Senior Information and Assistance SHIBA HelpLine Medicare Rx Outreach

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Senior Information and Assistance SHIBA
HelpLine Medicare Rx Outreach
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Senior Services of Snohomish County

• Private, non-profit agencysince 1973
• Provider of IA services for more than 33 years
• Other services Social Services, Nutrition,
  Housing, Transportation

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Senior IA Core Services

• Information giving and service referral,
• Assistance (phone based case management)
• Client and system advocacy
• Intake screening for community based Long Term
  Care services and referral to Aging Network case
  management
• Maintaining an extensive database of resources to
  connect callers with appropriate services
• Services range from the simple provision of
  requested information to helping inquirers
  identify their needs and providing hands on
  assistance with paperwork if needed.

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SHIBA HelpLine Snohomish Co

• Lead agency state-wide for Medicare PDP Outreach
• 40 Volunteers counsel and educate consumers about
  health insurance options health care access.
• Advocate for consumers who have difficulty
  accessing their health insurance and health care
• Provide outreach and counseling to traditionally
  underserved populations
• Sponsored in Snohomish Co by Senior IA

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Volunteer Recruitment Strategies

• Task specific volunteers (PDP research, staffing
  phone line, office) vs. traditional SHIBA
  counselor
• Volunteer orientation events
• Utilizing corporate contacts (Boeing, Verizon)
• Media coverage based on hot topic (e.g. Medicare
  Part D, etc.)

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Screening/Matching/Training

• Volunteer orientation
• One on one interviews
• Utilizing volunteer mentors
• Finding their niche
• The Hook
• Challenges with training

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Volunteer Management/Retention

• Communication is key
• Balancing keeping them busy vs. too busy
• Avoiding burnout
• Identifying the rewards
• Creative ways of saying thank you

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SHIBA/SENIOR IA Collaboration

• Opportunities for staff/volunteer interaction
• Enhances the volunteer experience
• Provides better services to clients
• Volunteers know that staff are behind them
• Structure allows flexibility with changing
  protocols to maximize staff/volunteer resources

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Key Challenges

• Avoiding Volunteer Burnout
• Recruiting enough volunteers to handle the demand
• Maintaining the traditional SHIBA program in the
  face of Medicare Part D
• How can we thank these folks enough?

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Notable Outcomes

• Increased visibility of Senior Services
• Improved network of community partners
• Strengthened relationship between SHIBA
  volunteers and IA bi-lingual staff

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Thank You
For More Information Contact Robert
Quirk Senior IA Program Director 425-290-1263 Or
James Pham Snohomish County SHIBA HelpLine
Coordinator 425-290-1256