LTSS Newsletter—October 2022

LTSS webinar, October 27 – Southcentral Foundation’s Family Wellness Warriors Soldier’s Heart Program   American Indian/Alaska Native Long-Term Services and Supports SOLUTIONS Technical assistance for culturally competent care October 2022   LTSS Technical Assistance Center Visit the online LTSS TA Center for videos, best practices, toolkits, a resource library, and a step-by-step planning roadmap.     Mitigating the impact of HCBS workforce challenges Earlier this year, USAging conducted a survey to learn about the workforce challenges that Area Agencies on Aging (AAAs) face and how those challenges impact delivery of home- and community-based services (HCBS). Results of that survey were recently shared in the report, Caregiver Needed: How the Nation’s Workforce Shortages Make It Harder to Age Well at Home (PDF, 2.6 MB, 12 pp). As noted in the report, many AAAs have addressed workforce challenges by: Implementing policies that permit remote work and flexible work schedules   Using virtual services for assessments, care coordination, and behavioral health care delivery   Increasing the wages of care providers Other strategies include dividing job tasks among multiple workers, outsourcing chore services, recruiting non-traditional workers, and enhancing care providers’ benefits.           Managed care and HCBS               Home and community-based services (HCBS) help make it possible for elders to age in place.   Oneida Nation provides HCBS under a 1915(b) waiver mandating enrollment into managed care.   To hear about Oneida Nation’s transition from a fee-for-service model to a managed-care model for HCBS, watch CMS’s webinar, Managed Care and Home- and Community-Based Services, which:   Identifies issues that must be resolved during the transition   Suggests strategies for easing that transition   Also, visit CMS’s LTSS TA Center to learn how HCBS programs are funded and which CMS programs can support HCBS in tribal communities.       Recruiting and retaining PCAs A new resource is available to help nonmedical home care agencies recruit and retain personal care aides (PCAs).   Published by the LeadingAge LTSS Center @UMass Boston, Job Design for Home-Based Care: Perspectives of Employers and Personal Care Aides (PDF, 4 MB, 27 pp) reviews key findings from interviews with home care agency leaders and PCAs.   Based on those findings, the report recommends changes in areas such as supervision, scheduling, communication, and compensation.   Tool to assess risk for falls A tool for assessing an elder’s risk for falls is now available on the National Council on Aging (NCOA) website.   Created through a partnership between Amgen and the CDC Foundation, the tool includes 13 multiple-choice questions. Answers to those questions are then used to calculate a person’s risk score and recommend resources to help prevent falls.   Elders are encouraged to review those resources, discuss their risk score with a health care professional, and develop a plan for staying injury-free and independent.     Join the conversation on LinkedIn Want to learn more about or discuss LTSS in Indian Country? Looking to connect with others working in the same field?   Join the Tribal Affairs Group on LinkedIn.   Upcoming webinar   Southcentral Foundation’s Family Wellness Warriors Soldier’s Heart Program Thursday, October 27 Family Wellness Warriors Soldier’s Heart is a peer-led program that addresses service-related post-traumatic stress in combat Veterans and first responders. The program uses cultural values, such as storytelling and teaching, to deliver tools for resiliency. This webinar will look at Soldier’s Heart, from inception to now, and talk about the ways in which Soldier’s Heart serves a uniquely difficult-to-serve population.   Objectives:   Describe how Family Wellness Warriors engages with community to foster connections   Discuss Southcentral Foundation’s approach to health care and its grounding in American Indian and Alaska Native values   Explain how Soldier’s Heart started and highlight the importance of a peer-led experience for the underserved population of Veterans and first responders Please note your location's call-in time:   8 a.m. Hawaii 10 a.m. Alaska 11 a.m. Pacific 12 p.m. Mountain 1 p.m. Central 2 p.m. Eastern   Have questions for our presenters? Let us know before the webinar by emailing ltssinfo@kauffmaninc.com. Register now. Presenters Lu-Anne Haukaas Senior Learning and Development Advisor Southcentral Foundation Jean-Paul Roulet Learning and Development Associate Southcentral Foundation   Caregiver's corner   A Native family’s caregiving story Caring for a family member with dementia can be a lonely experience. Help caregivers feel less isolated by sharing the link to a six-minute video, I Can’t Remember: A Native Family’s Story of Dementia.   In the video, an elder describes caring for her late husband, whose personality changed as a result of Alzheimer’s disease. She also highlights the importance of seeking help from other family members when juggling caregiving responsibilities and self-care.   Funding opportunities   Rural eConnectivity Program Deadline: November 2, 11:59 a.m. Eastern Learn more about the Rural eConnectivity Program funding opportunity The Rural eConnectivity Program is offering funds to facilitate expansion of broadband services and infrastructure. Tribes and tribal organizations are encouraged to propose projects that:   Help rural communities recover economically from the COVID-19 pandemic Make sure residents have equitable access to rural development programs Increase resilience to the impacts of climate change   Upcoming events   Dementia Friends information sessions October 25, 3–4 p.m. Eastern November 29, 3–4 p.m. Eastern Register for a Dementia Friends information session   As part of its effort to create more inclusive environments for people with dementia, the International Association for Indigenous Aging will host two Dementia Friends information sessions for American Indians and Alaska Natives.   Each session explains what it is like to live with dementia. Attendees will be asked to take practical steps to help someone with dementia in their community. American Society on Aging webinars   The American Society on Aging (ASA) hosts webinars to improve quality of life for elders and their families. Upcoming webinars are listed below. Attendees may be eligible to receive continuing education credit.   November 2, 1–2 p.m. Eastern: Mindset Matters: How to Reframe Mindsets for Positivity in Caregiving November 15, 1–2 p.m. Eastern: Elder Abuse: Identifying and Advocating for Seniors Workshop to improve care for people with Alzheimer’s November 16, 1–3 p.m. Eastern Register for the November 16 workshop Plan to attend a workshop to better understand why people with Alzheimer’s disease often wander away. Hosted by Alzheimer’s Foundation of America, the workshop will:   Describe common triggers for wandering Explain the different types of wandering Identify strategies to help keep people with Alzheimer’s safe   Send us your news Do you have news to share about LTSS in Indian Country? Send it to ltssinfo@kauffmaninc.com, and we'll include it in a newsletter. Contact us with other comments or feedback, too.   About the newsletter American Indian/Alaska Native Long-Term Services and Supports Solutions is published monthly by the CMS Division of Tribal Affairs to share information, funding opportunities, and resources with LTSS planners, tribal leaders, and supporters.