CARES has enjoyed a productive relationship with the Adult Services Branch of the Division of Social Services and with the Division of Aging, both in the NC Department of Health and Human Services. In 2003-2004, these two groups joined forces as the Division of Aging and Adult Services (DAAS). Here are some of our present and past collaborative projects.

Continuing Professional Education

CARES regularly has offered ten curricula for adult services social workers and managers. See our training calendar for descriptions of these events and dates for spring 2008.

Certification for Senior Centers

CARES worked with DAAS and the Senior Center Development Task Force to develop a process and tools for strengthening senior centers around the state. CARES staff members currently serve on site visit teams. In fall 2007, 56 centers statewide had been certified as centers of excellence or of merit. To learn more about this initiative, visit DAAS's website for a description and tools.

CARES collaborates with DAAS to offer a one-day event for directors of senior centers on the certification process and participates in delivering modules of the Ann Johnson Institute for Senior Center Management. Follow the link for details and registration materials.

To understand the status of senior centers across the state at the beginning of the certification process, CARES conducted a survey in 2000-2001 and provided a report in 2002.

Planning for Livable and Senior-friendly Communities

CARES staff members have assisted DAAS in several projects to assist towns, counties, and regions in planning for an older society. Here are two.

• In 2003-2004, DAAS developed the Communications and Coordination Initiative, to improve community planning for long-term care, with assistance and guidance from the DHHS Long-Term Care Cabinet and a state team composed of representatives from all DHHS Divisions involved in long-term care. Two pilot communities, New Hanover and Mecklenburg Counties, participated in this project, evaluating local long-term care services and identifying and initiating strategies to strengthen the long-term care system for older and disabled adults. To provide support for other communities desiring to plan, DAAS and CARES staff members have collaborated on a Planning Basics Guide, which reviews strategic planning and provides suggestions and support for managing the process.
• The following year, DAAS identified and promoted strategies for Livable and Senior-friendly Communities. Three senior centers piloted projects, and the materials and methods they developed are posted for other communities' use.

Newsletters

ASPN: Adult Services Practice Notes
(1998 to present, in Adobe Acrobat 6 format)

• Planning for the End of Life: North Carolina Updates Its Statutes, 10(1), Winter 2008
• After Placement: Who Cares for the Family Caregiver?, 9(2), Spring 2007
  [This file is set up to print on an 11 x 17 page. If you print it on an 8.5 x 11 page, the type will be quite small. Here it is in HTML.]
  • Supplement with Resources
• Helping You Provide Support to Caregivers of People with Dementia, 9(1), Fall 2006
• Combating Financial Exploitation of Older Adults and Those with Disabilities, 8(2), Spring 2006
• Combating Abuse and Neglect of Adults with Disabilities, 8(1), Winter 2005-6
• Collaborating to Build Communities for All Ages, 7(2) Spring 2005
• Family Caregiving, 7(1) Fall 2004
• Ending Well, 6(2) Summer 2004
• Looking for Outcomes, 6(1) Spring 2004
  • Mr. Pirelli's quarterly review
  • Mr. Pirelli's updated service plan
  • A blank Interim or Quarterly Client Review in MS Word format
• Working for Change, 5(3) Summer 2003
• Do You Know When to Sweat?, 5(2) Spring 2003
  Mr. Pirelli's Case Plan
• Not Just Sad: Depression and Older Adults, 5(1) Fall 2001-Winter 2002
• Growing Older with Developmental Disabilities: Working with Clients and Their Families to Plan Their Later Years, 4(2) Spring/Summer 2001
• R-E-S-P-E-C-T, 4(1) Fall 2000/Winter 2001
• Ethics Round Table, 3(2) Spring/Summer 2000
• Ethics in Action, 3(1) Fall 1999/Winter 2000
• Alcohol Abuse and Older Persons, 2(2) Spring/Summer 1999
• Adult Protective Services, 2(1) Fall 1998/Winter 1999
• Using Mediation Strategies to Help Families Resolve Conflict, 1(2) Spring 1998
• Helping Clients and Families Face the End of Life, 1(1) Fall 1997/Winter 1998
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Practice Issues for Social Workers

Web resources on mental health issues for older adults
This page is a companion to two of our curricula, Geriatric Mental Health, and Working with Clients with Severe Mental Illness. It contains links to current information on diagnosis and treatment of mental illnesses and to information on advocacy groups.

Principles of family-centered practice with adults and their families
A statewide work group composed of social work practitioners at all levels developed 16 principles for social workers and 9 for administrators. These principles and how they are reflected in practice are the focus of CARES's curriculum Applications in Family-Centered Practice.

A Model for Excellence in Adult Services Supervision and Social Work Practice (1991)
This manual of best practice sponsored by the Adult Services Branch was revised and published in 1995 as The Field of Adult Services: Social Work Practice and Administration, by NASW Press.

Issues for Policymakers and Concerned Citizens

The 2007-2010 NC Aging Services Plan was presented to the legislature in March 2007. CARES assisted the Division of Aging and Adult Services in preparing this document. The 2003-2007 NC Aging Services Plan also contains useful information on aging and the challenges and opportunities it brings the state.

Some past reports and newsletters contain information of continuing value.