PEER graduates included Ruth Arnesen, Patricia Briggs, Lisa Eichler, William Gallagher, David Gooding, Margaret Harris, Margaret McAneny, Rick McDonald, Sandra Osterbrink, Nancy Wagner. Also attending the event were Debra Taylor and Ann Kolb (Ombudsmen and PEER trainers, Bucks County Area Agency on Aging), Kandy Schreffler (Ombudsman Program Southeast Office Regional Coordinator, PA Department of Aging), William McTigue (Deputy Director, Bucks County Area Agency on Aging), facility staff, friends and family.
A specialty within the Ombudsman program, PEER is a partnership among residents, staff, and the local Ombudsman to enhance resident relationships with the facility’s care providers. PEER’s five-part training program teaches residents their rights, and also provides opportunities for the facility’s direct-care staff and department heads to further explore life in the facility from the resident’s perspective. Upon graduation and with the continuing support of their trainers and the Bucks County Ombudsman, residents are better organized and prepared to advocate both for themselves and fellow residents to ensure the highest possible quality of life in their facility home.
Funded and supported by the PA Department of Aging and staffed by state-certified individuals who routinely visit long-term care facilities throughout the county, the Bucks County Ombudsman Program empowers facility residents by educating them on their rights—and advocates for those who are unable to advocate for themselves—to receive high quality care, be treated with respect, make independent choices, and much more.
For more information contact the Bucks County Ombudsman Program at 267-880-5716 or aging@buckscounty.org.