6.A.1 The Division of Aging will continue to staff the Provider Performance Review Committee as a cooperative effort among the state, regional, and local levels to strengthen the review of local service performance for compliance with state service standards and quality improvement.

6.A.2 The Division of Aging will make the quality improvement plan for nutrition services a mandatory part of the monitoring of the Home and Community Care Block Grant, as of state fiscal year 1999–2000.

6.A.3 The Division of Aging will promote effective use of technology within the aging network by suggesting standards for hardware and software, offering computer skills training, and assisting providers with access to the Internet.

6.A.4 The Division of Aging will continue its work with other public and private agencies to promote volunteerism by older adults in support of programs for all ages (e.g., the Senior Education Corps) as well as volunteerism by all ages to extend services to older adults (e.g., Connections for Independent Living Project). This activity will include examining and addressing barriers to volunteerism and developing more efficient means of matching volunteers to community needs.

6.A.5 The Division of Aging recommends state funding for Volunteer Program Development, especially for counties that do not have a centralized program to recruit and manage volunteers.

6.A.6 The Division of Aging will work with other divisions and agencies to promote an information system that supports comparing service delivery to older adults across settings, allows tracking of actual and potential clients through care systems, and enables tracking of meaningful performance measures.

6.B.1 The Division of Aging will continue its senior center planning initiative, working with a state-level task force, to guide and support state and local development efforts over the next five years.

6.B.2 The Division of Aging will further develop the senior center models of Merit and Excellence and devise a self-assessment tool for use by senior centers and local planning committees.

6.B.3 The Division of Aging will develop and promote specific funding plans to support the statewide development of model senior centers.

6.B.4 The Division of Aging will revise the senior center operations standards that define the minimum program requirements for senior centers receiving service funds from the Home and Community Care Block Grant.

6.B.5 The Division of Aging will design data collection instruments for senior centers to report on client and program participation, using new technology as appropriate.

6.B.6 The Division of Aging will undertake a statewide consumer satisfaction survey of senior center participants.

6.B.7 The Division of Aging will arrange for a survey of potential participants of senior centers to help guide future development.

6.B.8 The Division of Aging recommends ongoing state support of full-time senior centers for operations, outreach and development, and renovations and repairs.

6.C.1 The Division of Aging recommends state funding for a new position to serve as the statewide Program Specialist for Information and Assistance.

6.C.2 The Division of Aging will partner with others to identify and promote the statewide transfer of effective demonstrations and best practices relative to the provision of information, education, counseling, and referral services. The Governor’s Advisory Council has enlisted the help of its Committee to Promote the Public Understanding of Aging Issues and its Rural Aging Committee to study and make recommendations to the division in these matters.

6.C.3 The state Department of Insurance recommends state funding to support the work of the Seniors’ Health Insurance Information Program (SHIIP) in the education of the public about changes to Medicare and other matters affecting North Carolina’s more than one million beneficiaries and their families.

6.C.4 The Division of Aging will continue to expand its web site, taking into account suggestions offered in its on-line guest book, and will coordinate development with Area Agencies on Aging to maximize resources at the state and regional levels.

6.D.1 The Division of Aging will work with the state Department of Transportation and AARP to promote the 55 Alive Mature Driving Program to help motorists 50 years of age and older to refresh their driving skills.

6.D.2 The Division of Aging will work with the state Department of Transportation in a review of North Carolina’s readiness for an aging society, relative to transportation needs. This will include use of the US Department of Transportation’s report, Improving Transportation for a Maturing Society, as a reference tool.

6.D.3 The Division of Aging will participate on the Human Service Transportation Council of the State Department of Transportation and assist with implementation of the Community Transportation Services Plan, to include promoting the participation of Area Agencies on Aging and local service providers and aging advocates.

6.D.4 The North Carolina Housing Finance Agency (NCHFA) will work to maintain and enhance the Consumer Education Resource Fund to assist with the expenses of reverse mortgage consumer counselors.

6.D.5 The DHHS Independent Housing with Services Advisory Committee, with support from the Division of Aging, will continue a campaign to inform the public about Multi-unit Assisted Housing with Services.

6.D.6 The Division of Aging and NCHFA will seek input from service coordinators to guide development of future quarterly training workshops for these coordinators.

6.D.7 The Division of Aging will assist Area Agencies on Aging in developing and piloting training for aging service providers and consumers about housing options and home repair programs.

6.D.8 The Division of Aging will update and enhance the database and on-line version of the Elder Housing Locator Service to assist older consumers with housing information.

6.D.9 The Division of Aging and NCHFA will contribute to authoring a regular column about housing in the Senior Citizens’ VOICE, a publication of the North Carolina Senior Citizens’ Association that reaches more than 30,000 older adults.

6.D.10 The NC Cooperative Extension Service will teach older adults about home modifications and their importance in maintaining a safe, convenient, and accessible home.

6.E.1 The Division of Social Services, in collaboration with several county departments of social services, will pilot community-based outcome measures for the Adult Protective Services Program. Once the pilot phase is complete, these outcome measures will be implemented on a statewide basis.

6.E.2 The Division of Social Services will provide training on a statewide basis for citizens interested in becoming legal guardian for an elderly or disabled family member who is mentally incompetent, unable to manage his or her affairs, and whose rights need to be protected.

6.E.3 The Division of Social Services will develop a curriculum and videotape on the reporting of abuse, neglect, or exploitation of disabled adults (or juveniles) for use by other divisions within DHHS that operate schools and institutions. These materials will be used to train personnel in these schools and institutions to recognize and report mistreatment of disabled adults (or juveniles) to county departments of social services.

6.E.4 The Division of Social Services recommends state funding to expand the capacity of county departments of social services to meet the legal requirements for providing guardianship and adult protective services (establish new positions for both APS and guardianship, and create a fund for essential services for APS clients); add a position of Guardianship Coordinator in the division office; and support a contract with the Attorney General’s Office for an attorney to specialize in APS and guardianship issues.

6.E.5 The North Carolina Council on Developmental Disabilities will sponsor the "North Carolina Developmental Disabilities and Aging Leadership Initiative," involving a wide range of groups, to develop a plan for the state that will partner the aging and developmental disability systems at the state, regional, and local levels to bring about necessary changes in policy, regulation, and practice to better serve aging persons with developmental disabilities and their families. The Division of Aging will cochair the initiative.

6.E.6 The Legal Resource Center of the Division of Aging will continue to work with AARP, the Alzheimer’s Association, the Institute of Government, and others to enhance training materials for guardians ad litem who serve in adult incompetency hearings across the state.

6.F.1 The Division of Aging will lead a process to develop further a set of principles for aging in North Carolina, against which all important policies—whether at the local, regional, or state level—should be evaluated.

6.F.2 The Division of Aging will seek foundation funding to support further analyses of the implications of the aging of boomers for the state’s policies and programs in such areas as long-term care, with an emphasis on the future of Medicaid; lifelong learning and skills development, with an emphasis on the role of the community colleges and university system; state and local tax structures and budgets; economic and workforce development; and highway construction and other forms of transportation.

6.F.3 The Division of Aging will use the 2000 Census data and other information to prepare a tool for use by Area Agencies on Aging, regional aging advisory councils, and county planning committees to examine the implications of aging on local communities.

6.F.4 The Division of Aging will serve as a clearinghouse for information about public and private boomer-related initiatives and facilitate partnerships among the various involved groups and organizations.

6.F.5 The Division of Aging will provide information, sponsor discussions, and support training designed to develop the capacity of the aging network to respond effectively to the aging baby boom generation.

6.F.6 The Division of Aging will assess the experience of other states with a large inmigration of retirees and will provide information and tools and sponsor discussions to consider the implications of this inmigration for North Carolina.

6.F.7 The Division of Aging will use 1999 as the "Year of Older Persons" to recognize the contributions of older persons and publicize major programs designed to serve their needs.

6.F.8 The Division of Aging will work with the NC Cooperative Extension Service and others to interest and inform the media about the aging of our society and about efforts underway to prepare individuals and communities for this.

6.F.9 The Division of Aging will continue to evaluate the effectiveness of local, regional, and state planning for aging, and provide information, training, and technical assistance to aid the work of the local Home and Community Care Block Grant Committees and the Regional Advisory Councils.