Today we’d like to introduce you to Deb Martin.
So, before we jump into specific questions about the business, why don’t you give us some details about you and your story.
ElderHelp has deep roots in the San Diego community, dating from the early 1970’s. To respond to the needs of seniors in failing health, poverty and isolation, Mid-City Senior Enterprises was founded in 1973. Over the next 12 years, more than two dozen programs were offered to provide for common basic needs like food, shelter and companionship. In 1991 the agency changed its name to ElderHelp. In the ensuing years it broadened its scope of services for seniors, always grounded in the goal of keeping seniors living successfully at home.
The mission of ElderHelp is to provide personalized services and information that help seniors remain independent and live with dignity in their own homes. To accomplish this mission, we provide an array of services that improve the health and wellbeing of seniors who choose to age in place. Unique in our personalized delivery format, our services are offered on a donation-based model to accommodate the most vulnerable, low-income seniors.
The issue of low-income older adults has plagued San Diego County for decades. Currently, 4 in 10 older adults will not have the means to meet their basic needs, including housing, healthcare, transportation and food. With the coming seismic shift in demographics, as the proportion of older adults in the County increases dramatically, their needs will become an ever greater burden on community resources. At present, ElderHelp services provide relief to the communities we serve, and we are positioned to do even more, for seniors and for our communities, by expanding capacity.
The most significant impact ElderHelp has on communities it serves is the evidence that it is a de facto prevention model for senior wellness. The County of San Diego HHSA 2015 Senior Health Report stated that half of seniors hospitalized had health care issues that were preventable, and Medicare paid 78% of those preventable costs. An independent study by UC Berkeley of ElderHelp’s Care Coordination services confirmed that the services reduced healthcare costs for the elderly. Based on such findings, the larger healthcare industry is beginning to focus on home-based models such as ElderHelp. More relevant for the individuals served, the summary findings calculated that 50% of clients received cost savings of at least $3,566 per year because their needs for assistance were met by volunteers.
Provide an overview of organization’s current programs, including population/number served and any specific demographic information. ElderHelp services seniors 60+ in San Diego County. Currently, we assist clients in 35 zip codes. 93% of our clients have low incomes. In addition:
• 27% have self-reported chronic conditions
• Average age is 76
• 78% are female
• 24% are at risk of falls
• 15% are veterans or spouses of veterans
• 33% have self-reported as being disabled
Our service programs cover most senior social and environmental needs and exclude medical or nursing care.
Briefly, our programs are:
• Care Coordination
We provide care management, assessment, and care planning while connecting older adults to vetted and trained volunteers who provide in-home support delivered through the following programs:
• Seniors A Go Go
We provide transportation services for medical and nonmedical appointments to help seniors remain independent and connected to their communities.
• RUOK
We provide daily check in calls to ensure the safety and well-being of isolated seniors.
• Information & Referral
We provide resources and support for seniors, their loved ones, and other community members to find the help they need. If ElderHelp services are not a fit, we suggest other options available in San Diego County.
• Employed Family Caregiver Support
We offer informative learning opportunities at local corporations to help support employed family caregivers, those who are working full and part-time jobs while also caring for an aging loved one. We also provide self-paced family caregiver learning modules on our website.
• HomeShare
We offer a unique roommate matching service that also provides complete housing navigation for those looking for other affordable housing options.
Overall, has it been relatively smooth? If not, what were some of the struggles along the way?
As San Diego’s underserved senior population experiences significant growth, we are focused on our biggest challenge – growing and diversifying our service model so we can better serve more seniors in the County. Much of our geographic reach is determined by volunteers. Since volunteers deliver 90 percent of our direct service, their geographical locations and preferences define both our service and geographic capacity.
We have in place a robust outreach program, and our action plans include more innovative ways to reach potential volunteers. It’s an ongoing challenge — to recruit enough volunteers to meet the ever-increasing number of seniors who seek help. Raising money for seniors, no matter how needy, is not as heart-tugging as raising money for children, or even animals. Nationwide, less than two percent of all philanthropic dollars are directed at our nation’s seniors – it is regrettable that such a small portion goes to helping our fastest growing age group. Another revenue challenge we face is our dependency on grant funding.
Last year 40 percent of our revenue stream was attributable to grants, which we recognize as a point of vulnerability. We are actively pursuing opportunities for earned income, the most promising being opportunities to subcontract for social services with healthcare providers.
The greatest limitation we have with our chosen population is actually the consequence of success. The fastest-growing segment of the total population is the oldest old—those 80 and over, chiefly owing to advances in medical care. The inevitable limitation to keeping them thriving at home is that as seniors continue to age, they become more frail and susceptible to falls and progressive chronic conditions. Still, we take heart in the fact that clients moving to long-term care decreased by 15 percent last year and 11 clients passed in their homes, which was their great wish.
Please tell us about ElderHelp of San Diego.
ElderHelp is on the leading edge of the Aging in Place movement. Recent studies show that 90% of seniors want to “Age in Place.” The harsh reality facing our society is that we are not going to displace millions of people who are or soon will be seniors. Instead, we are best served by keeping seniors living in their own homes. In this way, it becomes not only a human dignity solution but a financial solution as well. ElderHelp has been offering this solution for over 40 years, and we are perfectly positioned to support the Aging in Place movement.
Elderhelp’s model of service delivery is unique in the County. Not only do we serve people in their homes instead of in a central facility, but our services are delivered by volunteers and are therefore free to clients. Our wraparound services are seldom found elsewhere: other local senior agencies provide transportation or food to large numbers, but ElderHelp offers a complete package that addresses basic needs of each client and cares for them as part of our ElderHelp family for as long as they wish.
ElderHelp is a tested model that is gaining national, and even international, attention. Interest in our service model is as far-reaching as Japan, highlighting a need for similar services abroad. We receive approximately 5 calls per month from people who are interested in starting an ElderHelp model in their area.
If you had to go back in time and start over, would you have done anything differently?
It has been a remarkable journey these 44 years. Our evolution has been remarkably organic, because the leadership has measured and recorded performance and new senior needs along the way, and responded accordingly. We have undergone several iterations of the agency, including a name change, and a redefined mission. It could not have happened differently.
In the beginning, we assembled a board of influential people, which enhanced our fundraising efforts, especially with individual gifts. Over the years, the character of the board membership changed so that our fundraising shifted from individual giving to an emphasis on grants and contracts. If we started over, it would behoove us to have a board made up of experienced board volunteers, of visionaries, of practical thinkers, and of champions for seniors. In other words, we would diversify our board, setting the stage for diversified revenue opportunities.
Contact Info:
- Address: 3860 Calle Fortunada, #101, San Diego, CA 92123
- Website: www.elderhelpofsandiego.org
- Phone: 619-284-9281
- Email: info@elderhelpofsandiego.org
- Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/elderhelpsd/
- Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/ElderHelp/
- Twitter: https://twitter.com/ElderHelpSD
- Yelp: https://www.yelp.com/biz/elderhelp-of-san-diego-san-diego-6
- Other: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCTmC8erjDMy0F56X9kxK53g?view_as=subscriber
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