An Update on Health & Human Services
The Health & Human Services Working Group approved a $235,000 grant to the Helen Keller National Center for an innovative program to train Support Service Providers (SSPs) to assist individuals who are both deaf and blind (known as deaf-blind). The grant, which closes out the Adelaide Allen Non-Endowment Discretionary Fund, will train up to sixty SSPs to provide up to 2,300 total hours of sighted-guide service to deaf-blind consumers – helping them with tasks such as attending doctor’s visits, going to the bank or the store, attending events and providing friendly companionship. This SSP program is the only program of its kind in the San Diego area and utilizes nationally renowned training curricula.
The working group and staff have also been busy developing a program to assist our aging society. Through support from the Del Mar Healthcare Fund, The San Diego Foundation will provide services to eliminate isolations of our county’s aging society. The San Diego Foundation awarded $328,000 to six grantees on Thursday, February 3. This philanthropic support will increase case management and outreach services as well as create a GIS-mapping tool for agencies that serve older adults. These grants are the first in a newly established program, Our Aging Society, within The Foundation’s Health & Human Services program.
Bob Kelly, President and CEO, The San Diego Foundation, and Don Ambrose, President, Del Mar Healthcare
Jewish Family Service of San Diego received a $50,000 grant while Senior Community Centers of San Diego, Bayside Community Center, ElderHelp of San Diego, and Mountain Health & Community Services each received $62,000. San Diego State University was granted $28,000 to develop a GIS-based map that will enable agencies to understand the demographics in their service areas and reach out to older adults in areas not currently served by any agency. The remaining $2,000 will facilitate quarterly meetings and other administrative support to help the grantee cohort work together and learn from one another.
Supporting outreach and case management services is a key strategy in reducing isolation amongst older adults, which has been shown to lead to negative outcomes such as depression, medication mismanagement, illegal drug use, falls and hospital or nursing home admissions. Last year, 3,627 per 100,000 San Diego County older adults were discharged from an emergency room due to a fall, according to the San Diego County Senior Health Report produced by the County Health and Human Services Agency.
Click here to view photos from the event.