Speaking up for senior citizens
Ken and Shirley Woodard visit with Victoria Nursing and Rehabilitation resident, Delia Salas. The Woodard's worked with Salas and the facility to remove her bed from her room to free up space since she was sleeping in chair anyway. Laying in bed was causing back aches for Salas. Barbara Zimmerman with the Area Agency on Aging of Golden Crescent notes the need for more ombudsmen volunteers to help with the 39 facilities under the organization's watch.
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HOW TO SIGN UP
Contact Barbara Zimmerman at the Golden Crescent Area Agency on Aging at 361-578-1587, 1-800-574-9745 or barbaraz@gcrpc.org.
CITIES WITH FACILITIES IN NEED OF OMBUDSMEN
Cuero
Goliad
Gonzales
Hallettsville
Moulton
Port Lavaca
...- SHOW ALL »
HOW TO SIGN UP
Contact Barbara Zimmerman at the Golden Crescent Area Agency on Aging at 361-578-1587, 1-800-574-9745 or barbaraz@gcrpc.org.
CITIES WITH FACILITIES IN NEED OF OMBUDSMEN
Cuero
Goliad
Gonzales
Hallettsville
Moulton
Port Lavaca
Shiner
Victoria
Yoakum
Ken and Shirley Woodard have strolled up and down the halls of the Victoria Nursing and Rehabilitation Center for 10 years, but they are not residents.
They are ombudsmen, people who serve as advocates for residents in nursing or assisted-living facilities. The advocacy they live for grows more and more shaky in the Crossroads.
"We have a real urgent need for volunteers in a lot of our facilities," said Barbara Zimmerman, elder rights coordinator at the Golden Crescent Area Agency on Aging.
This dip in volunteerism might be because people don't have time or don't know about the volunteer program, she said.
Ombudsmen ensure residents understand their rights and receive appropriate benefits and services. They also ensure problems and complaints receive the attention of the staff, Shirley Woodard said.
"It's very fulfilling," she said, sitting in a resident room.
During the last decade, the couple formed relationships and solved problems, they say. They spend a few hours a week volunteering.
They helped Delia Salas. Salas struggled to sleep on her mattress because it gave her severe back pain, she said. So, Salas slept on her recliner, which provided her with some relief but less living space.
The staff said state regulations required a bed in each room, but the Woodards researched the matter.
"They did it," Salas said, proud of the personal knickknacks that now occupy the space where the bed once was. "They had said it couldn't be removed."
Bringing her concern to the Woodards helped to improve her living conditions, Salas said.
Elizabeth Vess of Victoria undergoes arm motor skill rehabilitation until she is able to take care of herself and her family, she said.
The 76-year-old has lived at the facility for only a year, but has witnessed the compassionate work the Woodards do, she said.
"I try to take care of my own affairs because I still can," Vess said.
Vess, adorned with pink nails, a styled up-do and pink facility shirt, keeps her spirits up by making the best of her current home, she said.
Not every resident can do so and speak up for themselves. Some residents live with Alzheimer's, dementia or other mental disorders. They might struggle to voice concerns, Ken Woodard said. That's where volunteers can play a role, he said.
In particular, he likes to go back in time with one of the residents, he said. The two play baseball and Ken Woodard teases that the resident can't strike him out.
"I like to get into their world," he said.
Just because a problem is brought to the Woodards' attention doesn't mean it can be solved, Shirley Woodard said. Sometimes all ombudsmen can do is listen, something everyone can do, she said.
"So many of them here don't have any family left or they are not able to visit very often," she said. "Even though we can't solve a problem, they just need someone to listen to them."
