Durham Center for Senior Life

Senior centers. Approximately 250 seniors visit dcsl's Senior centers each day to participate in education, fitness and social programs. Dcsl centers host approximately 70 of these activities each week, and provide a variety of health services, classes, and groups, transportation assistance, and nutritious meals. Our Senior centers are the front door to dcsl's full array of programs and to the Durham county's network of aging services. Congregate nutrition: dcsl's downtown Durham main Center and satellite Center in the rural town of bahama offer free, healthy lunchtime meals and social activities for area seniors five days a week. Through these, older adults are able to strengthen social connections, enjoy recreational projects, and benefit from balanced nutritious meals. Health promotion: dcsl offers daily fitness and activity groups, classes and evidence-based health management programs, helping seniors take charge of their health and remain active. Through a variety of community partnerships, seniors receive additional health screening, education, and resources on-site at dcsl centers.

Family caregiver support: dcsl's family caregiver support program helps adult children and other family members care for their aging loved ones in the comfort of their homes. The program provides information and resources, counseling, support groups, structured educational programs, and in-home respite care. Last year, our family caregiver volunteers provided approximately 2,500 hours of respite assistance for seniors and their family caregivers throughout Durham county.

Information, referral and social services. Dcsl provides a wide array of social services to meet the diverse needs of Durham county's older residents. Services include information and referral, options counseling and coordinated service linkage, home weatherization, and utility assistance, telephone reassurance, transportation assistance, home nutrition and hygiene support, and other commonly requested services. Services provided on-site by our community partners include legal assistance, health and nutrition services, education, veteran's resources, medication management, healthcare navigation, medicare enrollment, physical therapy and government social services among others. Dcsl also addresses food insecurity through our shop & grab program designed to allow older adult monthly access to food of their choice at no cost to them. This program supports more than 100 older adults monthly.

Adult day health: dcsl provides respite services on-site for up to 60 older or disabled adults who are unable to live independently each day, including skilled nursing health services, nutritious meals, structured activities, promoting physical and mental health among Durham's most vulnerable seniors.