Karen Anne Rose: Senior World
As Director of Senior Services for the Institute of Physical Medicine and Rehabilitation and Senior World, Karen Anne Rose is helping to continue the program’s 25 years of work in adult day services in central Illinois.
Rose was born in Fort Riley, Kansas, living there and in Colorado before moving to central Illinois, where she has resided ever since. After graduating from Farmington East High School in 1971, Rose went on to major in French education at Illinois State University, obtaining her bachelor’s degree in 1975. But it wasn’t until several years later that Rose found her true calling.
“A very meaningful volunteer experience in the early 1980s prompted me to consider studying aging,” Rose said. “Working as a Catholic Social Services Friendly Visitor, I met an isolated older woman who had no family and few support systems other than CSS. I was so intrigued by her that I yearned to learn everything I could about aging.”
In 1990, Rose went on to complete a master’s degree in gerontology from the University of Illinois at Springfield. She then spent eight years as a case manager for an Illinois Department on Aging Case Coordination Unit, two years as an activities coordinator at Senior World, and two years as owner/operator of Companion Care Services, an in-home respite care business with an activities focus.
Senior World, a branch of the Institute of Physical Medicine and Rehabilitation (IPMR), began in 1981 under the leadership of Gloria Barth. Rose became involved through a college internship in the mid-1980s. She claims that the experience inspired her to become an adult day services advocate “right then and there.” In February 1999, Barth retired, and Rose succeeded her as director.
Some of the services that Senior World offers include:
• An individualized written plan of care that addresses each participant’s strengths and needs while stating specific goals.
• A variety of meaningful activities, including guided field trips, that meet participants’ interests but also maintain or improve a participant’s ability to function.
• Assistance with or supervision of activities of daily living such as walking, eating, toileting and other personal care needs.
• Arrangement of transportation to and from the center.
• Health-related services, including health monitoring, medications monitoring and administration and nursing intervention on an intermittent basis for medical conditions. In addition, Senior World nursing staff will contact family physicians to report changes in a participant’s health status.
• A daily lunch which meets one-third of the adult “Recommended Daily Dietary Allowances” as established by the Food and Nutrition Board of the National Research Council. In addition, Senior World serves a light breakfast and an afternoon snack. Because OSF St. Francis Medical Center provides Senior World’s meals, the program is able to provide special diets when ordered by a physician. An OSF dietitian plans all meals and is available to Senior World staff for consultation.
• Provision of emergency care. All staff are CPR-certified and well-versed in Senior World’s emergency policies and procedures. In addition, Senior World houses an AED or automatic external defibrillator.
Other services available to Senior World families include an Alzheimer’s support group held every third Wednesday at 2:30 p.m.; Caregiver Training and Fall Prevention Education provided with funding from the Central Illinois Agency on Aging; and a Memory Disorders Program funded by the Illinois Department of Public Health through the Southern Illinois University School of Medicine’s Center for Alzheimer Disease and Related Disorders.
There is a large difference between adult day services and assisted living homes. Assisted living homes feature apartments, suites or rooms where older adults live and receive supportive services including meals, housekeeping and social programs in a secure environment. Personal care assistance is generally also available. Residents or their families generally pay for the cost of care in these facilities. Adult day services benefit caregivers who work during the day but still wish for their loved ones to continue to live in the home with them. Funding for those who qualify is available for those in need of the services.
“Adult day services are community-based, used when the family wants to keep an older loved one at home—which is where older adults want to be,” Rose said. “Programs like Senior World provide respite during the day so that family caregivers can continue to work, run errands, and care for themselves. At Senior World, if individuals meet the financial criteria, funding may be provided by the Illinois Department on Aging, the Department of Veterans Affairs, the Illinois Department of Human Services/Division of Rehabilitation Services and the Central Illinois Agency on Aging.”
When an interested person contacts Senior World, they are first taken on a tour and then offered a free “guest day” of four hours which introduces the potential participant and family to Senior World and allows the staff to determine that person’s appropriateness for the program. The last step in enrollment consists of an interview with social services staff in order to conduct a comprehensive intake and complete the necessary paperwork.
“Senior World asks all families to commit to a regular weekly schedule of attendance,” Rose said. “Adjusting to attending, we have found, is easier if there is continuity and consistency from week to week—especially in the case of memory-impaired participants. As for the caregiver—to know that on Tuesday and Thursday at 10 a.m. she will get a five-hour break is critical to his or her well being.”
During the enrollment process, staff also determines what activities and hobbies interest the potential participants, along with other pertinent information. “Senior World’s staff gathers facts about each participant’s interests and activities, past occupation, hobbies, music preferences, education, and religious/volunteer/military service affiliations,” Rose said. “We obtain specifics about cognitive status, vision loss, hearing deficits, physical limitations, medical history, and dietary restrictions. Our activities coordinator works with the Supervisor of Adult Day Services to develop a monthly activity calendar that attempts to address the multiplicity of interests. Additionally, based on participant needs, we provide materials and supplies so that our folks may engage in independent activity.”
As the Director of Senior Services for IPMR and director of Senior World, some of Rose’s duties include preparing for and attending compliance reviews, assisting with preparation of the annual budget, reviewing and revising policies and procedures, assisting with program development, participating in personnel selection and performance evaluations, reviewing care plans and researching additional funding sources and completing necessary grant applications. Rose informs the community about Senior World and other older adult issues at health fairs and various venues. She is an Illinois Department on Aging-approved adult day services management consultant, a member of the Governing Council of the Illinois Adult Day Services Association, and coordinator for IPMR’s Geriatric Care Management program and Memory Disorders Program.
“[The Geriatric Care Management program] is vital to older adults and their caregivers who are uncertain how best to meet long term care needs,” Rose said. “The geriatric care manager completes a comprehensive in-home assessment, maps out a strategy, and provides ongoing oversight. Especially valuable for the long-distance caregiver who can’t just drop by if a need develops or an emergency arises, a geriatric care manager offers knowledge of community, state, and national resources as well as expertise in accessing the array of older adult services.”
This year, to celebrate its 25th anniversary, Senior World held a Spaghetti Supper & Raffle during National Adult Day Services Week, the third week of September.
“For an adult day program to celebrate a 25th anniversary is indeed an accomplishment,” Rose said. “In Illinois and other states, inadequate state reimbursement rates have forced many programs to close over the past five to ten years. I attribute Senior World’s longevity to the Institute of Physical Medicine and Rehabilitation’s backing. IPMR has stood behind Senior World no matter how bleak our program’s financial outlook in order to provide this service to the community. Finally, Senior World endures because of its staff members—health care professionals who genuinely care for and care about someone you love.”
Senior World is open Monday through Friday, 6:45 a.m. to 6 p.m., and is located at 719 N. Kumpf Blvd., Suite 300, Peoria. tpw
Rose was born in Fort Riley, Kansas, living there and in Colorado before moving to central Illinois, where she has resided ever since. After graduating from Farmington East High School in 1971, Rose went on to major in French education at Illinois State University, obtaining her bachelor’s degree in 1975. But it wasn’t until several years later that Rose found her true calling.
“A very meaningful volunteer experience in the early 1980s prompted me to consider studying aging,” Rose said. “Working as a Catholic Social Services Friendly Visitor, I met an isolated older woman who had no family and few support systems other than CSS. I was so intrigued by her that I yearned to learn everything I could about aging.”
In 1990, Rose went on to complete a master’s degree in gerontology from the University of Illinois at Springfield. She then spent eight years as a case manager for an Illinois Department on Aging Case Coordination Unit, two years as an activities coordinator at Senior World, and two years as owner/operator of Companion Care Services, an in-home respite care business with an activities focus.
Senior World, a branch of the Institute of Physical Medicine and Rehabilitation (IPMR), began in 1981 under the leadership of Gloria Barth. Rose became involved through a college internship in the mid-1980s. She claims that the experience inspired her to become an adult day services advocate “right then and there.” In February 1999, Barth retired, and Rose succeeded her as director.
Some of the services that Senior World offers include:
• An individualized written plan of care that addresses each participant’s strengths and needs while stating specific goals.
• A variety of meaningful activities, including guided field trips, that meet participants’ interests but also maintain or improve a participant’s ability to function.
• Assistance with or supervision of activities of daily living such as walking, eating, toileting and other personal care needs.
• Arrangement of transportation to and from the center.
• Health-related services, including health monitoring, medications monitoring and administration and nursing intervention on an intermittent basis for medical conditions. In addition, Senior World nursing staff will contact family physicians to report changes in a participant’s health status.
• A daily lunch which meets one-third of the adult “Recommended Daily Dietary Allowances” as established by the Food and Nutrition Board of the National Research Council. In addition, Senior World serves a light breakfast and an afternoon snack. Because OSF St. Francis Medical Center provides Senior World’s meals, the program is able to provide special diets when ordered by a physician. An OSF dietitian plans all meals and is available to Senior World staff for consultation.
• Provision of emergency care. All staff are CPR-certified and well-versed in Senior World’s emergency policies and procedures. In addition, Senior World houses an AED or automatic external defibrillator.
Other services available to Senior World families include an Alzheimer’s support group held every third Wednesday at 2:30 p.m.; Caregiver Training and Fall Prevention Education provided with funding from the Central Illinois Agency on Aging; and a Memory Disorders Program funded by the Illinois Department of Public Health through the Southern Illinois University School of Medicine’s Center for Alzheimer Disease and Related Disorders.
There is a large difference between adult day services and assisted living homes. Assisted living homes feature apartments, suites or rooms where older adults live and receive supportive services including meals, housekeeping and social programs in a secure environment. Personal care assistance is generally also available. Residents or their families generally pay for the cost of care in these facilities. Adult day services benefit caregivers who work during the day but still wish for their loved ones to continue to live in the home with them. Funding for those who qualify is available for those in need of the services.
“Adult day services are community-based, used when the family wants to keep an older loved one at home—which is where older adults want to be,” Rose said. “Programs like Senior World provide respite during the day so that family caregivers can continue to work, run errands, and care for themselves. At Senior World, if individuals meet the financial criteria, funding may be provided by the Illinois Department on Aging, the Department of Veterans Affairs, the Illinois Department of Human Services/Division of Rehabilitation Services and the Central Illinois Agency on Aging.”
When an interested person contacts Senior World, they are first taken on a tour and then offered a free “guest day” of four hours which introduces the potential participant and family to Senior World and allows the staff to determine that person’s appropriateness for the program. The last step in enrollment consists of an interview with social services staff in order to conduct a comprehensive intake and complete the necessary paperwork.
“Senior World asks all families to commit to a regular weekly schedule of attendance,” Rose said. “Adjusting to attending, we have found, is easier if there is continuity and consistency from week to week—especially in the case of memory-impaired participants. As for the caregiver—to know that on Tuesday and Thursday at 10 a.m. she will get a five-hour break is critical to his or her well being.”
During the enrollment process, staff also determines what activities and hobbies interest the potential participants, along with other pertinent information. “Senior World’s staff gathers facts about each participant’s interests and activities, past occupation, hobbies, music preferences, education, and religious/volunteer/military service affiliations,” Rose said. “We obtain specifics about cognitive status, vision loss, hearing deficits, physical limitations, medical history, and dietary restrictions. Our activities coordinator works with the Supervisor of Adult Day Services to develop a monthly activity calendar that attempts to address the multiplicity of interests. Additionally, based on participant needs, we provide materials and supplies so that our folks may engage in independent activity.”
As the Director of Senior Services for IPMR and director of Senior World, some of Rose’s duties include preparing for and attending compliance reviews, assisting with preparation of the annual budget, reviewing and revising policies and procedures, assisting with program development, participating in personnel selection and performance evaluations, reviewing care plans and researching additional funding sources and completing necessary grant applications. Rose informs the community about Senior World and other older adult issues at health fairs and various venues. She is an Illinois Department on Aging-approved adult day services management consultant, a member of the Governing Council of the Illinois Adult Day Services Association, and coordinator for IPMR’s Geriatric Care Management program and Memory Disorders Program.
“[The Geriatric Care Management program] is vital to older adults and their caregivers who are uncertain how best to meet long term care needs,” Rose said. “The geriatric care manager completes a comprehensive in-home assessment, maps out a strategy, and provides ongoing oversight. Especially valuable for the long-distance caregiver who can’t just drop by if a need develops or an emergency arises, a geriatric care manager offers knowledge of community, state, and national resources as well as expertise in accessing the array of older adult services.”
This year, to celebrate its 25th anniversary, Senior World held a Spaghetti Supper & Raffle during National Adult Day Services Week, the third week of September.
“For an adult day program to celebrate a 25th anniversary is indeed an accomplishment,” Rose said. “In Illinois and other states, inadequate state reimbursement rates have forced many programs to close over the past five to ten years. I attribute Senior World’s longevity to the Institute of Physical Medicine and Rehabilitation’s backing. IPMR has stood behind Senior World no matter how bleak our program’s financial outlook in order to provide this service to the community. Finally, Senior World endures because of its staff members—health care professionals who genuinely care for and care about someone you love.”
Senior World is open Monday through Friday, 6:45 a.m. to 6 p.m., and is located at 719 N. Kumpf Blvd., Suite 300, Peoria. tpw