NEWS
Homebound Seniors Fear Lenox Hill Cuts By Megan Bungeroth
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Lenox Hill helped her overcome that fear. “What she did was give me confidence to, little by little, go into a program where I can have somebody help me out,” said Mannina of her case worker. “They have sent me someone who has made me feel very confident. All of a sudden, you don’t feel so bad.” Mannina said that for a while, she didn’t bother with errands and rarely left her home, crippled by fear and unsure of herself. When she began working with a case worker, she was able to talk out her problems and figure out how people could assist her. Zempsky said that this type of issue—one of confidence—is often the biggest hurdle
ew York City’s senior population is often forced to endure the threat of budget cuts to programs that help them, and this year is no different. One of the programs in line for a potentially severe cut is the case management program run by the city’s Department for the Aging (DFTA). The program’s proposed 2013 budget is $14,926, over $3,000 less than 2012 and a 30 percent reduction from its actual spending in 2011. Locally, this would hit the case management program run out of Lenox Hill Neighborhood House, a program that serves 1,400 elderly and at-risk Upper East Side residents. “This would be really tragic for our homebound seniors who often don’t have a lot of supportive family or community left,” said Dina Zempsky, director of case management at Lenox Hill. While last year, entire senior centers faced potential closures when the state budget was deeply slashed before being restored by the Legislature, this year’s A senior citizen works with a case worker at the Lenox Hill possible cuts could hurt in Neighborhood House. less visible but still powerfor their clients. But if they get the support ful ways. to keep living alone, they can avoid the “Homebound elders are for the most part often prohibitive expense of a nursing home not a visible constituency, so it’s very difand maintain their independence. ficult for them to advocate because no one Community Board 8 approved a resolureally thinks of them until their program is tion last year asking the DFTA to baseline going to be cut,” Zempsky said. the budget for this program and issued Case managers are assigned to clients another resolution this year strongly opwho may need assistance with tasks like posed to the cuts, stating that further cuts to paying their bills on time or going to the the program would “mean that many of the store. Some just need regular check-ins to frail older adults it serves will be put at grave make sure they’re staying healthy, while risk, fewer will be able to be served and the others require more intensive assistance. services available will likely be both few in Case workers often arrange for meal delivnumber and less comprehensive, and waitery and are sometimes the only people in ing lists will grow.” regular in-person contact with the clients. Zempsky said that the prospect of another Regardless of the type of case, the thing round of cuts is too tough to even contemthe program’s participants have in common plate, but emphasized that none of their is that they can stay in their own homes as clients would be suddenly abandoned. It long as they receive some help. would, however, put a great strain on their One typical client is Concetta Mannina, resources and push the waiting list for the who is 85 years old and lives alone on program into the hundreds, leaving many Second Avenue in the East 50s. Her eyesight Upper East Side residents with few options isn’t too good, and as a result she can’t do for help. some things, like grocery shopping, on her “We do everything we can to support own. There are services that send aides to folks living independently in the communiseniors to help them run errands, but Manty,” Zempsky said. “It’s really really impornina was too afraid to step outside with a tant that these funds don’t get cut.” virtual stranger until her case manager at
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May 3 1, 2012 • O UR TOW N • 7