CALA News & Views | Issue 46 | Relationships

Coro was the launching pad I needed to enter the world of public affairs and prepared me to serve in various leadership roles in the private, non-profit, and public sectors. I was appointed by Gov. Gray Davis as Deputy Director of Public Affairs for the California Department of Social Services. This is where I learned about how the myriad programs of social services for youth, families and older adults are designed and implemented. I learned about Community Care Licensing and the way in which the state oversees the licensing and regulatory enforcement of Long-Term Care Facilities. Following the change in Administration, I found a job in the private sector during the early years of outsourcing government services. I worked with the CDSS in the Electronic Benefits Transaction (EBT) program, and Department of Health Care Services, as a manager for Provider Relations in Medi-Cal. I had the opportunity to work as the Director of Advocacy for AARP California, and worked on federal and state initiatives that were the first in the nation. For example, the law that created the CalSavers Program and the law that prohibits pay-to-delay practices in California in the pharmaceutical industry, creation of the California Disability and Aging Alliance (CADA), which helped raise the issue of the lack of a way for middle income Californians to pay for long-term services and supports. This was a coalition of labor, aging and disability rights advocates, and was instrumental in raising the importance of focusing an age friendly platform for the 2018 gubernatorial election. Gov. Newsom has kept his promise to Californians and made older adults a priority in his administration, through his Master Plan on Aging blueprint. Right before I was given the opportunity to serve under Gov. Newsom’s administration, I was working with a diverse coalition during my time at AARP on a nursing home package of bills. In 2021, California was one of the first states to pass legislation that increases financial transparency in the nursing home industry. When the long-term care ombudsman position was opened, I jumped at this opportunity to continue advocating to improve the quality of the long-term care system in our state, and nation. What kind of training do Ombudsmen receive? Residents in long-term care facilities and/or their families, staff or other representatives contact the Ombudsman representatives to resolve a variety of problems. Oftentimes, this is to address basic quality of life concerns and complex matters of eviction or abuse and neglect. Therefore, a baseline competency of both knowledge and skills is necessary to support effective Ombudsman program services.

We have less than 700 volunteer and paid certified long-term care Ombudsmen as the result of the impact of COVID-19. Many volunteers are older adults and did not want the risks associated with the LTC Ombudsman position, so we lost over 40 percent of our volunteers during 2019-2020. A certified LTC Ombudsman representative, paid or volunteer must pass a background clearance, and then complete 36 hours of training that includes the following topics: • Roles, Responsibilities and Authorities (federal and state) • The Resident and Resident Experience • Putting the Resident First • Long Term Settings, Resident Rights, and Enforcement • Access and Communication • Conducting Facility Visits • The Complaint Process, Intake, Investigation, Analysis, Planning and Implementation • Challenging Complaints and Referral Agencies • The Documentation Process • Cultural Competencies • Witnessing Advance Health Care Directives (AHDCs), and Property Transfers In addition to the required completion of the 36 hours of training, internship and/or mentoring with an experienced LTC Ombudsman representative in the field, also included are structured tours, and meeting with resident and family councils. In order to maintain their certification status, the LTC Ombudsman representative is required to attend 18 hours of annual training on various subjects, such as working with people with dementia or dementia-related illnesses, disaster preparedness, working effectively with family and resident councils, elder abuse, etc. The idea for the LTC Ombudsman Program was developed by Dr. Arthur S. Flemming, Counselor on Aging to President Nixon. He envisioned a program as an advocacy program for residents in nursing homes, due to their rapid growth and concern for the quality of care and quality of life experienced by residents of these facilities. In 1972, it began as a demonstration program. Today, the LTC Ombudsman program operates in all states, the District of Columbia, Puerto Rico, and Guam, under the authorization of the OAA. Each state has an Office of the State LTC Ombudsman, headed by a full-time State LTC Ombudsman who directs the program statewide. Ombudsmen designate staff and thousands of volunteers as representatives to directly serve residents (Programs & Harris-Wehling J). Tell us about the history and the mission of the Ombudsman program.

CALA NEWS & VIEWS I ISSUE 46 | APRIL 2023

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