Daquarii J. Rock, Grants Manager

Overview About Project ACCESS How we got started Need? Developed a plan Pulling resources Some challenges Our successes Some effective strategies Lessons learned Collaborative partnerships Accountability Sustainability Planning

Project ACCESS Funded by HRSA in 2006 Rural Health Care Outreach Services Program grant Seniors (60+) Latah County, ID & Whitman County, WA 23 towns (clusters) 3 Area Hospitals 2 Agencies on Aging Project Focus Transportation Community Education The Gatekeeper Program Caregiver Support

How we got started Who shows a need? Where is the need? Who else has assessed the need in the past? Surveys Focus groups (professionals) Straw polls How have others addressed this need in the past? What worked? What didn’t? How can you met this need? Who else in the community is vested in the idea? Resources Partnerships

Working together? Washington Pullman Regional Hospital Whitman Hospital & Medical Center Council on Aging & Human Services (COAST Transportation) Washington State University Whitman County Libraries State office of Rural Health Policy Idaho Gritman Medical Center Area Agency on Aging (Region II) University of Idaho Latah County Libraries State Office of Rural Health Policy Inland Northwest Alzheimer’s Association Western Interstate Commission for Higher Education (WICHE)

Success! Caregiver Support Groups 13 communities Community buy-in Transportation 29 Volunteer drivers 1078 miles Matched funds The Gatekeeper Program All towns trained Community buy-in Education 340 books and DVDs 36 Dementia Education classes Recorded and distributed

Challenges Rural Culture Federal dollars Federal Anything! Duplication of services Working together History Healthy Competition Community specific needs Snow! Harvest Season

Working as a collaboration Make things clear to the group What is our structure? What are our responsibilities? What authority do we have? What other authorities have an interest (or a “say”) in what we are doing? How do we acknowledge and respect the restrictions of others in our group? Logistics What, when, where, who

Accountability Monthly Palouse Alliance meetings Check-in Concerns Decisions to be made Bi-weekly “team meetings” Specifics for the team Work collaboratively* Decision making Formal Memorandum of Agreement Clear, concise, specific Healthy Competition

Effective Strategies Sometimes “the vision” changes to meet the need Competition can help Egos like to be rubbed “Social skills” Sometimes people just don’t want to play “It’s not what you know…” Peer pressure can be a good thing Who do you know? It takes time, effort, & energy Celebrate success

Program Evaluation Outcome Evaluation Numbers How Many? Process Evaluation Narrative Adjustments? Lessons? Presented to the group annually Chris Oakley, Washington State University, Department of Sociology Dierdre Rogers, University of Idaho, Department of Sociology, Anthropology and Justice Studies

Contact Information Daquarii Rock, Grant Manager Project ACCESS 225 E. Palouse River Rd. Moscow, ID

Questions?