Wise & Healthy Aging

City and county of los angeles and county of san bernardino long-term care ombudsman program: Wise & Healthy Aging administers the second largest ombudsman program in the nation. The advocacy-focused program is designed to help protect and ensure quality of care for disabled adults and seniors living in long-term care facilities throughout the greater los angeles and san bernardino counties. Services include complaint investigation, facility monitoring visits, information and consultation to consumers and facility staff, and witnessing advance directives in skilled nursing facilities.

Adult day center (adc): a "social" (not health) model, providing adult day care during weekdays. The adc gives family caregivers respite needed, with individualized approach to care for seniors, supporting those who may have some limitations due to health conditions, including those with early memory loss, alzheimer's disease or other impairments. In addition to the general programming, the adc offers wiseminds for those with early memory loss, as well as a spanish-language adult day care program called somos amigos ("we are friends").

Care management: assisting seniors to maintain independence in their own homes with care management (in-home assessment and connections to community services; can include short or longer term monitoring).senior peer counseling: individual and group counseling for older adults who are dealing with commmon changes associated with Aging including loss and grief, depression, anxiety, hoarding, relationship problems or Aging concerns. Paraprofessional counselors are older adult volunteers who receive extensive training and ongoing supervision with a licensed mental health professional.

Elder abuse prevention program: protecting seniors from becoming victims of financial, physical, and/or emotional abuse through education and training to seniors and professionals. Field based wrap around services for elder abuse survivors in the greater long beach area. Services include: case management, therapy, legal system advocacy, and safety planning.

Congregate meals program: a weekday lunch program (called the diner) for santa monica senior residents offered at three locations throughout the city of santa monica (first floor ken edwards center, adc on second floor of ken edwards center and reed park). Suggested donations from santa monica residents and a fee of $5 for non-santa monica residents.

Financial & health insurance counseling: weekly medicare insurance counseling (via hicap), and an aarp tax-aid program to help with income tax preparation (year-end at main office; at 8 other locations on the westside during tax season of february, march and april).

Training & education: in addition to caregiver training for family and working caregivers, the organization also has master-trained instructors in nationally-recognized, evidence-based educational trainings in fall prevention, diabetes prevention and management, Healthy living and memory training.

Benefit enrollment: the center helps to identify and enroll eligible santa monica seniors into various public benefits programs. The streamlined process assists them to obtain needed prescription medications, medical care, food and utilities savings.

The club (formerly called club Wise): a membership program for older adults, age 50-plus on the westside baldwin hills and virtually. Located on the first floor of the ken edwards center (9am - 3pm weekdays) and on the third floor in macy's department store in the crenshaw shopping plaza (10am-3pm weekdays), the club offers recreational and enrichment programming. The goal is to help residents reduce social isolation and engage in social activities that they have an interest in.