Jewish Family & Career Services implements new Wellness Care Specialist model at OneStreet Residential
ATLANTA (April 1, 2022) – Jewish Family & Career Services (JF&CS) of Atlanta and OneStreet Residential have partnered to provide a Wellness Care Specialist at Hearthside Club Lafayette, an active retirement community in Fayetteville.
The JF&CS Aviv Older Adults Wellness Care Specialist serves as an on-site bridge to bring a wide range of services and education to seniors. On-site health screenings, geriatric care management with individual residents, health and wellness classes are just a few of the services and educational opportunities provided.
After the first year, the pilot program is making significant strides in connecting seniors with resources to help 143 Hearthside LaFayette residents live independently. The Wellness Care Specialist has helped secure more than $4,000 in financial assistance throughout the Pandemic to help several Hearthside residents. Additionally,12 seniors were given tablets (cellular card included), a $6,700 value. They also offered a group technology training to help reduce feelings of isolation. Twenty-two residents attended the training.
The partnership is through AgeWell Atlanta, which is a collaborative, cross disciplinary, one-stop resource that links seniors, their family members, friends and caregivers to solutions for aging-related issues, including services that reduce the likelihood of nursing home admissions and hospital and emergency room visits.
As a provider of affordable housing for seniors throughout Georgia, OneStreet Residential believes that physical and mental health are necessities for thriving individuals and families.
“Through our ongoing partnership with JF&CS, we not only provide coordinated services for our residents on-site, but we plan to measure the success of these services while ensuring our residents’ privacy,” said Tammie Peterson, Director of Wellness & Community Engagement at OneStreet Residential. “The ongoing measurement of the impact of these services not only proves the case of an improved quality of life for our residents, but also will allow us to continuously tweak our services offered to best serve our residents,” she said.
A four-point system will be used to score risk factors related to residents’ physical health, psychological well-being, social relationships, and safety and security.
“This unique role is a hybrid of geriatric care management, case management, accessing community resources, and wellness education” said Susan Gordon, Wellness Care Specialist, JF&CS. “Community relationships, such as with Fayette Senior Services and Piedmont Fayette Hospital, are critical to providing these services and educational opportunities to help aging seniors live independently for as long as possible.”
Based on the success of the pilot program, OneStreet Residential expanded the program to Walton Mill and Sycamore Heights communities with Wellness Care Specialist, Melanee Peters in February. OneStreet Residential and JF&CS have plans to replicate the model throughout other communities. To learn more or get information about having a Wellness Care Specialist, visit www.jfcsatl.org/welllnesscare
About JF&CS
Established in 1891, Jewish Family & Career Services (JF&CS) offers programs and resources to help the Atlanta community. Guided by Jewish values, JF&CS serves thousands of individuals annually regardless of age, race, religion, national origin or ability to pay. We offer counseling and therapy for individuals, families and groups, older adult services, careers and support services, intellectual and developmental disabilities services, as well as free dental services at the Ben Massell Dental Clinic. For more information, please call 770.677.9300 or visit JFCSatl.org.