Long-Term Care Ombudsman Program
We are looking for caring volunteers to advocate and protect the rights of Hawaii's aging population who reside in licensed long term care nursing homes,assisted living facilities,adult residential care homes and community care foster family homes. The volunteers function as the eyes and ears for our program. They talk story with the residents, develop a trusting bond, inform them of their rights and help ensure them of the quality of life and care they deserve.
There are currently over 10,000 residents living in Hawaii's long term care facilities. The volunteers represent the State LTC Ombudsman. Their primary roles are to provide advocacy, respond to complaints, help ensure residents of their rights and maintain their quality of life. Responsibilities include weekly 2-4 hour facility visits,communication reports and monthly meetings. Volunteers must be 21 or older, complete a written application with reference checks, consent to a criminal background check and TB clearance and attend 28 hours of class room and on-site training prior to certification. Call us today for more information and an application. After your application has been processed we will call you to set up the next available training dates.
The Long Term Care Ombudsman Program is mandated by the federal Older Americans Act (OAA) of 1965 and state statute. It is housed within the Executive Office on Aging(EOA)which is dedicated to providing programs, services, and education relating to issues concerning our aging population. The original concept of "ombudsman" came from Sweden. Ombudsmen were to act as go-betweens when citizens had complaints against government. In our program, the focus is on advocacy. The LTCOP is a resident-centered advocacy program that is volunteer based. We recruit,train,certify and monitor caring volunteers to protect the rights of residents, offer "Best Practices," and help maintain the best quality of life and care for our Kupuna who reside in long term care settings.
