The King County Long Term Care Ombudsman Program (LTCOP) wants more volunteers. Many more.
The organization, created under the Federal Older Americans Act, has a goal of visiting every adult family home in its territory. On the Eastside alone there are 130 of these private residences providing care for the elderly and disabled, 100 of which are not assigned a volunteer.
An additional 16 nursing homes and 48 boarding homes exist in the region, with roughly half of them having volunteers.
LTCOP volunteers complete a four-day training program to become long-term care ombudsmen.
The King County LTCOP works with the state Department of Social and Health Services to ensure the basic rights of residents living in nursing homes, assisted-living facilities, and adult family homes.
John Barnett remembers when his mother started living in an assisted-living facility. She thought she’d lost her rights, but Barnett knew better. He was an ombudsman.
Volunteers for the LTCOP dedicate a minimum of four hours per week meeting with caregivers and their residents. Sometimes the check-ups spark friendship as volunteers chat with tenants about their interests, whether they involve painting, gardening, classic cars or Judge Judy.
“If you give a little of yourself, they start opening up to you,” said Joan Gibbs-Iverson, an ombudsman who also works as a special-education teacher at Interlake High School.
Ombudsmen generally meet with caregivers first during their visits to go through a series of questions about facilities and operations. Then they meet with residents to address concerns, chat about life, and hand out brochures explaining their rights.
Ombudsmen Jill Cline and John Stilz found nothing out of the ordinary when they visited two adult family homes on June 24, the first day of the LTCOP initiative in Bellevue. They made stops at Kelsey Creek Adult Family Home and Brookwood House.
Cecilia and Adrian Filip opened Kelsey Creek Adult Family Home in 2001, following in the footsteps of Cecelia’s parents, who run a similar operation across the street. The couple lives on the second floor of the two-story home, and provide care on the ground floor, which is designed specifically to accommodate the residents.
Likewise, Gabriela Meszaros and her husband run Brookwood out of their own one-story rambler, located a few blocks away.
Lee Kalmbach, whose stepmother lives in Brookwood, says the home is always tidy, even when she drops in unannounced.
“It’s cleaner than my own place most of the time,” she said. “We’re very happy with the care here.”
When things are that good, there’s little need for action. But not every situation is perfect.
Nick Bieler is a management consultant who volunteers as an on-call ombudsman for the King County LTCOP. When he gets a call, it’s typically because someone needs help.
“In a lot of ways, (being an ombudsman) is similar to being a consultant – dealing with people and issues,” he said. “Here the biggest challenge is bringing people up to speed when a complaint is called in. People have problems and they don’t know what to do.”
Ombudsmen may provide a critical service, but Cline says they don’t need special medical or psychological skills to get the job done; they just have to care about people.
For more information about volunteering with the King County LTCOP, visit www.ltcop.org or call 206-694-6703.
Joshua Adam Hicks can be reached at 425-453-4290.
