Elder Ombudsman Volunteer Advocates Honored at Annual Awards Luncheon

Additional volunteers sought – to advocate for elderly residents

LONG BRANCH - The Office of the Ombudsman of the Institutionalized Elderly (OOIE) will recognize its roughly 200 volunteers at their 13^th Annual Volunteer Awards Luncheon on Wednesday, June 11 at McLoone’s Pier House in Long Branch, NJ.

“This event is a celebration of the dedication and commitment of our volunteer advocates who give their time and effort in ensuring the quality of care for residents in long term care facilities, who sometimes cannot advocate for themselves,” said Ombudsman Debra Branch.

The volunteers contribute a minimum of four hours each week visiting elderly residents in nursing homes and other institutional settings.

“Some come to the nursing home everyday, and it’s because they become so invested in the concerns of the residents and want to make sure they are receiving quality care. They get so much more than they give because it’s rewarding,” OOIE Program Coordinator Joann Cancel said.

For many residents, the volunteers are their only visitors for extended lengths of time. They provide companionship as well as identify and mediate problems that can be resolved quickly by nursing home staff.

The volunteers complement the investigative functions of the Ombudsman’s office, which is charged with examining all allegations of abuse, neglect, and financial exploitation of residents, age 60 and older, within long term care facilities.

In cases of suspected abuse, neglect or exploitation, or in cases where the volunteer feels a facility has not responded to a complaint appropriately, the volunteer forwards the complaint to the elder ombudsman. That office under the Department of the Public Advocate and other appropriate agencies get involved to ensure resident safety and to bring the facility into compliance with state and federal laws.

In May, the Office trained 28 new volunteers, and since the program’s inception in 1993, volunteers have donated more than 150,000 hours to advocating on behalf of the state’s institutionalized elderly.

After completing 32 hours of training in communication, observation and troubleshooting skills, they will shadow existing volunteers who have been with the program for at least one year. After six months, the newly trained volunteers begin their independent assignments.

If you would like to learn more about the volunteer program, please visit http://www.state.nj.us/publicadvocate/seniors/elder/volunteertohelp.html.

If you are interested in becoming a volunteer, please email Joann Cancel at joann.cancel@advocate.state.nj.us or call 609-943-4022.

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