TELE-N-TOUCH REASSURANCE PROGRAM

Description: The Tele-N-Touch Program is sponsored by Cumberland Mountain Community Services Board and the Appalachian Agency for Senior Citizens. It is a telephone reassurance program that demonstrates the effectiveness of clubhouse members to serve as a support system to the home bound elderly living in the geographically and socially isolated areas of Southwest Virginia. This dual purpose program began in August 1988, and continues to provide support for the elderly and serves to elevate the self-worth of the participating clubhouse members that make the daily calls.

The clubhouse members make prearranged, regular calls to elderly homebound, or handicapped persons in need of help and guidance. These calls help to relieve loneliness of those individuals whose circumstance may deprive them of normal participation in society, and acts as a safety measure to promote feelings of security.

Who makes the calls? Cumberland Mountain Community Services Board operates four clubhouse programs that participate in the Tele-N-Touch program. They are OUR House in Grundy, Tazewell House in Tazewell, Riverside Clubhouse in St. Paul, and The Ark House in Richlands. The clubhouses listed above are psychosocial rehabilitation programs for the mentally ill. The Tele-N-Touch telephone reassurance program enhances the life of the clubhouse member making the calls by allowing him/her to feel valued and wanted. Being needed and knowing that we have a purpose and an important role to play in the lives of others is necessary to recovery the self-esteem so often lost in mental illness. Clubhouse clients receive specific training before becoming a reassurance caller.

Those receiving the calls are elderly clients who desire to have telephone calls as an important source of social contact. The person being called is relieved of loneliness, isolation, fear, and depression. These feelings are given way to warmth, concern, sharing and caring.

Purpose of the calls:

• Check on the well being of the individual on a regular basis.
• Be a friend to those in need of reassurance.
• Encourage people to take responsibility for their basic life necessities.
• Reassure patient recently released from hospitals.
• Serve as a source of communication between clients and the Appalachian Agency for Senior Citizens.
• Help persons remain in their homes and prevent premature institutionalization.
• Provide some contact with the world outside their home.

More about the program: The elderly client chooses a time that is convenient to receive a call, and calls are made at that time, approximately four times a week. Some folks receive calls all four days while others choose to be called less frequently. Calls are kept short and confidentially is observed. At the request of the client, longer and more frequent calls will be made. Calls may be made weekly or daily depending on the needs of each client. Clubhouse members often remind those being called to take medication, to eat meals or just check on their well being. If callers are unable to reach the client, a prearranged contact person is called or the clients case manager from the Appalachian Agency for Senior Citizens is called to follow up on the client. Clubhouse staff are available to assist the callers at all times to support and direct the callers if needed.

Service statistics for all three clubhouses combined:

As of May 1, 1997 the average monthly unduplicated number of elderly persons being called is 108. The average monthly number of clubhouse callers is 20 and the average amount of unduplicated calls made each month is approximately 780.

For more information; Contact the following programs to make referrals or to receive answers to questions about the Tele-N-Touch Program.