How You Can Help California’s Medically Needy Seniors
How You Can Help California’s Medically Needy Seniors
May 13, 2016
This year, Assembly Bill 1319, also known as the Medically Needy Program Extension is being reintroduced as Assembly Bill 1655. AB 1655 will be supported by California State Assemblyman Bill Dodd.
If you are interested in giving aid to California’s Medically Needy beneficiaries, we suggest doing one of the following:
- Write and mail a personal letter to your California Representative. If you don’t know who your representative is, click here to find out.
- Write and mail a personal letter to Bill 1655's supporters
Assemblyman Bill Dodd at:
District Office:
725 Main Street Suite 206
Woodland, CA 95695
Tel: (530) 662-7867
Fax: (530) 662-6370
or Assemblywoman Lorena Gonzalez at:
District Office:
1350 Front Street
Suite 6022
San Diego, CA 92101
Tel: 619-338-8090
Fax: 619-338-8099 - Spread the word to your friends and family members about our cause and get them involved.
Recent Articles
Mar
5
Turning Dreams Into Reality at Los Angeles Jewish Health Leads to Prestigious AJAS Award
Seniors move to Los Angeles Jewish Health for a wide variety of reasons. Many have specific medical needs; some are isolated and seeking community; others require skilled nursing care. Whatever the reason, members of the compassionate Los Angeles Jewish Health team are dedicated to fostering an environment where older adults don’t simply survive – they thrive.
“Someone might arrive at Los Angeles Jewish Health thinking, ‘I have come here to die,’ but we believe just the opposite: They have come here to live!” says Chief Mission Officer Rabbi Karen Bender. “We challenge residents to think that it’s entirely possible that the most meaningful moment of their life has not yet happened, and, that it’s going to happen here at LAJH. They might also touch someone else’s life, get to know them, and build the closest friendships and relationships they’ve ever had. Los Angeles Jewish Health is a place to find fulfillment and make new memories.”
To that end, last year Rabbi Bender and Ilana Springer, CEO/administrator at Los Angeles Jewish Health’s Joyce Eisenberg Keefer (JEK) Medical Center, launched Achieve a Dream, a pilot program focused on helping residents look forward to a future-oriented goal, inspiring a sense of growth, and enabling them to reach for something beautiful.
“We asked ourselves, ‘What would we want for our residents if they were our own mothers and fathers?’” Ilana says. “The idea was to create experiences that would bring them joy.”
In partnership with an with interdisciplinary staff including Susan Leitch, Claudia Crespo, Katie Abelson, Stacy Orbach, and Julie Lockman-Gold, the two piloted the program in the Joyce Eisenberg Keefer Medical Center, Los Angeles Jewish Health’s 239-bed skilled nursing facility, where the average resident age is 91.
“We felt the greatest need was with residents who require the highest level of care because they may be the least able to make dreams come true for themselves,” Ilana says.
First on the list was Elaine. One morning, Rabbi Bender visited her room and asked whether there was anything she dreamed about doing. Elaine immediately pointed to the photographs of horses hanging on her bedroom wall.
“She said, ‘Every single day of my life I was with horses, until 10 years ago. I haven’t even seen a horse since. I know I can’t ride, but I just want to spend quiet time with a horse.’” Rabbi Bender recalls. “So, we arranged to have a horse brought to one of the beautiful courtyards at Los Angeles Jewish Health, and Elaine enjoyed 90 minutes of one-on-one time. For an hour and a half, this was her horse; she had space to have a beautiful moment with an animal that meant the world to her.”
Since then, many more dreams have come to fruition:
Efraim, a rabbi living in the JEK Medical Center, had a dream of leading one last service. He was able to do so while also providing amazing musical accompaniment. Toward the end of the service, he poignantly said to his congregation of peers, “Look, I’m just like you. I can no longer walk or sing or do many important things I was once able to do, but we make do! And I couldn’t have done it without the encouragement of my best friends Joe and Richard” – friends he made at Los Angeles Jewish Health.
Andy had been in a rock band back when he attended an Ivy League college. He wanted nothing more than to jam on a bass guitar like he once did, though as a stroke survivor he couldn’t fully play anymore. Working with the care team, Rabbi Bender and Ilana found a college student who was a music major. The young man brought several electric instruments and electronic equipment and enabled Andy to experience “playing” the bass while his wife looked on adoringly. She later said it was one of the most meaningful experiences of their marriage.
Harriet, who had a love for chocolate, requested a chocolate tasting for the campus community. The Office of Volunteers went above and beyond arranging for a personal visit by three renowned chocolatiers, including a former White House chef, followed by a demonstration and tasting where the rest of the skilled nursing community was invited to enjoy the sweet treats.
In recognition of the program’s success, the Association of Jewish Aging Services (AJAS) announced Achieve a Dream as this year’s recipient of its prestigious Programming Award. Rabbi Bender and Ilana accepted the honor in person at AJAS’ national conference, which took place in late February in San Diego. Los Angeles Jewish Health Chief Executive Officer and President, Dale Surowitz, Board Member, Judy Friedman-Rudzki and Board Chair, Andrew Berman joined in the celebration.
“We are proud of this award but even more proud that Los Angeles Jewish Health is empowering seniors to come here and live with as much – if not more – fullness and purpose as they had before,” Rabbi Bender says. “This is a place where dreams really can come true.”
The Association of Jewish Aging Services (AJAS) awards Los Angeles Jewish Health's Achieve a Dream initiative as this year’s recipient of its prestigious Programming Award.
Mar
5
Vibrant Lifestyles Meet Quality Care at Los Angeles Jewish Health
For more than a century, Los Angeles Jewish Health (formerly Los Angeles Jewish Home) has cared for older adults with compassion, respect, and high-quality programs, services, and senior living options.
At Los Angeles Jewish Health, the art and science of caring for older adults has been cultivated over 100 years of service, earning the organization a second-to-none reputation in the region.
“One of the many things that stands out about our organization is our collaborative approach,” says Noah Marco, M.D., chief medical officer. “Throughout our history, we have emphasized the importance of bringing various professionals and specialists together to collaborate, communicate, and cooperate on behalf of each patient. We also maintain excellent relationships with the area’s leading hospitals and medical centers.”
Founded in 1912, Los Angeles Jewish Health has grown from a group of caring neighbors to a leading nonprofit organization, open to all, built on the Jewish values of charity, quality, dignity, and fiscal responsibility.
Compassion is at the core of every interaction, and a family approach permeates the culture.
“We treat residents like family, and we also consider our staff one big family. Together, we work for the safety, health, and well-being of the individuals in our care,” says Dr. Marco. “Every member of our team—from medical providers, pharmacists, and social workers to drivers, housekeepers, and maintenance staff—is enthusiastically dedicated to living our organization’s mission of serving and honoring older adults.”
With multiple locations and several levels of care within the Los Angeles Jewish Health network, head-to-toe services are provided—from primary care to physical therapy, dental, ophthalmology, optometry, dermatology, podiatry, and more.
Working as coordinated care teams ensures the best care is provided to the whole patient—mind, body, and spirit. This patient-centered model also mitigates the challenges of visiting several providers at multiple locations over weeks—a mental and logistical burden that often falls to a patient’s children or grandchildren.
The Grancell Village Campus of Los Angeles Jewish Health includes assisted living, PACE program, short term rehab, skilled nursing, senior behavioral health, a school of nursing and more
Levels of Care
To support seniors in maintaining healthy outcomes throughout their aging journey, Los Angeles Jewish Health offers a broad array of programs and services, including independent living, assisted living, senior behavioral health, short-term rehabilitation, skilled nursing, memory services, and hospice and palliative care.
The Brandman Centers for Senior Care offers comprehensive adult day services through their PACE program (Programs of All-Inclusive Care for the Elderly). This award-winning program allows more frail seniors to remain independent in their homes while receiving vital care and social services at their neighborhood location and offers transportation, home care, engaging activities, and medical care.
“PACE is designed to care for historically underserved populations who have complex medical and psychosocial conditions,” says Dr. Marco. “Our participant feedback shows high scores of satisfaction, particularly in the clinical services and the delicious meals we provide. Recognized as a top performer in this space, we are continually focused on expanding these services to more seniors in need.”
Caring Choices in Independent and Assisted Living
For active older adults interested in a continuing care retirement community, Los Angeles Jewish Health offers independent living accommodations.
For residents in the San Fernando Valley, Fountainview at Eisenberg Village in Reseda, California, features resort-style living with gourmet dining, an on-site movie theater, a bar/lounge, a state-of-the-art fitness facility, and a creative arts studio. A full-service staff provides expert care and attention to 108 independent living options, with optional nursing and care available.
Patient-Centered Telemedicine
With support from a grant from the Federal Communications Commission and generous donors, Los Angeles Jewish Health has invested heavily in state-of-the-art technology, including telemedicine, to expand its mission of patient-centered care.
Dr. Marco explains that standard healthcare has predominately been a physician-centered model, wherein patients must travel to the physician at the physician’s convenience. But in a patient-centered telemedicine approach, patients are seen in the comfort of their own home.
“When done correctly, telemedicine has incredibly high satisfaction rates. Providers can instantly look at and listen to a patient, and if a nurse is present with the patient, even use a stethoscope to listen to the heart and lungs. The data clearly shows that physicians are able to make diagnoses quickly and more accurately,” Dr. Marco says.
Effective telemedicine also reduces instances of unnecessary ambulance calls, which are costly and disruptive for patients, families, and caretakers alike.
Personalized Approach
With the benefit of expert gerontologists at the helm, Los Angeles Jewish Health focuses on the five M’s of geriatric care: mind, mobility, medications, multiple complexities, and what matters most to you.
“These five M’s are the difference between our tailored geriatric practice and a standard, fractionated approach to care,” says Dr. Marco. “We hyperfocus on learning each patient’s goals and needs so that their care can be as personal and effective as possible.
This article first appeared in Good Housekeeping and Woman's Day magazines in their January/February 2024 issue.
Dr. Noah S. Marco - Chief Medical Officer at Los Angeles Jewish Health
Feb
6
At Los Angeles Jewish Health Love Knows No Bounds
When 94-year-old Jack Schlaifer agreed to officiate at the wedding of his grandniece, Alison, and her fiancé, Daniel, he was building on a family tradition: months earlier, he had performed the marriage ceremony for Alison’s father (his nephew Charles) in the backyard of his Westlake Village home. Jack was honored when Alison asked him to do the honors for her wedding as well. They laid out plans for a similar ceremony, in the same venue, on New Year’s Day—until life got in the way.
“In November, I had a fall, and I fractured my L5 [a region between the lumbar and sacral spine in the lower back],” Jack says. “Suddenly, I was living in a rehabilitation facility, and all bets were off. I called Alison and told her, ‘You can’t count on me for the wedding.’ I was sad about it, but what could I do?”
Alison knew exactly what he should do: proceed full steam ahead. "She said, “Uncle Jack, I don’t care where you are; I want you to marry us. We’ll come to wherever you are!’” he recalls. “I was incredibly moved.”
All that was left was to coordinate with the staff at Los Angeles Jewish Health. LAJH is a place that Jack, a native Angeleno who had raised his family in the Valley, had long known and loved. “I joined The Guardians (a support group of LAJH) in 1980, and when they formed The Executives, I was a founding member and, later, president,” he said. “I served on The Executives’ board for 30 years.”
Jack reached out to Los Angeles Jewish Health staff, and everyone enthusiastically leaned in to ensure all details were arranged. On January 1, 2024, in a cozy family room on the Grancell Village campus, Jack gathered together with Alison, Daniel, and an intimate group of family to give the couple his blessing and pronounce them “man and wife.”
“It was an amazing wedding, and it brought me a lot of naches [joy],” Jack says, smiling. “After it was over, the family went for sandwiches to Brent’s Deli, which is Alison and Daniel’s favorite place. It was perfect.”
Once the ceremony was complete, it was back to the hard work of rehab. Every day Jack has both physical and occupational therapy, and every day he gets a little bit stronger. While the road to recovery is long, he is grateful to be walking it at Los Angeles Jewish Health.
“I’m lucky to be here,” he says. “The care is wonderful, and the people are great.”