• Gwen Orlowski, Director

    As Director of the Division of Elder Advocacy, Gwen manages a staff dedicated to serving the interests of the New Jerseyans who are 60 years and over.  The division, which includes the Office of the Ombudsman for the Institutionalized Elderly, focuses its efforts on fostering dignity, independence and self-direction for people as they age.

    Gwen comes to the division with more than 15 years of experience working with low-income people, including people 60 and over.  After working at Ocean-Monmouth Legal Services in 1993-1994 where she practiced in the areas of housing and entitlement law, Gwen was a Clinical Associate Professor of Law and Visiting Professor in the Center for Social Justice at Seton Hall School of Law until 2002.

    While at the Center for Social Justice, Gwen supervised a student clinic which focused on the legal needs of homeless clients and also worked closely with the Elizabeth Coalition to House the Homeless.

    Gwen was Of Counsel to the Clark law firm of Perrotta, Fraser & Forrester, LLC, between 2000 and 2002 and specialized in elder law and guardianship work.

    In 2002, Gwen went to LSNJ (Legal Services of New Jersey) where she was a senior attorney and supervisor of both the Anti-Predatory Lending Project and the Senior Citizen Legal Rights Project.  In those capacities, she developed and maintained a docket of cases aimed at protecting homeowners who were victims of predatory home lending practices as well as a docket of Medicaid and nursing home cases aimed at securing access to long-term care benefits for those who needed the benefits in the least restrictive environment.

    She was also responsible for policy development and advocacy, including work on the New Jersey Home Ownership Security Act of 2002.

    Gwen has a 1990 law degree from Rutgers School of Law – Newark.  She graduated from Georgetown University in 1985.  Immediately upon graduating from Rutgers, Gwen served as a law clerk with the Superior Court of New Jersey, Chancery Division, for the Honorable Erminie L. Conley.  Gwen is currently pursuing a master’s degree in theology from the College of St. Elizabeth.


     

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  • Audrey Lynn Anderson, General Counsel, Office of the Ombudsman

    Audrey Lynn Anderson is General Counsel for the Office of the Ombudsman for the Institutionalized Elderly. She advocates on behalf of the elderly who are victims of abuse, neglect and financial exploitation. In addition, Audrey develops polices and procedures for the office, provides legal advice to the Elder Ombudsman and supervises the investigations for the office.

    Prior to joining the Elder Ombudsman staff, Audrey was a senior trial attorney for major insurance carriers. Audrey graduated with honors in Political Science from Douglass College, was awarded a Masters of Arts in criminal justice as a Rutgers Merit Scholar and received a J.D. from Seton Hall University.

    Audrey served as a law clerk to the Honorable Herman L. Breitkopf, Assignment Judge of the Middlesex County Superior Court. She was appointed by the New Jersey Supreme Court to a 4-year term as a member of the Attorney’s Ethics Committee in both Middlesex and Mercer counties.

     

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  • Debra H. Branch, Ombudsman for the Institutionalized Elderly

    As the Ombudsman for the Institutionalized Elderly, Debra’s goal is to advocate for the rights of all residents of long-term care facilities.

    The ombudsman develops policy and provides oversight to the statewide ombudsman program. The ombudsman's advocacy role takes two forms: 1) to receive and resolve individual complaints and issues by, or on behalf of, these residents; and 2) to pursue resident advocacy in the long-term care system, its laws, policies, regulations, and administration through public education and consensus-building.

    The primary responsibility of the program is to investigate and endeavor to resolve complaints made by, or on behalf of, individual residents in long-term care facilities. These facilities include nursing homes, assisted living facilities, residential care facilities for the elderly, adult day care programs, boarding homes, and special hospitals.

    Previous to becoming the ombudsman, Debra was Assistant Deputy Public Advocate in the Division of Elder Advocacy, where she advocated on behalf of senior citizens on such issues as access to health-care, quality of care, protection from financial abuse and quality of life in long-term care facilities.

    In her prior private law practice, Debra primarily focused on long-term-care planning for patients with dementia and other capacity-related issues. She has been and continues to be an outspoken advocate for the rights of the elderly.

    Debra earned a Bachelor of Science in mathematics from Virginia Commonwealth University and her law degree from Rutgers School of Law-Camden.  She was a recipient of the 2001 Molly and Philip Gleicher award for outstanding achievement in elder law.


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  • Joann Cancel, Volunteer Advocate Program Coordinator,Office of the Ombudsman

    Joann Cancel joined the Ombudsman’s Office in April of 1985 as a Legal Research Analyst providing support to the General Counsel and legal staff. As part of the Ombudsman’s legal team, Joann conducted investigations regarding proposals to withhold or withdraw life-sustaining medical treatment from elderly nursing home residents, making recommendations to the Ombudsman for compliance under case law in the Matter of Conroy, 98 N.J. 321 (1985).

    In 1993, Ms. Cancel started a pilot project to train and certify Ombudsman volunteers to advocate for residents 60 years of age and older, residing  in long term health care facilities throughout the State.  In 1995,  the Volunteer Advocate Program was expanded statewide to provide services to the 60 years + population served by the Ombudsman’s Office. As Program Coordinator, Joann is directly responsible for the day-to-day operation of the Volunteer Advocate Program supervising all aspects at  the state and regional level.

    Ms. Cancel is a Certified Paralegal,  EEG Technician and Certified Public Manager. Joann has presented at numerous statewide long term care conferences,  the National Society on Aging/National Council on Aging Conference in New Orleans, LA.. She  conducts in-service education for nursing facility staff and provides outreach to the public. Ms. Cancel has written many articles on the Volunteer Advocate Initiative in New Jersey and sits on the Governor’s Advisory Council on Volunteerism and Advisory Council for RSVP programs in New Jersey,   She is a former member of  the Consumer Advisory Council for the NJ Association of Health Care Facilities.

    In 2005,  Joann was the recipient of the Governor’s Professional Achievement Award and the Best of the Best Award for the New Jersey Department of Health and Senior Services.

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  • Mary Ann Chamberlain, Customer Service Representative

    Mary Ann Chamberlain is a customer service representative in the Division of Elder Advocacy, Office of the Ombudsperson for the Institutionalized Elderly. Mary Ann is the principal hotline counselor and manages a large volume of telephone calls per day, most of which involve complaints regarding abuse, neglect or exploitation of elderly residents of long-term care facilities.

    Mary Ann previously worked for the Department of Health and Senior Services, the College of New Jersey and the Department of Higher Education. Mary Ann was recognized for her outstanding work in 2003 when she received the New Jersey Public Service Recognition Award for customer service.


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  • Gail Meszaros, Field Investigator

    Gail Meszaros is a Field Investigator with the Office of the Ombudsman for the Institutionalized Elderly. She has been with the Ombudsman's office for 12 years. She is currently working as a Regional Coordinator with their Volunteer Advocate Program, responsible for seven counties.

    Prior to joining the Ombudsman's staff Gail was a criminal investigator with the Division of Criminal Justice for nine years and worked as an investigator with the Public Defenders office for 2 years.


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  • Deirdre Mraw, Assistant


    Deirdre Mraw serves as an assistant in the Division of Elder Advocacy and is the direct liaison between the Division of Elder Advocacy and the general public.

    Deirdre brings with her more than 25 years of experience in public relations, working in a variety of functions at Bristol-Myers Squibb Corporation and other private public relations agencies.

    Most recently, she worked at the Department of Community Affairs, Division of Codes and Standards. Reporting to the deputy director, she assisted the division director, deputy director, representatives of other government and private agencies and the general public in obtaining information regarding policies, programs and procedures.

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  • Jim Plastine, Nurse Consultant, Office of the Ombudsman

    Jim Plastine has been a Nurse Consultant with the Office of the Ombudsman for the Institutionalized Elderly since January 2006. Prior to this, he worked with long-term care programs at the Department of Health and Senior Services for approximately 12 years.

    Jim entered state service in 1986, working as a Head Nurse at the Arthur Brisbane Child Treatment Center, a psychiatric hospital for children considered to be at risk for harming themselves and others.

    His nursing experiences and assignments have included post operative open heart surgery, intensive care unit, continuing care unit, cardiac step-down, operating room, and outpatient clinics.

    Jim retired from the U.S. Naval Reserve after serving 27 years. He began his naval career as a hospital corpsman (medic) in 1973. Jim was a deep sea medical technician, qualified to work as a diving supervisor for SCUBA and Surface Supplied Air, Mixed Gas (Helium/Oxygen) diving operations. He served with Mobile Diving and Salvage Unit 2 and Naval Special Warfare Unit 2.

    For the past 11 years, Jim has worked with the EMS crew as a firefighter at Raceway Park in Old Bridge, New Jersey.

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  • Anita Scheckter, Program Development Specialist, Office of the Ombudsman

    In 1999, Anita Scheckter joined the Department of Health and Senior Services, Division of Senior Affairs, as project coordinator for “Operation Restore Trust,” a grant-based program to fight Medicare/Medicaid fraud and abuse.

    The Office of the Ombudsman assumed responsibility for the program in January of 2001. Anita stayed on as the Office’s program development specialist. Her primary responsibilities include reviewing and closing cases, ensuring that they are properly coded for federal reporting and editing outgoing letters. She is also the back-up counselor for the Office’s complaints hotline.

    Anita graduated with honors from Stockton State College, where she earned a B.A. in Liberal Arts with a specialization in American Indian Studies.


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  • Nalini Sundaresan, Field Investigator, Office of the Ombudsman

    Nalini Sundaresan (nee Kesavarao) joined the Office of the Ombudsman in 1998 as a field investigator. In that capacity, Nalini investigates complaints and concerns about elderly people living in nursing homes and other long-term care facilities.

    She earned an Associate Degree in Nursing from the State University of New York and worked as a registered nurse in various clinical positions, initially in the Medical Center at Princeton and later at North Princeton Developmental Center.

    Nalini's hobbies are Indian classical music and travel.


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