Submit suggestions and have county dietitians make change one day a month—try that for a pilot. Transportation—need to increase hours so people can join afternoon activities, nighttime’s activities. Formal survey to seniors put together a committee to come up with solutions. Have seniors who drive help other seniors.
   • Leon Randall
     Spoke of gray power. Issue boils down to dollars and sense. Money must be shifted, allocated and reallocated. Continue quality of life for seniors—if they can’t get to doctor’s offices, shopping, etc. their quality of life has shut down. Transportation is needed in senior cluster living facilities. FISH is no longer active because of insurance and liability, so there is reluctance in doing this. Group in Brockport called Yesterday’s Youngsters that meets at Sweden Senior Center for a potluck supper and program. Because of darkness and weather, they close for several months. There is no funding available for one bus, one day per month. The other big concern is food. The hot meal they get at noon is the only hot meal many seniors get for the day. Meal programs are very important part of their life. They want to be active and keep up their quality of life. They want variety in the menu. The cook should have the ability to work with the dietitian for choice.
     He read letter from a Sweden Senior Center resident which says attendance is dropping due to menu combinations which are not appealing. The letter makes suggestions for changes in menu. Seniors would like to be asked about what they would like to have.
   • Theo Carlson
     He would like to see a change in the senior center menus to include fresh fruit, etc. He would also like to see the OFA dietitian out at the center more often.
   • Alma Schultz
     We need to provide an affordable choice for transportation. Mobility is a necessity to maintain an older person’s functioning in society. 54% of adults stay at home because of lack of transportation. Need creative ways to restore funds to Connect-A-Ride. Help older adults live with dignity.
   • Linda James—SKIP Generations
     Thanks to OFA Director Corinda Crossdale for stepping up to help grandparents raising grandchildren. The number of grandparents raising grandchildren is increasing due to a variety of reasons, and the age of the grandparents is getting younger. We need to continue to address the needs of these caregivers. There is discrimination to caregivers who are under age 60 because they are not eligible for the benefits of those over age 60. She would like to see eligibility criteria change.
   • Paul Caccamise—Lifespan
     A new set of recommendations for the Power of Attorney law have been proposed. Contact your legislator to support this change.
     Of the total 15,000 calls Eldersource receives, 10% of them are regarding transportation. Lifespan has been the lead agency in the Give-a-Lift program for the past three years. An Eldersource specialist is dedicated specifically to transportation issues. He urges OFA to provide more resources for transportation.
3. III. Closing Remarks
   Ms. Crossdale thanked all participants for their input.