The COVID-19 pandemic has been devastating for older adults, people with disabilities, and their families. Across the country, the aging and disability networks have risen to the challenges posed by the pandemic and overcome unprecedented barriers to continue serving their communities.
For an on-the-ground example of these efforts, we spoke to New York State Office for the Aging (NYSOFA) Acting Director Greg Olsen. In the Q&A below, he discusses how his office has been responding to the many challenges created by the pandemic, the important role of partnerships, innovative programs to combat social isolation, efforts to increase vaccine and testing access, and the future of aging services in his state.
What were some of the biggest challenges older adults faced in the early months of the pandemic?
In early 2020, New York was quick to implement a stay-at-home order for individuals over 70, those with chronic conditions, and those with compromised immune systems. In addition, most community outlets were closed in an effort to slow the spread of COVID-19. These public health measures impacted individuals’ ability to grocery shop, go to appointments, socialize, and work as they stayed home to protect themselves. The pandemic also impacted older staff, volunteers and community-based organizations that serve older adults. We changed our business model overnight to get meals to older adults, deliver groceries and day-to-day supplies, provide safe transportation to cancer and dialysis treatments, combat social isolation by implementing virtual programming, and enhance our outreach to combat elder abuse and scams. The demand for our support and help increased significantly and we were able to accomplish this through our network of partners and the many groups and individuals of all ages in the community who wanted to assist.
How did New York's aging network adjust to these challenges and maintain services?
During the pandemic, the primary requests for services included meal delivery to the home, grocery and supply delivery, prescription drug delivery, transportation to medical appointments, social interactions to combat isolation, and elder abuse identification and mitigation. Our operations immediately pivoted. We significantly increased our nutrition program, which was already the largest in the country, leveraging existing programs like home-delivered meals while working creatively to provide older adults with shopping assistance, emergency shelf-stable meals, grab-and-go food options, and training on the use of private delivery services apps.
Providers transitioned as many programs as possible to Zoom, social media, and other online platforms, including health and wellness programs and evidence-based interventions, while expanding projects to increase connectivity. Working to close the technology access gap, NYSOFA and the network provided phones and tablets, wi-fi, and training on how to use this equipment to help older adults stay engaged and tap into virtual programming. We added a social isolation screen and a technology check to our comprehensive assessment and launched multiple partnerships to bring a variety of programming into the homes of older adults and their caregivers.
These initiatives and more were supported in large part thanks to efforts at all levels of government which secured and delivered more than $149 million in federal supplemental funding for NYSOFA programs and services that we immediately distributed to all counties. Additional federal resources will be needed on an ongoing basis to support providers as they continue to meet service demand, innovate, and achieve a more optimal balance of professional workers and volunteers.
Can you please provide some examples of how your agency has partnered with businesses, state and federal agencies, and volunteers to better support older adults during the pandemic?
NYSOFA worked extensively with our federal partners in developing national policy changes based on New York’s early experiences with the first wave of the pandemic – and we especially appreciated the support and guidance of ACL in these efforts.
For instance, NYSOFA worked with ACL on efforts to reach more people and new populations through the dedication of supplemental funds. We used these funds for outreach to younger disabled New Yorkers who were not traditionally connected to any state or local agencies prior to the pandemic, as well as for services to individuals living in U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development buildings.
Private partnerships also helped extend our reach. NYSOFA leveraged its use of the state’s purchasing power to provide emergency meals through local restaurants to more than 40 counties. We also partnered with Sysco foods to provide 1.5 million meals to older adults and received donations from farms wishing to donate their products to older adults in need. We also launched several partnerships with technology platforms to significantly expand virtual programming.
Volunteers have always been important to our service delivery network – and especially so during the pandemic. They implemented shopping programs, engaged community members in friendly phone calls or ran errands for older adults living alone, and so much more.
New York has come up with some creative strategies to promote social engagement during the pandemic. Can you tell us about the new Pets Together program?
NYSOFA, in partnership with the Association on Aging in New York, spent a lot of time learning what was available in the market that would help combat social isolation and increase connectedness while supporting lifelong learning. We received demonstrations from many companies and selected several for collaboration.
As an example, Pets Together is a national non-profit organization that connects older New Yorkers with the therapeutic power of pets using video chat services. Through this service, older adults meet with pet owners, who are volunteers, to see, learn and talk about their pets. The mere presence of animals is proven to reduce stress – even in a virtual setting – and these conversations offer an opportunity for engagement aimed at combatting social isolation. We’ve been working closely with the Association on Aging in New York to promote this free service through social media and other outlets and drive up volunteer rates so Pets Together can continue to expand its service nationally.
Pets Together is just one of several partnerships in NYSOFA’s highly focused effort to combat social isolation. We also offer virtual programming and lifelong learning through education and social connectivity platforms like GetSetUp, which has provided over 109,000 free online classes to 80,000 New Yorkers in one year, expansion of the Virtual Senior Center operated by Selfhelp Community Services, and our partnership with the New York State Council on the Arts to bring professional artists into homes through technology. We are also expanding NYSOFA’s award-winning Animatronic Pet Project, which is being replicated across the country and which evidence has shown can reduce self-reported loneliness and social isolation by 70 percent for individuals who receive one of these companionship pets.
Vaccinations and testing are critical public health tools that have saved lives. How have you worked to ensure older adults and people with disabilities can access these tools? Can you share any tips for others to use as they work in similar settings?
NYSOFA and the network played – and continue to play – a pivotal role in helping older adults get vaccinated at community sites and in their homes. County Offices for the Aging took phone calls, booked appointments, replicated paperwork, and provided transportation, wheelchairs, or other supports at vaccination sites to get shots in people’s arms. NYSOFA was instrumental in working with the New York State Department of Health to develop guidance and implementation of the in-home vaccination program for those who could not make it to a vaccine site. Our partners at the Association on Aging in New York worked with Kinney Drugs in almost 30 counties to host vaccination clinics exclusively for older adults in partnership with the area agencies on aging (AAAs).
Our network played the same role for booster shots, and we are set deliver tens of thousands of additional test kits to the AAAs as their local supply is starting to run short in some areas.
How are you thinking about aging services in New York moving forward as we all adjust to our "new normal?" What innovations will you be pursuing, if any?
Even as the COVID-19 emergency period recedes, all signs show that the virus will be a part of our lives over the long term. Nevertheless, I am incredibly hopeful. We have an enormous capacity to adapt, innovate, and build on what we’ve learned, which is exactly how NYSOFA intends to approach future programming.
The new normal is now. We plan on continuing to test and roll out innovations, such as a financial security and bill-payer support initiative, a project with Trualta to provide training and tools for caregivers, and a partnership with GoGoGrandparent to expand transportation options. We are also working with the National Association of Home Builders to be the first state unit on aging in the country to offer NAHB’s Certified Aging in Place Specialist certification to our case managers. This project will continue to enhance and build upon our standardized training and capacity building, equipping New York’s aging services providers with the skills to work with families on home safety recommendations.
New York continues to make new strides, building on its status as the first state in the nation to receive AARP’s age-friendly designation. Governor Kathy Hochul is advancing this vital work by assembling state agencies to work collaboratively with stakeholders on a state master plan for aging. This deliberate process will continue to support individuals of all ages to create resilient communities that promote healthy living, access to care, community connectedness, and more.