Crittenton Family Services

WHO WE ARE, WHAT WE DO

Jun 09, 2000

OLDER ADULT SERVICES
For 50 Columbus residents the difference between depressing isolation and a healthy outlook is the Older Adult Program at Crittenton Family Services ?— and Brenda Noel. Brenda is a mother of two, licensed practical nurse, social worker, certified chemical dependency counselor, a 1991 graduate of The University of Akron and one of two Crittenton Family Services counselors who concentrate on removing hopelessness from the lives of our older adult clients.

Brenda?’s training and experience confirm that remaining active is a crucial factor in maintaining the overall well being of older adults. When health problems consume 20 percent or more of a fixed income and mobility requires help, it doesn?’t take long for someone, reduced to a minimal existence and with limited contacts, to become overwhelmed. Loss, bit by bit, of one?’s familiar, hoped-for life, erodes the personality, weakens will, strangles relationships and turns peaceful years into grieving ones.

Brenda works full-time to increase socialization opportunities for her clients in spite of transportation logistics, on a smaller scale, as complex as those at Port Columbus. She designs programs to entice ?“loners?” from their isolation, arranges educational speakers to address elderly concerns, attends workshops and networks with other agencies and services on behalf of her clients.

Armed with the knowledge of what older people need, Brenda wheels and deals for bargains, price-breaks and opportunities for obtaining needed services. Her senior adults receive excellent dental care supplied by The Ohio State University School of Dentistry at a price they can afford.

In between the healthcare appointments, the blood screenings, the stress tests, the presentations, and the just-for-fun outings ?— a trip to the Living Bible Wax Museum in Mansfield was a big hit ?— Brenda gets to know her people. As their advocate she analyzes issues that plague the elderly: HMO and Medicare, lack of doctors, nutrition difficulties, personality changes, mental and emotional health, confusion and misunderstandings that accompanying a diminished capacity for coping.

Brenda will contact family members who need to understand the client?’s emotional and mental states. ?“Do you know . . . ,?” Brenda will begin. She tells them that helping the elderly feel valuable again may take such a little thought. Surprising them with a small gift, telling the older adult that ?“I saw this and thought of you,?” is the whole key to making it a healthier day for that person, Brenda said.