|
|
|
|
ESCC Updates September 2018
|
|
|
New fact sheet shows impact of Home Supports Program .
|
|
As part of ESCC’s backbone role with the Seniors Home Supports Program, we oversee the evaluation of the program. The evaluation has produced valuable information on who is being helped by the program, how the program is being used, and the impact on seniors.
To help people understand the difference this program is making for Edmonton seniors we’ve pulled out some of the key learnings into an illustrated fact sheet that’s easy to digest.
We encourage you to download a copy of the Edmonton Seniors Home Supports Program Quick Facts to learn more.
The Seniors Home Supports Program helps seniors age in the community by providing referrals to service providers offering snow removal, yard help, housekeeping, home repair and maintenance, personal services, and moving help.
www.seniorshomesupports.com
|
|
Enhanced Recreation and Wellness Directory .
|
|
ESCC has enhanced our popular Recreation and Wellness Directory for Older Adults to make it even easier to search for activities that interest you.
New online platform
The new platform we’re using allows users to search and filter results by area of the city, topic, activity name, and organization. It takes only a few clicks to find jam sessions on the north side or water colour classes in southeast Edmonton.
The full screen layout and large print makes the information much easier to read than our previous version.
You can find the online directory at www.seniorscouncil.net/recreation-directory.
Print version
We also made improvements to the print version of the directory. We heard in focus groups that one of the first criteria some seniors use to choose activities is which part of the city the activity is offered in. Each subcategory of the directory is now organized by district, so for example, if you’re looking for badminton in the northwest you know at a glance which organizations offer it.
We encourage you to browse through the directory to see the many opportunities for Edmonton seniors.
|
|
Kudos to ESCC board members for leading conversation cafe .
|
|
ESCC is fortunate to have skilled board members with expertise in human resources and board governance. We’re also fortunate that our board members want to contribute to help colleagues in the seniors sector.
Several ESCC board members volunteered to facilitate our June Conversation Cafe focusing on organizational governance. Thank you to Barb Gibson, Rick Brick, Gary Pool, Bauni Mackay, Mary Whale, Bernice Rempel, Cindy Hanson, Ratna Basappa, Vicky Sandouga and Sheila Clifford-MacKay.
ESCC board members facilitated the table talks and shared resources from ESCC and other sources with attendees. David Feldman, Manager of Strategic Initiatives for the Edmonton Chamber of Voluntary Organizations was on hand to share his thoughts on governance and to field questions and share resources as well. Attendees also shared examples of how their organization addresses various governance topics.
Several aspects of governance were discussed, including:
- Finding new board members/nomination committee work and election process
- Chairing the board and running effective meetings to move the board forward (including evaluation of each meeting)
- Incorporating generative discussions at board meetings and how this can support the strategic planning process
- Executive director/board relations and performance management methods (including end of performance review)
- Personnel/human resource management policy development (including the new employment standards)
- Policies and procedures vs bylaws and articles of association
If your organization would like copies of the resources shared at the meeting, email Janelle at memberservices@seniorscouncil.net.
Conversation Cafes give sector staff and board members an opportunity to exchange ideas and meet their peers. Attendees commented that they gained valuable insight in discussions with colleagues who have similar challenges to overcome and appreciated hearing what is happening in other organizations. Suggestions were provided to ESCC for future topics to explore such as risk management, change management, and conflict resolution.
|
|
Annual Seniors Information Phone Line
partnership review held in July .
|
|
The Edmonton Seniors Coordinating Council (ESCC), seniors centres and Canadian Mental Health Association (CMHA) partner to provide seniors with information and referrals through the Seniors Information Phone Line which is a service of 211 Edmonton. Callers to the phone line are given information about seniors programs, services, and resources in the Edmonton area. A unique feature of this partnership includes warm transfers to support workers in the community when 211 staff realize that the senior caller needs more support.
Because of their accreditation process, CMHA must have formal signed agreements with organizations when there will be a hand-off of a client that requires a more detailed assessment in order to receive timely support and assistance. These agreements were reviewed in July and ESCC’s role of facilitating the review process was also formalized. ESCC will facilitate an annual meeting to review the agreements to ensure the goals and expectations of each partner are being met.
The partnership with CMHA also requires agencies to ensure the data they provide to 211 about their programs and services is up to date. This information is very important because it helps the Information and Referral Specialists at 211 provide callers with effective, timely information. ESCC continues to work with 211 and agencies on consistent messaging about outreach programs to achieve increased clarity both for the general public and 211 staff. This work also aides in tracking statistics, ensuring that there is a shared understanding of terms and services.
Relationships between outreach workers and the 211 Information and Referral Specialists were strengthened earlier in the year when the Interagency Outreach Workers Network meeting was held at CMHA. Outreach workers and information specialists exchanged information about a “typical day in the life” to learn about the duties and challenges of each role.
CMHA gave an overview of the 2017 statistics for the phone line and a one-page handout for the Seniors Information Phone Line was circulated that can be used by agencies to help explain the line and its use. Further promotional plans are in the works.
|
|
Collective impact initiative helps organizations
work together to support seniors .
|
|
In 2015, the Government of Canada put out a call for proposals for projects that would use a “Collective Impact” approach to addressing the issues of social isolation of seniors across Canada. In Edmonton, under the leadership of the Edmonton Seniors Coordinating Council (ESCC), community organizations came together to develop an impact plan from which would emerge a number of projects that would focus on low-resourced seniors. In early 2016, the Pan-Edmonton Group Addressing Social Isolation of Seniors (PEGASIS) received funding for seven different projects.
At ESCC, our role is to support the initiative as we all learn about, and work within, the framework of the collective impact model. The other six projects were designed to deliver services directly to seniors to reduce isolation with several different approaches. The organizations undertaking these projects had limited experience working with each other and cover a broad range of purposes, target populations, strategic and governance models.
Two years later, we are taking stock of the lessons we have learned and what we have accomplished as we look forward to what is likely to happen with our projects once the funding comes to an end in March 2019. We are looking at how we can continue to work together, and with other stakeholders across Edmonton, to address social isolation.
Interestingly, it is not only the seven PEGASIS partners who are having an impact on social isolation in Edmonton. There are actually hundreds, if not thousands, of people and organizations who are trying, in their own ways, to reach out to people and help them to be connected and supported in their lives. The experience and consequences of isolation are different for everybody, and one of the realities of life is that we are never going to eliminate isolation. What we can continue to do is to keep working together to build caring neighbourhoods where people watch out for each other and do things together. We can continue to talk with each other and share ideas about ways to support each other so that when we do experience challenges and crises, there will be somebody close by who is ready, willing, and able to support us in a meaningful way.
There are as many different approaches to the work as there are people doing it. The collective impact model tries to make the work easier by removing some of the competitiveness of organizations vying for scarce resources, and by increasing the reach and effectiveness of their messages and services. This is, perhaps, the biggest success of this collective impact initiative – the increased ability of this group of people and organizations to work together, and to find new relationships and ways of working better to support everybody in Edmonton as they work their way through life’s challenges.
|
|
Report shares stories of AFE’s first five years .
|
|
The first five-year mandate of Age Friendly Edmonton (AFE) has been a great success due to the collaboration and hard work of people dedicated to improving the lives of seniors in our community.
AFE has released a report to the community – Age Friendly Edmonton, The First Five Years – which tells the stories of people helping to build a city that is happier, safer and more interesting for everyone of all ages. By sharing these stories, we celebrate what’s been accomplished and aim to inspire a greater participation in the Age Friendly movement as we embark on the next five years.
|
|
|
|
Age Friendly Edmonton is co-led by the City of Edmonton and the Edmonton Seniors Coordinating Council.
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
