Shownotes
Aging Population Boom: "There will be more seniors than there are kindergarteners by 2030." — Chanda Wingo
We're thrilled to have Chanda Wingo, Director of the Franklin County Office on Aging. She shares insights on an innovative blueprint aimed at understanding the impact of an aging community and guiding local stakeholders in allocating necessary resources.
We explore the various programs and support systems the Office on Aging provides, such as the successful Senior Options levy program, which has been aiding seniors for over three decades.
Director Wingo also sheds light on the critical issues confronting our aging population, including housing, food insecurity, and workforce shortages. She emphasizes the importance of recognizing and supporting caregivers, combating ageism, and the role of community involvement in ensuring the well-being of older adults.
Learn how Franklin County is working tirelessly to support its seniors, ensuring they have the resources and services needed to age in place with dignity and independence.
Top Takeaways
Director Chanda Wingo is developing a comprehensive blueprint to guide community stakeholders in understanding the impact of an aging population and allocating resources effectively.
The Senior Options program, successful for 32 years and supported by voters, will seek renewal in 2027. This program includes vital services such as minor home repair and in-home support.
Adult Protective Services addresses elder abuse and neglect, with self-neglect being the primary issue. The goal is to keep seniors safely in their homes whenever possible.
Conducted in late 2021, the community needs assessment revealed that most (over 94%) seniors wish to remain in their homes, highlighting the need for home-based support services.
Recognizing the critical role of caregivers, the Office on Aging offers programs that support family members who provide care, including financial assistance and resources.
Social isolation among seniors can lead to severe health impacts. Families, friends, and neighbors are encouraged to check in on older adults to provide support and combat loneliness.
Collaborations with youth groups aim to spark interest in caregiving professions and create advocates for older adults by fostering intergenerational relationships.
The office is implementing new technologies, including a self-service portal and video calling, to make it easier for seniors to access services and communicate with caregivers.
Ageism remains a significant issue, impacting employment and resource access for older adults. Awareness campaigns and training are necessary to combat ageism as a social determinant of health.
The Bridge Team Initiative aims to increase community connectivity and provide face-to-face contact and services, with Case Managers placed in hospitals to assist seniors and their families.
Key Moments
07:32 Grocery cost rise, food insecurity, workforce challenge.
12:14 Caregivers valued, need support and resources available.
13:40 Phone calls vital for seniors' health and care.
16:43 Generational demographics impact society, aging population addressed.
21:17 Approaching midpoint, levy renewal expected in 2027.
23:30 Protective Services validate, support seniors, address neglect.
27:36 Caregiver focus, support, resources for stressful role.
31:51 Promoting community events and launching new initiative.
35:19 Ohio faces caregiver shortage, need for support.
39:04 Tech drop-ins build intergenerational bonds and advocacy.
41:37 Kinship program needs extra attention for success.
46:10 Ageism deep, comparable to other discriminations.
47:12 Combatting ageism through awareness and accountability efforts.
51:15 Expanding outreach to serve seniors and community.
53:56 System update will improve client interaction efficiency.
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Recorded in Studio C at 511 Studios. A production of Circle270Media Podcast Consultants.
Copyright 2024 Carol Ventresca and Brett Johnson
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Transcripts
We are Looking Forward Our Way from Studio C in the 511 Studios. That's in the Brewery District of South of Downtown Columbus, Ohio. Hi. This is Brett. The population of Franklin County, where we are sitting at right now, continues to grow in size, but it's also growing older. An increasing number of residents are turning 60, forcing senior services to expand and meet the needs. Today, we're going to dive into aging services that are available in our county. Joining us today is Franklin County Office on Aging director Chanda Wingo.
Brett Johnson [:Thank you for, joining us today, Director.
Carol Ventresca [:Thank you for having me. It's wonderful to meet you. We've been, talking to your staff for a bit, hoping to get you in on our schedule. So thank you so much, for being willing to come into the studio with us today. We are excited to learn more about senior services in Franklin County. Brett and I have had a lot of experience working with the office on aging, but there's lots changing. And so we're getting getting our update, as well as as our audience. Before we actually start talking about the Office on Aging, we wanna learn a little bit more about you.
Carol Ventresca [:So please, Director Wingo, please give us an overview of your background and what brought you to FCOA. Absolutely.
Chanda Wingo [:Absolutely. As you stated, I am Chanda Wingo, the Director for the Franklin County Office on Aging. I do serve at the pleasure of our Board of Commissioners, President, Kevin Boyce, Erica Crowley, and John O'Grady. I have been a Public Servant for a very long time. Even as a young teenager, I recognize that, it takes a village. And a lot of the programs and sports and things that I played, actually contributed to who I am. And I started giving back at the age of 16. Then, of course, you know, I've decided that I wanted to be, you know, working in the private sector.
Chanda Wingo [:And it didn't really work out. My position was eliminated like many others in 2,008. I had a brand new baby and a 1 year old. And so I did some soul searching, and at that time, I realized that in order for me to be happy at work, it has to be in line with my passion. And one of the things that I didn't enjoy working in the private sector is I wasn't able to help people and I didn't feel like I was able to see, ways for humans to thrive and and do well when you have big business rules and for profit. So I made the transition, into working in the public sector. Began as a case manager at Job and Family Services back in 2010, and loved it. Loved every moment of it.
Chanda Wingo [:I've held so many positions within that time frame. But in 2000 or 21, I was selected to work on a project that took me away from my everyday job. And I saw my team soar. And then it hit me that I was in their way. And that I needed to move to what my next is so that they could, you know, move into what their next is. So I made the decision to move to the sister agency, Franklin County Office on Aging. Served as the Assistant Director for a few months and then an opportunity presented itself for me to be the Interim Director. Accepted that challenge, at levy time.
Chanda Wingo [:Because
Carol Ventresca [:Talk about perfect timing. We are a levy agency.
Chanda Wingo [:And within like my first 30 days, like was a crash course on, you know, how how how it all works. And of course, a lot of that had to be done off the clock because I am, you know, a public servant. But it was like, oh wow, what did I what did I get myself into? But it's been great. I have, also at the exact same time as I was transitioning into aging services, saw all of the challenges that happened with seniors overnight with just my own parents. Within 2 months of me accepting the interim role, my father had a stroke. And up until that point, he was a private practicing attorney and I'm like, oh, it literally is a switch. Where one day he was in the courtroom and the very next day, all of our lives changed. And so, you know, being in a seat where I'm able to ensure that our Franklin County seniors and their families have access to the services has truly been rewarding.
Chanda Wingo [:And again, like I said, I'm seeing these things, you know, I am a sandwich generation as well. My mother lives with me. I have a daughter who just graduated from high school. She's 17 and I have a son who's 15 and a son who's 10. We're all in the same household. So that's a that's a little bit about where I am and how I got here and why I enjoy what I'm doing.
Carol Ventresca [:You know, I think that having family connections to senior needs is where we have all started our journey towards supporting seniors. My we we talked before the podcast about your predecessor, Toni Carroll, who was just a phenomenal person and started the senior levy program.
Chanda Wingo [:Correct.
Carol Ventresca [:And, for many, many years, we supported Toni and her work. But that's how I've also got started was taking care of, working with both my parents and when my mother died, becoming my dad's caregiver and Toni and her team giving me the information I needed. So, yeah. Kudos to all of the folks who have either have worked at Franklin County Office on Aging or are now there because they are critical Yes. To the success of our senior services, you know, here in Franklin County. So thank you. Thank you.
Brett Johnson [:So the office on aging provides programs and services needed by older adults to preserve their independence. Now that you've been in the role for a few years now, what do you see as the top three critical issues the office must address to support local seniors?
Chanda Wingo [:Housing. Housing is big.
Carol Ventresca [:You could
Brett Johnson [:probably do 3. Housing, housing, housing, right? Yeah.
Chanda Wingo [:Yeah. You can definitely do housing, housing, housing. You know, we're we're all familiar with, you know, what's happening with property taxes and increasing rents. That is that is probably the number one call that we receive. You know, seniors that are on fixed incomes, have lived in their home for x number of years. You know, we hear the stories every day where rent is going from an affordable rate to astronomical way above even what some of those incomes are. So housing is is the first one. And I and I look at housing, not as as a one dimensional issue.
Chanda Wingo [:It's multi dimensional, right? You have to consider all of the needs of a senior when you're looking at housing. Like affordability is one thing, but also availability. And then accessibility. You know, every vacant property is not suitable for those who have unique needs, you know, to reside. So housing, food insecurity, is another. I don't know what the number is this year, but I can tell you, you know, at the onset of the pandemic, the Office on Aging as a as a COVID response began to offer free meals, to ensure that our seniors could eat. Because, you know, we couldn't go to grocery stores and you you didn't really want people in and out of your home. That kind of thing.
Chanda Wingo [:But in 20 between 2022 2023, the cost of groceries increased from our average rate of about 8% increase to well over 12%. And we began to receive calls from caregivers who just could not afford to do it anymore or seniors that may have been receiving, you know, 2 to 3 meals a week or like, listen, I really can't afford to do this on my own. I need more meals per week. So food insecurity. And then the third thing, I would say that the workforce the workforce is a challenge. I don't believe that we'll ever have enough workforce. I believe that the the rate of growth in which people are aging and just in Ohio alone, the workforce isn't going to be able to keep up with that. So yeah, those are the top 3 that I would say.
Carol Ventresca [:And and when we are in the midst of trying to encourage seniors to age in place, age at their home, which is where they want to be anyway, all of these other things are working against that goal.
Chanda Wingo [:Yeah. When we did our Community Needs Assessment in late 2021, over 94% of the seniors that were surveyed said it was very important to them that they remain in their home. And we see that reoccurring theme everywhere. But what I find is that, for years years years, the community didn't really know about the Franklin County Office on Aging. They know about programs that exist, but they don't know that they are a part of the Office on Aging. Right. And oftentimes we get confused with one of our community partners, which is the Central Ohio Area on Aging, often referred to as COAAA. But everyone has heard of Senior Options.
Chanda Wingo [:People who know about Adult Protective Services, but they don't know that the Office on Aging has a direct purview over those programs, but other programs as well. Where we do provide support to caregivers, we provide support to our kinship families, we have a minor home repair program. I I mean, as you know, the Senior Options is the largest program, but that is where most of the in home support comes from. So your your the free meals that I spoke of, transportation, emergency response systems, respite, light cleaning, all of those things that we know seniors just need that additional support in order to remain in their home safely and secure.
Carol Ventresca [:When when my uncle passed away, we did not think my aunt would really be able to sustain her her environment. She had never driven, was very dependent on him. She she was a strong person, but very dependent on him, Became part of Senior Options and lived 10 years. Wonderful. Wonderful. It was just it was an accident of her falling that was the end. But, she would call and say she was on her way to get her haircut or go to the grocery store or so and so was coming to visit her, and it made her world. It really did.
Carol Ventresca [:And so kudos again to all of the folks at Senior Options who are making this this happen.
Chanda Wingo [:Thank you for sharing. I think the the lived experiences are also, one of my top, favorite things of this position. I go everywhere and I hear stories where adult children or adult family members share those stories in, you know, a lot of the focuses on, our senior, which I don't intend to distract from that. But it provides peace of mind for family members too. Yeah. I've had adult children say to me, thank you. I've been able to do my demanding career day in and day out because I know my mom has what she needs because of your program.
Carol Ventresca [:Right. Well, the other part too is and you you see a lot more in, literature and in the media is that not only are you the sandwich generation, but those generations not necessarily in the same geographical location. So you may be taking care of, and I'm kind of air quoting here, taking care of an older adult, but they're 3 states away.
Chanda Wingo [:Mhmm.
Carol Ventresca [:And so this is how, those are the bridges that people need. But as you said, if they don't know, they don't know. And so then you've got that gap in service.
Chanda Wingo [:Yeah. I I like to if we could pause and talk a little bit more about caregiving. Because caregivers don't identify themselves as caregivers. They identified it as a birthright. My mother needs me. My father needs me. My aunt, my uncle, families band together. But you're absolutely correct.
Chanda Wingo [:A caregiver that provides any type of level of care, whether you are next door in the home or across the country, you are a caregiver. You are valued and we do need you. Anytime that I have an opportunity to speak about caregivers, I like to advocate for people that may be very close to needing to step into that role and not knowing what resources are out there or not knowing that we see you, right? And as a caregiver, it's important that you also tap into services to ensure that you're able to stay your best healthy self so that you can provide the care that your older adult needs. And so one of the programs that we do offer, which I mentioned is caregiver, we do provide support to the caregiver themself. Whether it's counseling,
Carol Ventresca [:and some financial resources such as, you know, being able
Chanda Wingo [:to purchase incontinence supplies or durable medical equipment. We also have the ability to, provide some rental and utility equipment. We also have the ability to provide some rental and utility assistance, too. So I wanted to make sure I put that out there because one of my other theories and beliefs around our our aging, you know, tsunami that we know we we have that phrase floating around is and almost kind of like I've alluded to, to the workforce is there's not going to be enough. There's not going to be enough money. There's not going to be enough facilities. There's not going to be enough employees. And so I really like to put out a call to action to families, friends, and neighbors to check-in on our seniors and make sure that they're okay.
Chanda Wingo [:Pick up the phone, talk to them, even if that's it. Because what we've learned in dealing with some of the folks that we that we work with is social isolation is the equivalent to smoking 15 cigarettes a day, and can decrease life expectancy by up to 7 years. So a phone call can save your senior's life. And you can step into the role and and provide care, you know, being miles and miles away. You don't have to be in the City. You can step in and, you know, even if it's just making sure that the doctor's appointments are scheduled and that the rides to to the doctor's appointment are scheduled. And, you know, there's all types of technology out there that you can see if your older adult is taking their medicine on time and you know, all of those things. So thank you for pausing because I really wanted to talk about caregiving.
Carol Ventresca [:Well, and and really, what's what we try to do with this podcast is not just talk about the issue, but provide the resources. And so to our audience, this, again, we will have resources listed on our website when we drop this this particular episode. And again, it was Toni Carroll and her staff at Franklin County at the time, and this has been over 20 years ago, that provided me the information I needed even though my dad didn't qualify for the services. So don't assume you can't get services. Don't self select. If you have questions, call these offices. They are here to to serve you and the seniors. So
Chanda Wingo [:That's good.
Carol Ventresca [:Yeah. It's very very important. So thank you. So I'm gonna push this a little more on the notion of aging Ohio. Mhmm. And, what is the county doing or thinking about or looking at? Because Franklin County is a little better off than the rest of the state. We have a little younger population but it's going to continue to grow. I mean, I always said tsunami is kind of destructive but yeah.
Carol Ventresca [:But there are a lot of seniors that are coming up. And what can we do? What we as caregivers need to be on top of it, but what can we do as a community to really think about, dealing with an aging society?
Chanda Wingo [:Mhmm. For the Franklin County Office on Aging with the, of course, the support with our board of commissioners, we recognize that there's a lot that we don't know. You don't because we haven't done this before where we've had this experience, right? And we know there's fun little statistics. My favorite is that there will be more kindergarteners in I mean more seniors than there are kindergarteners by 2,030. When I usually throw that out, it kind of like really hits home for some people. The other thing that I like to throw out, which is shock factor, is that the first wave of generation x turns 60 in less than 6 months. And so when you think about that, we will be serving, 4 generations. The silent generation, the greatest generation, your baby boomers, and then the onset of Generation X.
Chanda Wingo [:And every generation has a different set of demographics that contribute to how we look at society or how we move in society, how we live, how we spend money, and how we connect with, you know, our families. Because of that, we are going to be launching a blueprint. I believe the request for information will be posted this week, where we are going to be actively looking for Consultants to join us in taking this work on. Because we need to look at everything. We need to look at, of course, what services that don't exist that we need to to consider? What services do we need to consider, you know, sunsetting? But also, like, is our community ready? What do our sidewalks look like? What do our bus stops look like? For the decision makers, you know, I want to create this blueprint for them to aging society is going to impact the entire community, not just where seniors live and play, because they interact. Right? Seniors, just because you turn 60, you just don't go away and stop contributing to society and stop having, you know, general needs. Like you need to be able to move through your community safely and securely. And so this blueprint, the goal is for there to have, you know, goals and action steps for all of our community stakeholders to understand what this aging population means to their business and to their community and where resources need to be at like applied or, you know, all of those things.
Chanda Wingo [:And so I'm excited to to to get that started. I can't tell you if it's going to be posted today or tomorrow, but it will be this week. It'll be out for 30 days. So anyone that is a consultant that is interested in partnering with us to lead this type of work, it will be a document that will live beyond our careers. That will kind of guide, you know, our commissioners and, you know, other county stakeholders to say, Hey, you know, we really need to start thinking about allocating some funds and some resources in these these these spaces because we have this aging population.
Carol Ventresca [:And I the is all the awful things that came up in the pandemic. I think, our knowledge base has started to grow because of those awful things about isolation, about needs for transportation, about what do the sidewalks look like if somebody wants to go out and take a walk. Those were issues we had those in the senior services community have been talking about, but it's suddenly other people are hearing it now. And we
Chanda Wingo [:really don't even know the full impact yet of COVID, right? And so this work will also take into consideration what we know now, which we didn't know, you know, 5 years ago obviously. And you know hopefully help put a visual on what that impact is and try to help make sure that we have resources in the right place. Right.
Carol Ventresca [:Okay.
Brett Johnson [:The Office on Aging has several important programs to provide incredible services to the seniors. Let's talk about senior options program and the senior options levy. Can you give us an overview of the success of the program?
Chanda Wingo [:So the levy is 32 this year.
Brett Johnson [:Oh, wow. 32 this year. Oh.
Chanda Wingo [:Which is, you know, that's great. Right? Like, you know, 30 32 years.
Carol Ventresca [:And not not every county in Ohio has a levy. So, yeah. Even Central Ohio. That some of the counties don't have it. So we are doing great with this.
Chanda Wingo [:Yes, we are. And on that, because one of the things I also like to do is thank the voters for for, passing that levy. Because without without your support, we would not be able to provide these services.
Brett Johnson [:I think the Office on Aging has done a really good job of making that vocal. It's that the years that I've been, at least, knowing people in the office on aging and working with them. That is a you hear that a lot. Thank you, voters. Thank you, voters. Thank you, voters. You hear that on which I I think that that goes a long way. It goes a long way.
Chanda Wingo [:Especially in a time where people don't want to hear levy.
Carol Ventresca [:It's still
Chanda Wingo [:or they don't want to hear about property taxes. But, you know, for this particular levy, it's critical. And it actually saves us money in the long run. Because if we don't have these services and our older adults end up in needing to go into care, that cost taxpayers way more than it does, you know, a levy such as ours.
Carol Ventresca [:When will the next levy be? When when is it up for renewal? So the the
Chanda Wingo [:the levy is a 5 year, and we are approaching midpoint. The last year for this levy cycle will be 2027. And, of course, there's a process where we have to get the levy approved and vetted and all of that. So should all of that go well, you should see the renewal or the levy appear on your 2027 ballot. Wonderful. For 20 to fund 2028. Wonderful. And hopefully by then, we'll be, you know, done with our blueprint work and have a better understanding of future needs and, you know, allocation of funds and all of that.
Carol Ventresca [:Good good timing on that then. So if we just that brings up another question about the blueprint. What is the, time frame for that? It's going to be posted in 2024. When do you hope to have that blueprint put together by?
Chanda Wingo [:I can't answer that yet. Okay. The the first step is to secure the consultant. I have a draft proposal of what I think, but I'm gonna work closely with the team. No.
Carol Ventresca [:It's okay. We can take that
Chanda Wingo [:out. That's that's alright. Yeah.
Carol Ventresca [:Good. So, Senior Options has done a phenomenal job. One of the things that I was most surprised about when I, was the director of a nonprofit serving seniors was elder abuse, and we actually had a couple of folks come into us who had we had suspicions about elder abuse. We also had suspicions of, elder neglect. So it wasn't somebody was being beaten, but that they needed more help than they were getting. I could not believe when I saw this statistic. In 2023, there were 38,000 reported cases in Ohio. That's just reported.
Carol Ventresca [:Who knows how many are out there? Tell us a little bit about adult protective services.
Chanda Wingo [:Yep. About our well, our Adult Protective Services is small but mighty. And I can tell you that, you know, just by nature of what they do, like they are in the field day in and day out. They are at the homes. They are at the facilities. They are looking into, you know, those claims. And you're correct. That's just reported.
Chanda Wingo [:Right? But the way that that process works is everything that's reported is screened for validation. And those items where there is evidence of abuse or neglect, those are screened in. Those case managers come in, and the goal is to remove the harm, right? Oftentimes when people hear Protective Services, it's alarming and it's scary and you don't want to get people in trouble and people don't like to tattle tale or however they look at it. But it really is intended to come in and make sure that that senior has the supportive services in place so that they can continue to live, age in place, you know, safely and securely. In Franklin County, the number one issue that we're seeing is self neglect. Self neglect. And that is where, when I go back to my call of action, that is where picking up the phone and engaging with your Senior, whether they are your neighbor or whether they're your family member, visiting and checking on them and making sure that they have what they need. But that that's the number one, case type that we that we see here in Franklin County.
Carol Ventresca [:Do you think that is because the individual is afraid that if they report it, then they're going to be, you know, pushed right into a nursing home?
Chanda Wingo [:That's correct. That is one of the reasons. There is a there's a perception, which is why I kind of paused. Like, okay, let me let me take away some of the the negativity around just the name that's associated. It's like our job is not to come in and remove seniors from their home, you know, much like other protective service offices. That's not the goal. The goal is to come in and assess the situation. And if it's something like such as self neglect, what supportive services can we put in place to ensure that that senior can take care of themselves? Even if it is something as simple as connecting them to Senior Options, where Senior Options does provide, some light grooming services or they can do some light house cleaning or, you know, like I mentioned, free meals or transportation.
Chanda Wingo [:Because, you know, there is a fear that if I don't if you don't believe that I can take care of myself, if I ask for help, that means that I can't live on my own. And that's not always the case. Right?
Brett Johnson [:And you may have to look at the reality of a tooth. And not everybody knows this and it's not that I know it does necessarily, but you hear these stories that there, there aren't necessarily beds waiting for these older adults if you take them out of their home and put them in a senior living situation, it's not like there's availability necessarily. There's like, yeah, we can we can, you know, we have 15 over here and 12 over here and it's like, no, we really want you to stay home because there is no other place for you to go right now necessarily if even if you had to, we'd rather you stay home.
Carol Ventresca [:Well, and there may be beds but the facility may not have workers.
Brett Johnson [:That too.
Carol Ventresca [:It's like go it's like, you know, we all complain about going to a restaurant and half the so, it's not only the fear though, it's also not realizing there are resources to help.
Chanda Wingo [:Yes. There's resources. I always like to encourage people because you kind of touched on it earlier where people self select. Just call us. Even if you're a family member, just call us. One of the things that we do specialize in is information and referral. You do not have to be a client to call and ask a question. But we want to make sure that our seniors across the board have what they need to age in place.
Chanda Wingo [:Mhmm.
Brett Johnson [:Yeah. We had talked a little bit earlier. I want to come you back to this. The the caregiver, you know, that you feel like you're on an island a lot of times that, and and you get lost in that island of daily care and you lose sight of taking care of yourself. Can you talk a little bit more about the caregiver support program that Franklin County Office on Aging has? I I don't think we done. We didn't go into that that much. We talked a little bit about it, but I'm sure there's more to it. Yeah.
Chanda Wingo [:So that is where we the primary focus is on the caregiver themself, right? Because we know that the caregiver and I don't have that data in front of me, but you you can research and read. But oftentimes, the caregiver, due to the stress and demand of caregiving, tend to end up deceased before the person that they're taking care of. That's how strenuous this work is. And so our goal is to make sure that the caregiver has the resources, right? Whether that's the counseling or the financial support that I mentioned, where we can, you know, assist with emergency rent, utility payment. You know, lift chairs are expensive. Rollators are expensive. Wheelchairs are expensive. And oftentimes, caregivers themselves will forego their personal needs to ensure that that older adult has those items.
Chanda Wingo [:And so we're like, well, no. We can help you, you know. We can help offset that cost. With the whole goal in mind is just to try to make sure that that caregiver themself is supported. We do, through caregiver, offer additional services to the care receiver as well. But that's where, like, your incontinence supplies and things like that come into play. But in those cases, those are typically like one off emergency situations. And caregiver will work with Senior Options for more of an ongoing long term care plan to ensure that all of those services
Carol Ventresca [:financial support. One of the things that I, was really surprised at when I became my dad's caregiver is the the cost of things and how to maneuver through. As I mentioned, my dad, because of resources, wasn't eligible for Franklin County programs. Our neighbor was a foster parent for children that had been abused and because of that, she had a lot of contacts and so was providing me with information. Bottom line is though, again, it's not just having the resources, but getting yourself out there and asking the questions. As a caregiver, family member, friend, or you you just have to keep asking questions until somebody answers your question in a way that you can move
Chanda Wingo [:forward. One of my strategies is also to be where, our families and our seniors are. So prior to me accepting the the role, we were doing about 29 to 30 events a year. My first year, we did 329. Last year, we did 460. This year, we're on track to hit something similar, probably 500. But the point is, is we are in places that you would not think senior services to be. So we were at the back to school fair for Columbus City Schools and some of the other school districts because we know that grandparents are the ones that are raising grandchildren.
Chanda Wingo [:We have 200 and 83,000 children living with grandparents in Franklin County. So the thought process is if I can reach the adult child or even the teenager, They'll take that information home and their senior will have access to information. We've also completely revamped our communication structure. We are on every single social media platform that you can think of. I did put seniors on TikTok. Everybody's like, well put seniors on TikTok.
Carol Ventresca [:Absolutely.
Chanda Wingo [:Yes. And if you go to our TikTok, you will see, some fun stuff and, oftentimes you'll see comments where people like, wait a minute, that's my dad. But I've proved my point. You now know we're here. You now know what services are available and you should remember how to find us, right? We also have implemented, an external newsletter that goes out once a month. That is content rich with all of the agency happenings, but also what other resources are out there for seniors. And you'll find some of that on our social media, too. We don't just promote what we do.
Chanda Wingo [:We promote what touches seniors collectively. So if one of our sister agencies or one of our community partners is hosting something, we advertise that. Like we are on information overload. Because to your point, you know, information has not been out there. And in order to ensure that people know we're here and that they can access us, we need to be in more places. So in addition to that, I also, we launched, a new initiative which we've named the Bridge Team, which kind of bridges gaps. Senior Options historically has always been, a telephone based case management model. There wasn't a lot of face to face contact.
Chanda Wingo [:It was primarily over the phone. But we realized that seniors are everywhere. And so we put Case Managers in, the emergency room of OSU East Hospital. And surprisingly, over 85% of those seniors that we see were not connected to our services and didn't know about our services. So that's just one, you know, one way that we are increasing our connectivity to the community and place based strategies. We've also extended that strategy, to look at ZIP Code data and where seniors live and where do they play. Because our seniors, they are active. Don't challenge a senior in pickleball.
Chanda Wingo [:You will lose. Ask my assistant director. So we are in Whitehall, at their senior center and at their Y. And then this year, we are now at Grove City. So, you know, being where the seniors play is that's the joke. Because we're in the senior centers where they come to do their their daily routine and, you know, we're there. And anytime I go to any of those facilities, our seniors are like, do you know miss Annie Spann? And I'm like, I do know Annie. She works in our office.
Chanda Wingo [:But they have developed phenomenal relationships with our staff so much to the point where they bring their friends. Miss Annie got me free meals. She can get you free meals. Miss Annie was able to get, you know, my minor home repair, bathroom so I can use my bathroom safely and securely. So my my thought process is to build so much momentum that we have people in the community who are armed with this information, who also become messengers for us. And it's working. Sure. Sure.
Chanda Wingo [:The Bridge team.
Carol Ventresca [:Mhmm. I have to hear
Chanda Wingo [:Oh, we just won a national award for that too.
Carol Ventresca [:Did you really?
Chanda Wingo [:Yes, we did. For, it's a NACO Achievement Award. NACO is the National Association of Counties where all of the counties across the nation convene every year, talk about all of the health and human service things. But, yeah, we just won award for that. And it's the 1st national award that the Office of Aging has ever won. So we're very proud of that.
Brett Johnson [:Congratulations. That's great.
Carol Ventresca [:Yeah. Absolutely. Congrats to the team.
Chanda Wingo [:Yes. Yeah.
Carol Ventresca [:We we need a we need a picture of the the bridge team to put on our website with this. So Okay. Yeah. We can do that. That's wonderful. So we've talked a lot about caregivers sort of inferring about family, friends, people who are more in I want to call it informal caregivers, not those who are paid to be caregivers. We we see the the the stories I lived through the stories of caregivers not showing up to help me take care of my dad, and I was very lucky. I, we had a great team.
Carol Ventresca [:They were phenomenal, but things happen. There are not enough people working in the state of Ohio. As you mentioned, there's going to be more older people than there are going to be younger working aged individuals. Is there any planning out there in terms of supporting caregivers? Now, we just, you mentioned COAAA. I'm on the advisory council for COAAA, and we supported the state's new budget, which increased the hourly rate, of those who were caregiving older adults, which was several dollars per hour less than if they cared for other targeted groups of individuals, which I could not believe. Anything other than that, we're we're trying to fix wages. What else can we do to get caregivers? They are hard jobs. Mhmm.
Chanda Wingo [:So one of the things you you call them informal caregivers, we call them non paid, right?
Carol Ventresca [:Exactly.
Chanda Wingo [:But we also realize that the caregiver themselves has to be able to provide for themselves and those that they care for. And so sometimes they can't work and provide caregiving, right? But there are people in the family, that may be able to. And so one of the things that we've done with our our home care contracts specifically, is the agencies that we have that provide that home care, they're able to hire a family member. And so if you are a caregiver that is, you know, not working because you are providing that care, that's one of our ways that we've tried to make sure that, you know, we can maintain that situation, right? It's a comfortable situation. It's one that is familiar. Why not enroll into our service and let us pay that caregiver to take care of
Carol Ventresca [:them. How about is there anything that the county is doing to support employers who are looking for caregiving staff? Is there anything out there? Not
Chanda Wingo [:that I'm aware of on a higher level as of today. I know that our agency works with various agencies. We have, I think, 32 grant partners where we fund between 44, 49, something like that, projects where some of them do focus specifically on, you know, employment and strategies for employment. And then we fund them, some of them, too. So that, I can tell you about today. But anything that may be happening, you know, outside of my office, I'm not aware of as today.
Carol Ventresca [:Right, right. So it, what we need to do is to get to make sure OhioMeansJobs and, Job and Family Services. I know they already know the issues that are out there and the importance of it, and so hopefully, they are also, looking at strategies to help. I mean, it's a it's it's an incredible industry and, we have many, many, folks and a lot are new Americans coming that that love doing this work and and but need to be paid fairly.
Chanda Wingo [:You touched on earlier like intergenerational programming and, you know, through a different initiative that we have, where we have, partnered with various youth groups throughout Franklin County, where we do like a tech drop in, where our seniors can come, you know, bring their device or bring their questions. And they work with a high school student, you know, on these. And it's some of it is fun. You know, I'd like to tell that like the first time we did it, there was an older adult who wanted to know how to unfriend people on Facebook. Exactly. Fun. Right? Yeah. But she was serious.
Chanda Wingo [:But what we what we found just from doing these, you know, one off tech drop ins is that there is a tremendous amount of connectivity between the generations and on both sides. The older adults were appreciative because they're like, I'm tired of asking my grandson and I'm wearing him out or I'm tired of asking my daughter. But then you have this this new person, this young, who is like, okay, I'll help you and I'll take these notes and call me anytime you need anything. And then the older adult begins to share, you know, some of their life experiences and then the teen is sharing some of their life experiences and they form bonds within 2 hours. I think that that is a strategy where we need to continue to look for ways to bring the generations together because that is how you're going to spark some of these younger folks to go into these industries and and be more caring and aware and also become ambassadors for the for this old older population. Because they're going to need advocates. They're going to need people that are maybe not their family member, but will stand up and say, no, this isn't right. Or I want to be a part of this because I know what it means to be in in service to help older adults.
Chanda Wingo [:Right. Right.
Brett Johnson [:Yeah. The Alta Nu Jing has a lot of great programs that provide seniors items necessary to make their home safe. You've got the minor home, repairs program, which we talked about a little bit. We talked about the meal delivery service, the free box vans during the summer, as well as the kinship support program. This might be hard to answer, but what's your favorite? And how do these, you know and and talking about the ones that, you know, mentioned here, that sort of thing. How do they how do they make a difference? I mean, it's kinda one of those picking your favorite
Carol Ventresca [:kid.
Chanda Wingo [:You can't
Brett Johnson [:do that. I can't. But but maybe it's more of the, well, maybe look at it in reverse. Maybe which one should have the more love to it because it's such a great program, and it doesn't get get to love too. I know every one of them is effective, quite frankly, because if it helps one, then it's done its job, of course.
Chanda Wingo [:I I honestly, I love them all. Mhmm. I do. I love the lived experiences that come from them. Probably about a month or so ago, I was talking to an older adult who I met for the first time, who was telling me that we had did a bathroom modification for her so that she could, you know, safely walk in and out of her tub. She said, I swear you guys made my bathroom look like I live in Bexley.
Carol Ventresca [:So I love to hear
Chanda Wingo [:those kinds of things and she said, and your staff, they're so nice and they're mannerable and they cleaned up after themselves. Right? So I love to hear those things and I hear those things about all of our programs. But I will say that I to answer the question with that you just phrased, the one that probably needs the most TLC is our kinship program. We have 8595 year olds in Franklin County raising 23 year olds. And so when you think about that, even at the ages we are at this present moment, how hard that would be to raise a 2 year old and a 3 year old when you didn't give birth to them. They just showed up at your doorstep and you're like, wait a minute. I don't even what do kids do today? Do they what do they need? And and we get those stories a lot. And the reason that I believe that this program probably needs a little more TLC in terms of people knowing that it's out there.
Chanda Wingo [:It's only 3 years old. It's approaching 3 years old this year. And as I mentioned, per census data, there's 283,000 children living with an older adult. But about 30,000 of those are solely responsible for the young people that they're raising and they are 30% below the Federal poverty level. And so this program is very similar to the other caregiver program, but it focuses more on the need of both the older adult and the child. So we have a very unique partnership with Children Services, where they help, you know, provide some additional funding, which is to support, you know, young people. Because we also know that our older adults are going to do anything necessary to keep their young people from going into the foster system. If even if that means that they don't eat.
Chanda Wingo [:Even if that means they don't take their medicine. Even if that means that they don't pay their rent. By any means necessary. So this program can come in and we can purchase beds and bedding and incontinence supplies for young people. We can also do some of that emergency assistance where we help pay, you know, rent and utilities. But we can also pay for after school care and summer camps and provide opportunities for respite for our older adults who may just need an 8 hour break from time to time. So I think that's the program that probably needs the most most TLC because, even with the demographic that we serve, a lot of them are informal placements. And what I mean by that is there's no formal custody agreement.
Chanda Wingo [:And so much like the other fears that we've mentioned here, some of our older adults are even afraid to ask for help with their young people because they fear that if they ask for help, it's perceived that that child will be taken from them. And we are here to provide a safe space for our older adults to say, hey. I just got custody of my grandchildren, and I really need some beds. We'll take care of it. Go from there. But I think that that is probably the one because it's it's still fairly new and it's not commonly known. But we do have, you know, a growth. And and if I would go back and let you know that the Census data does not capture relationships outside of grandparents.
Chanda Wingo [:So I don't know presently how many young people are living with older family members that are not grandparents and we know that exists.
Carol Ventresca [:That that sort of is a breath taker for me to see an 86 year old taking care of a 2 year old. I'm not 86 and I would not want to be in charge of a 2 year old.
Chanda Wingo [:Yeah. I'm 46 and I don't either.
Carol Ventresca [:So, so all of the work that I did with employment for seniors and and helping older adults find jobs, ageism was rampant. Mhmm. Still is. Hard to prove. Mhmm. And it's not just ageism in in the employment, but it it could be possibly in getting assistance, getting medical care. We had a wonderful conversation and giving a shout out to OSU's gerontology and geriatrics program where they're better educating, medical workers to take care of older adults and and the appropriate way and the appropriate questions to ask. HSM is going to get worse as long as resources are less.
Carol Ventresca [:Mhmm. Is there anything that county can do or is doing, particularly in helping that employment step?
Chanda Wingo [:So, a few months ago, I had an experience that just let me know, how how how deep ageism is, right? It was a comment that was made. It was, you know, like, hey, you need to stop giving all those old people free meals. If we were to run that back and say, quit giving all of those gay people free meals, there would be an uproar. If you were to say, quit giving all of those Black people free meals, there'd be an uproar. But people don't commonly blink when you hear things like that. But it that's exactly what ageism is, right? And so that sparked something in me to say, we got to do something about this, right? 1, you know, initiate an awareness campaign. What is ageism and what does it look like? When you say things like, I'm too old for this, right? Or I'm too old to do that. That's ageism, right? Or if, you know, as adults, we're not comfortable with telling people how old we are.
Chanda Wingo [:That's because ageism has been ingrained in in your thought process. And so yes, we want to do an awareness, campaign to put it out there. Right? And and have it sit at the table with DEI, with every other diversity, equity, and inclusion item that needs attention. But then, to your point, also work very closely and I've already had one conversation, just haven't gotten very far in the planning yet, with our Office of Diversity, Equity, Inclusion about how we can be more impactful with training and ensuring that across the County that we have this this resource available. So that, you know, people can learn more about what ageism is and how to avoid it. And just how to hold everybody accountable, and and have a call to action. You know, when we hear these things and we see these things like, hey, I know you probably didn't mean anything by it, but it is hurtful. Especially when you think about the fact that we are all going to age.
Chanda Wingo [:Right. Oh, yeah.
Carol Ventresca [:As opposed to the alternative, you know. And we were part of the, age friendly Columbus Franklin County program. And, so their their campaign this year is aging. It's so cool. Everyone's doing it, which is great fun. But ageism, as you said, it's like the hiddenism. Mhmm. Everyone would be appalled in other context, and yet if if, if an individual didn't get a job because of their age, it would be, oh, well, you know, there was a more qualified person.
Carol Ventresca [:I always told employers that, don't think that, older adults can't do technology. We invented the internet. Mhmm. So please don't you know, we do it differently than you do because we aren't, you know, what they call native, users, but which is an incredibly stupid term. But, it it seems that we hide the skills, knowledge, expertise, and wisdom of older adults under a under a barrel Mhmm. As opposed to convincing others around us of the value that an older adult brings to the table. Mhmm. And and I'm hoping that we hear more and more of that from the commissioners and the other county agencies to support older adults.
Carol Ventresca [:Mhmm.
Chanda Wingo [:If some schools of thought will tell you that ageism is one of the social determinants of health. It's a it's an impact. It's a it's a factor. And so you don't see it as commonly yet. But if you see it in some places, you're going to see it. Right? It is going to gain momentum. But I think that the call to action on this is also it takes all of us. Right? Yes.
Chanda Wingo [:You know, our commissioners are very passionate. You know, our motto is every resident, every day. But we really need everybody. We need all of us, that are listening, those that are in these conversations. You know, start talking about it, educating people and holding people accountable, to to realize that, you know, when you say certain things or your thought process like it's time it's time to really start rethinking this. Because, like I said, by 2030, there will be more older adults than kindergarteners. So, you know, a lot of older adults still have a lot to contribute by way of experience and skill set. And we shouldn't, you know, just say, well, you know, they're old.
Chanda Wingo [:Like, no. No. They contribute. They're they are part of our our society just as our 2 year olds, 3 year olds, and 13 year olds, and 60 year olds. Right? So
Carol Ventresca [:Yeah.
Brett Johnson [:Yeah. Exactly. Communications to varied audiences always different difficult and and, but the senior community can be even tougher, as an audience. Social media and technology are not necessarily their friend. Since the pandemic, there has been an even greater need for communications during emergencies. How does the Office on Aging locate and communicate with older adults in our community?
Chanda Wingo [:So, as I mentioned earlier, we have our Place Based strategy. So we we're expanding to be where our seniors and their families are. I also mentioned our expansion of outreach, right? 29 events a year was great for the timeframe. But now, you know, we have a population of 1,300,000 in Franklin County. We have an amazing opportunity to reach audiences in various locations to share this information, but also help us communicate. I mentioned that we are also on every social media platform and the idea there is that we're not necessarily targeting older adults. We're targeting the community around them, right? Whether you're an older adult or not, you're more inclined to listen to the people you trust than you are a commercial or a flyer. You know, if if your family member is saying, hey, you need to call Senior Options.
Chanda Wingo [:You're probably going to call Senior Options. What else have we done? I mean, we've done so much. It's kind of hard to keep up with all of it.
Brett Johnson [:But Are you seeing more, we talked a little bit about the phone calls coming in. Are you seeing a maybe an upsurge in being contacted through filling out a form on line than being the phone call?
Chanda Wingo [:No. Because our we weren't set up that way.
Brett Johnson [:Okay. Gotcha. Okay. I'm just curious if the technology is kind of changing that you're getting like contacted through social media.
Chanda Wingo [:We will.
Brett Johnson [:Yeah.
Chanda Wingo [:So we are midway through a system conversion that will transform With our new system With our new system that we've we've we're rolling it out in phases. So they've began using it in February, but obviously all of the features haven't been deployed yet. But when it's all said and done, you could potentially just communicate with us through our system. So you would create
Brett Johnson [:touchpoint and especially you mentioning Gen X rolling into it. We're seeing much more communication through I just I'll just send a text. I know I'm gonna be you know, we're we're being trained to do that. And because it is a very quick way to get an answer to a problem versus making a phone call.
Chanda Wingo [:Mhmm. With our new system, you'll be able to, as a resident, create, you know, a self-service portal account. You'll be able to see your services. You'll be able to communicate with your case you pick up the traditional phone and call or chat, as you mentioned. But the I think my favorite is is the telecase component, where you'll be able to do some video calling. MELISSA: you'll be able to do some video calling.
Carol Ventresca [:Nice.
Chanda Wingo [:Because our
Carol Ventresca [:It's
Brett Johnson [:morphing of it.
Chanda Wingo [:Yes. Yes. Yes. Yes. And and because our system has been the way that it is for so long, our clients typically will see their case manager for the first time at one of our events, face to face. Right? And so, you know, implementing this new technology will allow us to cover more ground, but also embrace the different levels of where people are in their usability, you know, of the various technology. But we will also have an enhanced IVR that will allow you to call in and get information over the IVR without, you know, necessarily having to sit on hold or talk to a person.
Brett Johnson [:An IVR.
Chanda Wingo [:I'm sorry. It's an interactive voice response.
Brett Johnson [:Gotcha. Okay.
Carol Ventresca [:So sim similar really to telehealth. And think about all of the changes in the health series health areas. It works. Yeah. It does. And and it would seem to me that if you could see the person, even if it's through a screen, you're going to know more about that person from both perspectives Yeah. Than a phone call or a email or
Brett Johnson [:Making it a much more rewarding situation for a case manager.
Chanda Wingo [:I think so too. Yeah. Yep. So that's
Carol Ventresca [:coming. Wonderful. Wonderful. Good. Good to hear. So, you know, I I say this on every podcast. These podcasts go way too quickly. We wanted to make sure we got information out about all the phenomenal services that Franklin County Office on Aging does, and and I think we've done that.
Carol Ventresca [:I think this is gonna be an incredible opportunity for our listeners and others to hear, all about what's been happening and, the changes that are gonna come about. But we also wanna always ask our guests your last words of wisdom. Is there anything we haven't mentioned that you wanna make sure people hear or, some other note that you really wanna make sure that our audience understands.
Chanda Wingo [:I just really wanna emphasize yet again, that it's gonna take all of us to ensure that our seniors are able to age in place. It's going to take every single one of us. If you are in a position, like I said, that you live next door to a senior, check on them. If you have an older family member that lives thousands of miles away, call them. It's going to take all of us. So please, you wrap your arms around the senior that's closest to you. Talk to them. Make sure they have what they need.
Chanda Wingo [:Refer them to us. Call us yourself. Whatever you have to do, you know, do your part.
Brett Johnson [:Almost each one adopt 1. Mhmm.
Chanda Wingo [:Kind of feel to it. Very true.
Carol Ventresca [:Very true. Yeah. Very true. Thank you. Thank you so much. Yeah.
Chanda Wingo [:You're welcome.
Brett Johnson [:Well, many thanks to our expert guest, Franklin County Office on Aging Director Chanda Wingo for joining us today. Listeners, thank you for joining us as well. You're gonna find contact information and resources that we discussed in the podcast in the show notes on and on our website at lookingforwardourway.com, and we're looking forward to hearing your feedback on this or any of our other podcast episodes.
