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History
Washtenaw County has a long
history of collaboration among agencies serving the elderly,
strengthened by the funding resources of the Ann Arbor Area Community
Foundation (AAACF) and other local funders. The county's total
population and aging population has grown rapidly, outpacing the growth
of the state of Michigan as a whole. The group most in need of
long-term care services, those over age 85, has grown by more than 36
percent. But other social issues such as the concerns of children, the
homeless, and the uninsured have overshadowed those needs. Michigan was
late in developing the Medicaid waiver program and economic problems
have reduced this option to an insignificant resource in recent years.
The rapid proliferation of for-profit assisted living and home care
agencies expanded the number of services available to those with
financial means, but the lack of affordable options for long-term care
and supportive services became a major issue of concern for non-profit
agencies serving the elderly.
Early Initiative
An early initiative for systems
change began in 1998 when six agencies serving the elderly joined
forces to create an unmet needs fund which could quickly provide
assistance to individuals to pay for medications, in-home care,
utilities bills, and other emergency needs. The partnership approached
the Ann Arbor Area Community Foundation to fund this effort as an
on-going program, a departure from their usual one-year competitive
funding process. This fund is currently administered by Washtenaw
County's Barrier Busters program and continues to provide quick
assistance to hundreds of seniors effectively and efficiently.
Partnership Formed
In 2001, the Robert Wood Johnson
Foundation Community Partnership proposal provided a catalyst for a
core group of fifteen organizations, to form the Blueprint for Aging
Services Partnership (BASP). Although the proposal was not funded, the
energy created by coming together to write the proposal, inspired the
group to continue its efforts to create a collaborative plan to meet
the needs of the rapidly expanding senior population and their
caregivers. BASP obtained funding to support a coordinator to
facilitate development of the plan to identify current gaps in service
and create a future vision for meeting the needs of the elderly,
emphasizing long term care system change.
More than 40 community agencies
and 70 individuals participated in this effort over the past two years.
Through publicity and direct solicitation, older adults, community
leaders, professionals, and family caregivers participated in the
project. Several large community meetings led to the creation of a core
leadership team and five workgroups. This core leadership team
established guidelines and coordinated the project. Catholic Social
Services served as the fiduciary and lead administrative agency. Other
core leadership members represented: Area Agency on Aging 1-B,
HelpSource, Housing Bureau for Seniors, Neighborhood Senior Services,
University of Michigan Turner Geriatric Clinic, and Washtenaw County
Health Organization-Community Support and Treatment Services. The five
workgroups were Health, Housing, Quality of Life, Social Services and
Transportation. These diverse community representatives participated in
lively discussions in the workgroups, meeting at least monthly, and
invited other professionals and consumers to present information and
ideas. This cumulative effort produced a 150-page consensus report, a
vision for the future.
Blueprint for Aging Receives National Funding for
Planning
The content of this report
provided the groundwork for a proposal submitted to the Community
Partnerships for Older Adults Program (CPFOA) of the Robert Wood
Johnson Foundation in 2004. This proposal was granted, and Blueprint
for Aging (formerly the Blueprint for Aging Services Partnership)
became one of few select projects across the country to receive an
18-month strategic planning grant and the opportunity to re-apply for a
$750,000 implementation grant.
Blueprint for Aging
Receives National Funding to Implement Plans
In May, 2006, the Blueprint for
Aging was awarded this $750,000 grant from the Robert Wood Johnson
Foundation's Community Partnershipsfor Older Adults Program (CPFOA) to
improve long term care and supportive services for at risk older adults
in Washtenaw County by implementing plans developed over the 18-month
period. The four-year implementation grant was awarded to only sixteen
projects across the country.
The project provides a structure
for:
-
Bringing greater
visibility to the priorities, concerns, and experiences of
seniors;
-
Providing seniors with
meaningful ways to affect decisions about community issues that
ultimately impact their lives;
-
Developing improved
technology to streamline service delivery;
-
Testing innovative pilot programs in caregiving
support, transportation and improved access to needed help;
-
Building a community that
is prepared to meet the challenges and opportunities of the county’s
rapidly growing older adult population.
Click here to read the Blueprint for Aging's Executive
Summary
Click here to view a one-page document outlining
the Blueprint's four Strategic Initiatives
(top of page)
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