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Q&A
Discussion of Intro 1184 - establishing a program to support older adults providing kinship care
0:50:02
·
4 min
Council Member Hudson and Commissioner Cortés-Vázquez discuss the proposed legislation, Intro 1184, which aims to establish a program to support older adults providing kinship care.
- The commissioner does not believe there is currently confusion in accessing kinship care services
- NYC Aging is open to targeted outreach and education if additional resources are provided
- The commissioner suggests that if a centralized resource or office for older kinship caregivers is established, it should be housed within NYC Aging
- Such a program would enrich the current caregiving program offered by NYC Aging
- The commissioner sees no operational challenges in launching the proposed program beyond budget considerations
- There is no objection to the legislation in theory or concept, but the commissioner has not seen a detailed budget or performance expectations for the proposed program
Crystal Hudson
0:50:02
Okay.
0:50:03
I'm gonna move into the legislation, if that's Intro November in relation to establishing a program to support older adults providing kinship care.
0:50:16
Do you believe a centralized resource or office for older kinship caregivers, whether housed at NYC Aging or elsewhere, could improve service coordination and reduce confusion?
Lorraine Cortés-Vázquez
0:50:32
I don't believe there's confusion now.
0:50:38
I don't have any evidence that there is confusion now.
0:50:44
If if we would have the opportunity to do targeted outreach then that would if we had the opportunity to do targeted outreach in education, then of course we would always move in that direction.
0:50:59
But the resources that we currently have are limited, and doing outreach, and we would need additional resources to match the need that will evolve.
Crystal Hudson
0:51:15
Do you have anything to add, deputy commissioner?
Lorraine Cortés-Vázquez
0:51:21
For the ones in foster care.
UNKNOWN
0:51:23
Right.
0:51:23
I think so our preventive providers are community based and, you know, would work with any family whether they're kinship caregiver or not.
0:51:37
And they haven't come to us to say, you know, we have a specific increased need that we're struggling to meet for older adult kinship caregivers.
0:51:47
And I think if they were, we would they're pretty vocal.
0:51:51
We would hear that as an additional need that's beyond what they're able to serve.
0:51:56
So we haven't heard that feedback.
0:51:58
Okay.
0:51:59
Great.
Crystal Hudson
0:52:01
Does NYC Aging have an opinion about the location of a centralized resource or office for older kinship caregivers?
Lorraine Cortés-Vázquez
0:52:12
I would
Crystal Hudson
0:52:13
If we were to establish a centralized resource or office, do you care whether it's under NYC aging or not?
0:52:21
Of course I would.
0:52:22
Well, should say not if you care, but do you have an opinion?
Lorraine Cortés-Vázquez
0:52:25
I would I would say that if it's services to older adults, it should be housed in NYCH.
0:52:32
Okay.
Crystal Hudson
0:52:35
And then can you just talk about how such a program might complement or overlap with existing NYC aging services?
Lorraine Cortés-Vázquez
0:52:44
I believe that it would just enrich what we currently have under our caregiving program.
Crystal Hudson
0:52:51
Are there any operational challenges you foresee in launching the proposed kinship care program?
0:52:57
Other than money?
0:52:59
Other other than money?
0:53:02
I can't.
0:53:02
The money in a minute.
Lorraine Cortés-Vázquez
0:53:04
I think I think it's a budget conversation.
Crystal Hudson
0:53:07
Okay.
0:53:08
So it's conversation.
0:53:09
No no operational challenges other than Right.
0:53:13
Okay.
0:53:14
How can the proposed program best integrate with current kinship care supports, and are there elements from the former GRC that should be retained or modified?
Lorraine Cortés-Vázquez
0:53:27
I'm sure there are elements of everything that that could be repurposed, rethought.
0:53:37
It was hard to look at best practices in that model when we were had such a low utilization.
0:53:45
So you couldn't tell, you know, what's what was a best practice or what wasn't a best practice.
0:53:51
But I'm sure that with that kind extensive read look, we could probably find out if there are some things that should be enriched or enhanced.
Crystal Hudson
0:54:01
What strategies would you recommend to improve outreach, particularly for non English English speakers and those with limited digital access to ensure that the program's resources are accessible to all older caregivers?
Lorraine Cortés-Vázquez
0:54:14
I believe that a massive public education campaign is essential around caregiving because of the growing number of older adults and the growing number of caregivers.
0:54:27
It's a educational and engagement campaign.
0:54:31
That said, you cannot have that unless you have the complimentary services that match that.