Community resources are assets that are accessible to all community members which help them meet their particular needs. The resources can be funded or run by the government, individuals, or non-profit groups, and they serve a community in different ways. People, community services, or structures such as clinics and safe houses are examples of community resources. In Marion County, Florida, there are several public resources, such as Marion Oaks Assisted Living, Village Veranda, that offer memory care and assisted living services, and Marion Senior Services among others. The paper focuses on Marion Senior Services, a community resource in Florida, and the impact it has had on the lives of older adults.
Marion Senior Services is a charitable and non-profit social organization that provides support and care to the disadvantaged, disabled, and elderly people of Marion County Florida. The Services offered by the agency include In-Home Support, provision of meals, and transit to clients. The In-Home Support services assist eligible clients who are elderly people and functionally impaired to live dignified lives in their homes or residence of their caregivers. The organization does so by providing different community-based services, such as case management, personal care, companionship, chores, shopping assistance, and managing medication through the volunteer Licensed Practical Nurses (LPN).
Marion Senior Services delivers meals to the home-bound elderly who cannot drive and might need a meal because they are on medication. Lastly, Marion Transit offers efficient and safe Para-transit transportation service to the disadvantaged and elderly who have no access to facilities such as medical and recreational centers because they lack a means of transport. It is clear that the services are inclusive of older adults, and Marion Senior Services has been helping them maintain their independent living status as long as possible.
For a client to connect to the services offered by Marion Seniors, the caregivers or the client can directly liaise with service coordinators and consultants. There is a contact available on the website of the organization and one can speak to the intake coordinator who will note the basic information. Having done that, a visit is scheduled to complete the application. The community resource is convenient to the surrounding area and easy to access by all residents because it is within Florida. This Support Service provides outreach to victims of elder abuse or exploitation of any kind. Abuse can vary from emotional to verbal, financial, sexual, and neglect abuse (Pillemer et al., 2016). Neglect abuse happens when people who take care of the elderly start lacking interest in their well-being and show no affection to them, thus, leading to psychological distress and pain (Pillemer et al., 2016). The Marion Senior Services comes in with their outreach In-Home Support services to show compassion and care to the elderly who have been abused by being neglected.
In conclusion, the organization understands that it is important to protect the privacy of an individual, which includes health information. Therefore, the agency ensures that a client’s records are well kept, particularly basic health information, and can only be accessible by the staff or an authorized individual with consent from the client. The Licensed Practical Nurses can provide information about this service to the client when there is a need for In-Home Support services to an elderly or any disabled person. Indeed, Marion Senior Services has over the years been of positive impact on the residents, particularly the elderly of Marion County in Florida.
Reference
Pillemer, K., Burnes, D., Riffin, C., & Lachs, M. S. (2016). Elder abuse: Global situation, risk factors, and prevention strategies. The Gerontologist, 56(Suppl_2), S194-S205. Web.