Retired Teachers Chapter News
Help is just a phone call away
Mar 1, 2007 3:36 PM
The proof of the pudding, they say, is in the eating. If that’s the case, the proof that your union is just as interested in your well-being now as it was when you were in-service is our very busy 17th floor here at UFT headquarters at 52 Broadway in Manhattan which is devoted to serving the needs of all of our 51,000 retirees.
A large professional staff maintains and continues to improve a wide array of retiree services — pension, health, welfare benefits, legal, learning centers and special events.
I don’t know of any other retiree group that is as well cared for as we are.
Of special importance to all of us are the unique social services available to us and to our families wherever we live in the United States. Many of you may not be aware that there are caring professionals in this program who can help you face and resolve a variety of health concerns and retirement issues.
Sasha Greene, LMSW, the director of Retiree Social Services, does all she can to make sure our retirees know about and take advantage of all the services she and gerontologist Jamee Harris, MS, and a staff of eight case managers are trained to help us with.
Counseling: Case managers provide confidential short-term counseling after which they may make suggestions or referrals to professional sources for further help. They will help you deal with issues such as when to contact an elder law attorney and how to deal with the isolation of care-givers.
Nationwide hospital stay-in-touch program: Because a hospital experience can be overwhelming, Harris will, at your request, maintain constant communication throughout your hospitalization. She will stay in touch on a daily basis to make sure your dietary needs, physical therapy and doctor visits are being met. She will also make sure you are discharged in a safe, legal way and that rehabilitation needs, home care, transportation services and home modification needs are met. She will continue contact after discharge. (As Greene reassured us, “There will be no frightening Friday-at-6-p.m.-when-nobody-is-at-home hospital discharges.”) Please remember to call prior to a scheduled hospitalization to request this service.
Referrals to retirement communities, nursing homes, etc.: Case managers will explore with you the growing creative housing options for older people. The decision to choose a nursing home or assisted-living residence for yourself or a loved one is always difficult. When to start looking, what to look for, how to choose, how to apply, how the admissions process works and what to expect after admission are some of the questions you will face and may need help in finding answers.
Nationwide telephone reassurance program: Case managers will make weekly, friendly telephone calls to members who are going through a difficult time such as an illness, recent loss or family problems or who are home recovering from a recent hospital stay. These calls will continue until you express otherwise. (At the moment, 80 people are receiving weekly calls.)
Support groups: Case managers are familiar with or able to research the many community groups to help you deal with bereavement, Alzheimer’s, cancer, stroke, et cetera.
Greene also spoke of two growing problems facing retirees that social services can help retirees with. The first is that more and more retirees are responsible for caring for elderly relatives, such as parents, aunts and uncles. The second is the growing number of single retirees who have no one to care for or advise them in times of emergency, hospitalization or other traumas.
Fortunately for all of us, this professional care is available to help us face and deal with these serious concerns and with a wide array of other issues.
While Greene reaches out to retirees at meetings around the metropolitan area to inform them about the broad scope of social services, she is concerned many retirees are struggling with problems alone, unaware that help is at hand. She said she hopes this column will make retirees aware of all the help, advice and support available to them and that it will put an end to members saying to her, “I didn’t know about you,” or “Why didn’t I know about this service when my mother was ill?”
“Remember,” she stressed, “we are just a phone call away.”
And that “just a phone call away” also applies to traveling retirees. No matter where in the world you are, if you need the help of any of these social services, feel free to call the UFT collect.
For more information or for an appointment, I encourage you to call 1-212-598-6880, Monday to Friday, from 10 a.m. to 6 p.m., or write to Retiree Social Services, United Federation of Teachers, 52 Broadway, 17th floor, New York, NY 10004.
Unlike the corporate world, our union protects its retirees in every way possible.
