The ASURA January 2023 seminar featured speakers from the Area Agency on Aging.  Alfredo Gonzalez, Scott Hathornthwaite and Marco Mendoza provided valuable information on the services offered by the agency. The services and programs they presented are available within Maricopa County.  However, they all mentioned that most of the programs are found in other counties throughout the State of Arizona, but under a different agency/council.  The following link can be used to find the agency/council in your county - https://arizonaaging.org/area-agencies/. 

Alfredo started by discussing the 24-Hour Senior HELP LINE.  This is the information and assistance program and central intake for the Agency.  The number for that line is 602-264-4357.  Next, he discussed the Senior Adult Independent Living (SAIL) program which provides case management and services to senior and adults with disabilities who live in the community and need assistance with their daily living activities.  From there he discussed the Long-Term Care Ombudsman program which provides advocacy for residents in assisted living and skilled nursing facilities.  Caring Circles, which consists of volunteers who provide companionship to seniors 60 years and older to reduce social isolation, was next on the agenda.  The elderSHOP program provides grocery shopping and grocery home delivery to seniors 60 years and older.  Next, Alfredo touched on the Legal Assistance program that provides legal assistance and legal resources to seniors.  DOVES is the program that provides domestic violence prevention counseling to victims of late life domestic violence.  Last, but not least, Alfredo presented the services and programs under the ElderVention Clinical Services Programs. 

Scott was next on the agenda presenting information on the Family Caregiver Support services available to the family caregiver.  These services include, care coordination & case management, respite services, caregiver support groups and kinship care.  He outlined in great detail, the three types of respite service models that are available – respite agency model, friends & neighbors model and adult day health care model.  He talked about the benefits of caregivers attending support groups.  The Kinship Care program is for grandparents who are now in the position of raising their grandchildren.  In addition, Scott presented the Trualta program which offers free training for caregivers to build their skills.  This program is open to anyone who wants to develop caregiver skills.  The URL to signup for or access the program is https://aaaphx.trualta.com/login. 

Marco concluded the seminar by presenting the State Health Insurance Assistance Program (SHIP).  SHIP is federally funded by the Administration for Community Living.  It is part of a national network with 54 SHIP grantees, one in all 50 states, Puerto Rico, Guam, the District of Columbia and the U.S. Virgin Islands.  There are over 2,000 local sites with over 12,500 team members.  It’s main purpose is to assist in navigating Medicare.  Understanding your Medicare choices, how to enroll, plan comparison, coverage and costs, submitting appeals and referral to other resources are just a few of the services they provide. 

Marco also provided a flyer that outlines the various volunteer opportunities available to individuals.  Volunteer flyer

A list of links and other contact information is provided in the presentation slides.