Additional Flu Clinics at the Seniors Centre 461 Carson will be held Nov. 5 and 13 from 1 – 6 p.m.
GERIATRIC ASSESSMENT TEAM
On Nov. 15 from 4:30 – 6 p.m. at the Golden Centre, at 401 Front St., Dr. Dian will be presenting “Successful Aging: An Owner’s Manual.” Open to the public.
The Geriatric Assessment Team came into being in 1994 with the mandate of “receiving referrals from the community to review geriatric clients who are presenting with psychiatric problems.”
The team carries out a complete assessment, implements a treatment plan and provides support and education. An important component of the program is the utilization of Outreach Services, semi-annual visits for education and case reviews by visiting specialists who work with the local team members, physicians and health care staff.
Dr. Larry Dian has been attending in Quesnel since the inception of the program. He is presently division head, Geriatric Medicine at Vancouver General Hospital, clinical associate professor, Department of Geriatric Medicine at UBC and co-director of the Osteoporosis Centre of B.C. Dr. Dian provides education sessions to physicians and health care staff on various subjects including delirium, dementia, osteoporosis, Parkinson’s disease and medications.
Dr. Maria Geizer, geriatric psychiatrist with Providence Health Care and clinical assistant professor, Department of Geriatric Psychiatry at UBC has also been with the Outreach Service since 1995. She provides her expertise in areas such as dementia, depression, psychiatry and chronic pain medication use in the elderly.
Both physicians bring their expertise with the latest developments and research and promote the concept of a Healthy Brian, Healthy Aging.
The community appreciates the OAPO providing use of the Golden Centre for this presentation.
COMMUNITY RESPONSE NETWORK
Some CRN members had the opportunity to meet with Heather Archer, team leader for Interior and Northern BC Community Response Network, Oct. 25. While it was primarily a brainstorming session on ways Community Response Network can be more effective, a focus was set on where we go from here.
Originally the BC Association of Community Response Networks (BCACRN) grew out of the need to create an on-going, permanent provincial funding and support structure for the benefit of locals CRNs – a diverse group of concerned community members who come together to create a coordinated community response to adult abuse, neglect and self-neglect.
The QCRN was established through sponsorship of the Office of Public Guardian and Trustee under the Adult Guardianship Legislation. It is now under the umbrella of the Quesnel Child Youth and Family Network with Karen Borsato as the co-ordinator since 2008.
Contacts include Community Living BC, Adult Services Team out of the Longname office, Northern Health, RCMP Victim’s Assistance and RCMP policing, Seniors Advocacy Service, Voice for Seniors, Poverty Law, Quesnel Literacy, Addiction Services, Women’s Resource Centre, Amata Transition House, Quesnel Accessibility Committee, North Cariboo Aboriginal Family programs, Elizabeth Fry Victims Services and concerned citizens at large.
The B.C. Ministry of Health has given the United Way funding, in response to an application, channelled to the local CRN as a grant, to establish a Better at Home program in Quesnel. A representative will be in touch with seniors organizations to explain some of the services provided by ‘Better at Home’. This new initiative helps seniors continue living independently in their own homes by providing simple non-medical support services like help with housekeeping and transportation to appointments.
The range of Better at Home services varies from community to community, depending on specific needs of local seniors. Examples of services include housekeeping, grocery shopping, home repair, transportation to appointments, friendly visiting, snow shovelling and yard work. In each community, local non-profit agencies deliver Better at Home services delivered by a mix of volunteers and paid staff.
Ruth Scoullar is a seniors’ advocate and regular Observer contributor.
