Systems Change Grants for Community Living Compendium Third Edition Arkansas RC 2001

2001 Real Choice for Systems Change Grants

ARKANSAS

Grant Information

Name of Grantee: Department of Human Services Division of Aging and Adult Services
Title of Grant: Real Choice for Enduring Change in Arkansas
Type of Grant: Real Choice Systems Change
Amount of Grant: $1,025,000
Year Original Funding Received: 2001
Amount of Supplemental Grant: $360,000
Supplemental Award Received: 2002

Contact Information

Debbie Hopkins, Program Administrator
501–682–8152
debbie.Hopkins@mail.state.ar.us

Cindy Young, Project Coordinator
PO Box 1437, Slot S530
Little Rock, AR 72203–1437
501–682–8231
cindy.young@mail.state.ar.us

Subcontractor(s)

Partners for Inclusive Communities/University of Arkansas for Medical Sciences
Area Agency on Aging of South West Arkansas

Target Population(s)

Adults age 19 and older.

Goals

Achieve a better balance of spending between institutions and home and community settings.
Increase the availability of in-home workers.
Improve or maintain the health of elderly persons who are dual-eligibles.
Increase consumer control over their services.

Activities

Identify successful strategies to recruit and retain in-home workers, including those that focus on wages, benefits, training, and the establishment of a career path.
Establish a worker registry.
Develop a replicable model for a voluntary Medicaid/Medicare integrated system that efficiently manages the costs of services.
Provide technical assistance regarding consumer self-determination practices to consumers and advocacy organizations.
Develop an assessment process based on consumer preferences.

Abstract

The Real Choice project will address a number of problems Arkansas experiences in delivering long-term care services. Relevant agencies have come together with consumer groups and other public and private partners to plan for systems change that will promote informed consumer choice and higher quality services. The project will address issues related to access, availability, quality, value, and consumer participation.

The Real Choice grant for Arkansas will address the need for a single point of contact for home and community based care, timely and flexible eligibility determination, ease of access to services, and appropriate determination of services people want and need. Strategies we intend to employ are the use of federal options over more restrictive state options; a feasibility study to integrate Medicare and Medicaid services for seniors; training staff across divisions of the Department of Human Services (DHS) to promote understanding of alternatives available; an education outreach program to community resource staff; development of new assessment tools to determine optional settings for people entering the system and those already institutionalized; a study to explore the options for providing insurance to front line workers; a public awareness campaign to elevate the status of such occupations with the general public; development of a state worker registry; and strengthening of individual consumers and consumer advocacy groups in effective action at the law and policy-making levels.

Significant and sustainable outcomes will include a system that encourages greater consumer control and choice and services that will enable people to enjoy improved overall health and long-term care in their communities for a longer period.