Spotlighting senior services: Local agency serves thousands of people

A few vocal opponents of Flathead County’s quest to build a new Agency on Aging facility have tossed out the notion that AOA only serves a couple of hundred senior citizens.

The Agency on Aging’s records, however, show that last year the agency served 1,352 people just with its meals program.

That includes 1,004 seniors served congregate meals in 2012 at the Agency on Aging building on Kelly Road plus five outlying senior centers. Meals on Wheels delivered hot meals to 348 seniors in their homes.

So far this fiscal year, through the end of March, the agency’s meal program has served nearly 1,200 clients. That includes 292 senior shut-ins who get home-delivered meals and 906 clients who are served congregate meals.

The Agency on Aging’s services extend well beyond the meals program. Here’s a rundown on other numbers and services:

v It offers housekeeping assistance to seniors who need help to say in their homes. Last year that program tallied 3,780 hours provided to 197 clients.

v Escorted transportation for those not able to ride the Eagle Transit bus or use Dial-A-Ride services helped another 79 individuals, with the agency providing 1,769 hours of escort service.

v Respite care for family members who need a break from caring for loved ones helped 74 people last year, supplying 2,932 hours of care.

v The agency’s information and referral program is hugely popular, with staffers handling more than 1,000 calls and walk-in appointments every month. Staffers and volunteers provide Medicare, Medicaid and other insurance counseling, as well as education on fraud and elder abuse prevention. Staff members also help people apply for the Montana Elderly Homeowner/Renter Tax Credit.

v Legal counseling is available monthly at the Kalispell Senior Center, where seniors can schedule a 30-minute session.

v Home visits or daily phone calls are made to seniors who are lonely and need companionship.

v Also under the Agency on Aging umbrella is the ombudsman program. Ombudsman Susan Kunda visits all 19 nursing homes and assisted-living facilities in the county each month, investigating complaints and educating facility staff about best practices.

v The agency oversees Eagle Transit, which last year provided 91,850 rides for county residents. About 53,273 rides were for the Dial-A-Ride program that serves seniors and people with disabilities.

v The Agency on Aging’s people power is on full display with its Retired and Senior Volunteer Program in which 485 active volunteers 55 and older put in 34,846 hours at 80 community work sites.

v And finally, the Senior Mobile Home Repair Program, run by volunteers and supported by private donations, provided about $20,000 of mobile-home repairs to very low-income seniors, allowing them to continue living in their homes.

U.S. Census statistics show that of the estimated 91,633 people in Flathead County, 15.1 percent, or 13,745 residents, are age 65 and older.

By 2030 it’s expected that one in every four residents in Montana will be 65 and older.

The Flathead County Area IX Agency on Aging is one of 11 such agencies in Montana designated to meet the provisions of the federal Older Americans Act.

The federal law passed in 1965 was designed to promote health and maintain independence for people age 60 and older through a wide range of social, nutritional and supportive programs.

The Agency on Aging is required by federal law to have an advisory council on which at least half the members are 60 or older.

Features editor Lynnette Hintze may be reached at 758-4421 or by email at lhintze@dailyinterlake.com.