Annual Report 2011 - Greater Springfield Senior Services

Executive Director’s Message
Elaine Massery
Executive Director
The year 2011 was one that
highlighted our interdependence
with community stakeholders in
more ways than funding and
client referrals.
After a series of tornadoes
on June 1 struck Western Massachusetts,
cutting a 38-mile
path of destruction, the network
of social service agencies sprang
into action. GSSSI staff met with
the American Red Cross to offer assistance
for elders who had no or little family support.
We joined forces with Springfield’s Department
of Elder Affairs and other Councils on
Aging to identify and assist seniors in need.
A process was developed to provide financial
assistance for such items as rent, personal
care, household goods, moving and storage.
First and foremost, GSSSI staff contacted
clients to determine the status of their safety.
Where concerns were the greatest, police
and emergency personnel were contacted.
A client in our Adult Family Care program
went to a shelter, and then to a local skilled
nursing facility until a new suitable home was
found. Potential shelter was also available in
two of our Adult Family Care homes and in
one of our congregate housing facilities.
Concern about the hospital re-admittance
rate of high-risk Medicare patients after
discharge has opened doors for service
organizations such as GSSSI to employ their
expertise in community-based services in the
health care arena. One such opportunity
is Medicare’s Community-Based Care
Transitions program. It offers incentives
to agencies such as ASAPs to work with
hospitals in improving the re-admittance rate
by providing evidenced-based interventions
and other services at the time of discharge.
By the close of this fiscal year, GSSSI had
become part of a joint application with the
University of Mass. Medical Center and
Baystate Health Systems.
Another opportunity for creatively utilizing
our skills has come in the form of a Money
Follows the Person grant obtained by the
Commonwealth’s Executive Office of Elder
Affairs. This program uses very innovative
approaches to assist in discharging Medicaid
enrollees who have lived in Skilled Nursing
Facilities for at least 90 days.
Our new “Healthy Living Wellness Series”
has brought GSSSI together with active adults
in the community. Fourteen group leaders
were trained, and 37 people attended
sessions held at area senior centers. We
look forward to even more community
participation and support in 2012.
As we travel the road ahead, I look
forward to working with our dedicated Board
of Directors, committee members, staff,
volunteers, our legislators, and the various
agencies with whom we collaborate.