HeART Concord Art Show. Photo courtesy of Concord Counseling
Eleven million, or 28 percent of people 65 or older, live alone in the U.S. And while living alone does not inherently lead to senior isolation, it is a predisposing factor. Senior isolation can be a serious issue and has been linked to negatively affecting both mental and physical health. Concord Counseling is fighting against senior isolation with its Senior Link program.
“Our senior link is a small group of staff that are dedicated to work with, I like to say, young seniors; 60 and older,” says Debra Tehrani, manager of older adult services at Concord. “Our team currently consists of two therapists who provide mental health counseling … and three, we call them, wellness advocates. (They) really support our residences who have mental health issues which can vary from anything including depression, anxiety, grieved loss, to more significant longer-term mental health issues such as schizophrenia, bipolar disorder, issues that someone has struggled with all their lives.”
The Senior Link program, along with mental health services, can provide help and care with day-to-day needs such as groceries, medications, going for walks, getting clients socially engaged with the community or just providing seniors the opportunity to have a conversation. The program also provides transportation services for those who need more mobility. The wellness advocates try to meet all of the client’s physical, mental and emotional needs.
“It’s really based on the client’s need,” Tehrani says. “(Wellness advocates) also often help with technology. That’s a struggle for a lot of seniors, trying to figure out how to work their phones.”
Janet Tressler-Davis, president of the Westerville Area Chamber of Commerce, is one of the people who benefitted from Concord’s service. Her father used the program for many years before he passed away.
Her father, an individual with multiple sclerosis, was homebound and her mother was his primary caretaker.
“Concord would send people over to visit. And it was so nice. They weren’t coming over to do anything physically for him. They were just coming over to talk to him and be a companion. And it was wonderful because they gave my mom some time, a little reprieve,” Tressler-Davis says. “Not that she didn’t enjoy taking care of him, but the caretaker needs a little break too. So it was wonderful for both of them.”
For more information about Concord Counseling, its Senior Link program or any other programs, visit its website at www.concordcounseling.org.
Evan Wehmeyer is a contributing writer. Feedback welcome at feedback@cityscenemediagroup.com.
