Annually, RRF’s Trustees spend a day site visiting projects to understand better the effect of the Foundation’s grants and gain first-hand knowledge of the challenges that grantees face in delivering services to the elderly. On May 19th, the HomeCare Physicians Program (HCP), located in Wheaton, Illinois, graciously hosted an entire day for the Trustees with staff, patients, and their families. HCP is the recipient of a two-year, $73,108 Organizational Capacity Building grant to improve its fundraising capacity. With the grant, HCP hired part-time development staff to help build a $3 million endowment that will offset non-reimbursable expenses.
A program of Central DuPage Health, the HomeCare Physicians Program (HCP) provides compassionate, comprehensive, state-of-the-art medical care for homebound elderly right in their own homes. This nationally recognized award-winning medical house call program annually serves 800 patients; 95% are age 65 or over. The average age of the patients is 82.
HCP effectively manages care for homebound seniors with chronic conditions such as decubitus ulcers, advanced obstructive lung disease, advanced congestive heart failure, and terminal cancer. Otherwise treated, seniors with these conditions would experience frequent hospitalizations or be placed in a nursing home. Every day, HCP’s founder and Medical Director Thomas Cornwell, MD, and his team deal with the issues of poorly managed care transition and discharge planning.
Trustees spent the morning with Dr. Cornwell and members of his staff. They saw compelling slides of HCP’s patients, reviewed data on Medicare reimbursement for home care, and saw demonstrations of sophisticated high tech equipment that allows the program to perform blood tests, take heart scans, and perform other diagnostics usually not done in the home. Dr. Cornwell and his staff discussed their efforts to address policy barriers to promoting home care as a cost-effective approach for treating this population.
In the afternoon, RRF Trustees met family members and a patient who have been involved with HCP to learn first-hand of their experiences with the health care system before and after HCP became their medical provider. The Trustees learned about the challenges families face around issues of care transition and coordination, how they deal with increasingly complex home medical equipment, and how they cope with caregiving issues. The Trustees gained an appreciation of the many benefits of this program, not the least of which is the huge reduction in hospitalizations that even the most medically complex patients experience once they are in the capable and compassionate hands of Dr. Cornwell and HCP.
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Mrs. T. was hospitalized six times over a two year period for a severe lung condition prior to HomeCare Physicians starting to care for her in 1997. Over the past eleven years she has only been back to the hospital twice. She improved so much that she was able to attend adult day care. Dr. Cornwell came to visit her on Halloween 1997 and at the age of 98 found her dressed up as Sylvestor the Cat ready to go to the day care’s Halloween party. |
Mr. G. used to enjoy being an Elvis impersonator for charity events. In 1999 at the age of 44 he developed a neurodegenerative disorder and by 2001 he could no longer leave the house. HomeCare Physicians starting caring for Mr. G. and he has never had to go to the hospital despite his severe illness. Mrs. G. does a remarkable job caring for him along with her 23 year old son who has cerebral palsy and is blind.
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July, 2008
ACCESSIBLE FAITH GRANT
PROGRAM
(Funding for Accessibility Improvements
in
The Accessible Faith Grant Program is closed for 2008. However, an additional $300,000 in funding will be available in 2009. Please check our website in December for an announcement of application dates and procedures.
Through the Accessible Faith Grant Program, the Foundation makes funds available to Chicago area houses of worship for accessibility improvements to their facilities. Such improvements should allow increased participation of older adults in the programs, services, and activities that occur in the facilities. To review materials from the 2008 program, click here.
June, 2008
RRF WELCOMES OUR FIRST STUDENT INTERN
This month, the Foundation welcomes Mary O'Donnell as its first graduate student intern. A second year Master's student in Social Service Administration at the University of Chicago, Mary recently became a fellow of the Hartford Foundation's Partnership Program for Aging Education. This initiative trains 1,000 social workers to work with older adults using a specialized field education. Mary brings to the Foundation work experience in aging at Experience Corps of Boston and CJE SeniorLife and volunteer experience in the philanthropic sector. RRF is fortunate that she chose the Foundation as her internship placement. Mary will work with RRF through mid-December of 2008, when she will graduate. RRF will look forward to Mary's help on several important projects and anticipates she will someday become a leader in the field of aging.
April, 2008
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NEW
INSTITUTE OF MEDICINE REPORT
ON
THE SHORTAGE OF WORKERS IN GERIATRICS
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