Aging with Options Fact Sheet



Volunteers of America recently launched a new initiative called Aging with Options, which sets out to transform the current system by providing people with guidance and control over their care, and by allowing older Americans the freedom to receive care while living longer in their own homes.

  • Volunteers of America doesn’t have to create Aging with Options from scratch because we are already a national leader in providing care and housing for seniors. In the United States today, we are one of the largest nonprofit provider of affordable senior housing, as well as among the largest nonprofit providers of skilled nursing care and assisted living for seniors.
  • Through Aging with Options, we’re “trusted partners” with our clients, guiding them through what can often be a complex and confusing maze of services and agencies. Not only do we help older people remain independent for longer, but we also aim to use our expertise to make the aging process easier and less stressful.

We envision three main components to Aging with Options: Community Engagement Programs; Home and Community-based Services; and Program of All-Inclusive Care for the Elderly (PACE).

  • Community engagement would provide an organized system of programs that would enable neighbors to help neighbors. This could be as simple as someone helping an older neighbor with shopping, yard work or minor home repairs – assistance that would help the senior live independently for longer.
  • Home and community-based services would provide professional help with health care or daily activities such as medication management, medical equipment services or assisted living at home. Like community engagement, these services would aim to help older people receive the help they need while remaining independent and living at home as long as possible.
  • The final component, referred to as PACE for short, would provide services at a central location, where seniors would come during the day while continuing to live at home. Services provided at the PACE center include meals, medical care, therapy, prescription drug fulfillment, and referral to other social services.

Volunteers of America is already a national leader in providing care and housing for seniors.

  • Volunteers of America provides affordable housing and services to approximately 8,000 seniors each year.
  • In the area of full-time nursing care, Volunteers of America opened its first nursing home in Minnesota in 1969. We have provided care for 3,800 people in the years since and currently admit 55 new clients a month to our nursing facilities nationally, with an average stay of about 14 days.
  • In the United States today, we are:
     
    • The largest nonprofit provider of affordable senior housing
    • The 4th-largest nonprofit provider of skilled nursing care
    • The 6th-largest nonprofit provider of assisted living for seniors

Aging with Options TM Programs & Services

The continuum of care provided by Aging with Options includes a wide variety of different programs and services.

Case Management

An individualized service involving a health care professional, typically a nurse or social worker, who arranges, monitors, or coordinates long-term care services. Case management assesses a patient's needs and develops a plan of care, subject to approval by the patient's physician.

Transportation

We provide safe and accessible door-to-door transportation to older adults and persons with mobility impairments. Services include travel to medical and dental appointments, grocery shopping, meal sites and community-based care programs.

Meals On Wheels

Local agencies provide low-cost, hot, nourishing meals to the elderly and disabled, allowing frail, homebound people to remain in their own homes.  Meals On Wheels contribute to the overall well-being of seniors by providing regular nutrition and daily contact with a caring volunteer.

Foster Grandparents

Foster Grandparents are seniors who thrive on direct interaction with children and believe they can make a difference in their lives.  Seniors are provided the opportunity to devote volunteer service to disadvantaged or disabled youth through emotional support, tutoring and mentoring.

Protection against Abuse and Neglect

We offer help and protection from different acts of abusive behavior such as physical and financial abuse. Through programs such as the Elder Justice Training Partnership, the rights of older loved ones are acknowledged and respected.

Villages

The village concept allows seniors to remain independent. They offer fee-based concierge services to provide communication and engagement with others, home safety and security, and health and wellness resources to support successful aging at home.

Long-Term Care (Skilled, Assisted and CCRC)

Skilled Nursing includes care provided by a registered nurse; medications, supplies, equipment, and other services necessary to the health of the patient.

Assisted Living facilities are designed to assist elderly persons who are able to care for themselves except in cases such as preparing meals, bathing, dressing and performing household chores.  Residents living in Continuing Care Retirement Communities are provided services that are tailored to an individual's needs for as long as needed which include meals, housekeeping, transportation and personal care assistance.

Companion Services

Professionals visit homebound elders to meet a variety of needs. From conversation and reading to light errands, companions enhance the quality of life for homebound adults.

Affordable Housing

We are one of the nation’s largest nonprofit providers of quality, affordable housing for the elderly, including people with disabilities. Everyone deserves a place to call home.

Senior Centers

We provide access to community-based programs that provide a variety of services including social activities, nutrition, educational and recreational opportunities for older adults. Seniors find the kind of support that promotes positive physical and mental health.

Retired Senior Volunteer Program (RSVP)

RSVP mobilizes older volunteers to deliver creative solutions to community needs through meaningful use of their skills and experience in volunteer service to public and private non-profit agencies.