Thursday, April 26, 2012

Take Our Children to Work Day 2012: OOIE encourages tomorrow's advocates


Children are educated about the concerns of elder abuse by nurse consultant James Plastine.
On April 26, 2012, the OOIE celebrated “Take Our Children to Work Day” with a full day of activities for the children of OOIE employees.

OOIE was delighted to be a part of a strong program of events organized in partnership with the Department of Treasury. The day was designed to give children real-life experience in the workplace.

Seven children from OOIE participated in a Treasury Department-wide conference to learn about Treasury’s other offices (OOIE is in but independent of Treasury) and how we all connect.

Back at the office, the OOIE visitors were able to interact with parents and co-workers learning and understanding how OOIE assists elderly people living in long-term care facilities.

Lead by OOIE staffer Nikiah Nixon, who spearheads the office’s annual “Take Our Children To Work Day”, the children learned that giving, caring, and having compassion for others is not limited to home but also extends to one’s occupation.


Monday, April 16, 2012

Happy National Healthcare Decisions Day!


Staff Attorney Amy Brown answers questions during a presentation on the importance of Advance Care Planning.
In keeping with it’s emphasis on prevention and education, the Ombudsman visited three New Jersey nursing facilities to mark National Healthcare Decisions Day (NHDD) on April 16, 2012.

NHDD is a day dedicated to promoting advance care planning and discussing health care goals for patients and residents of long-term care facilities.

At each facility, the Ombudsman presented an educational video, Anna's Story, which depicts an elderly woman who winds up with a feeding tube, ventilator, and dialysis, who (through her voiceover) explains that she never wanted this intrusive medical treatment.

The video highlights the importance of advance care planning, most importantly having conversations with loved ones about what kinds of medical treatment residents do or do not want at the end of their lives. Information on do-not-resuscitate (DNR) and do-not-hospitalize (DNH) orders, and Physician Orders for Life Sustaining Treatment (POLST) was distributed at these community meetings.

OOIE's ethics work has been featured recently on New Jersey Spotlight, The Philadelphia Inquirer, and McKnights Long-term Care News.


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OOIE congratulates the following facilities and organizations for their efforts to promote advance care planning as part of National Healthcare Decisions Day:
OOIE presented NHDD programs at:
  • House of the Good Shepherd, Hackettstown
  • Seabrook Village, Tinton Falls
  • Friends Village, Woodstown

OOIE attended events on April 16, 2012 at:
  • Bright View Greentree, Marlton, with Assemblyman Herb Conaway and Jerry Rothkoff (elder law attorney) and Samaritan Hospice.
  • Pitman Manor, Pitman, with Victoria Dalton (attorney) and Samaritan Hospice
  • Spring Oak Assisted Living of Vineland, Vineland, with South Jersey Legal Services

Other agencies that participated in NHDD:
  • Masonic Home, Burlington
  • NJ Veterans Memorial Home at Paramus
  • Willow Creek Rehab and Care Center, Somerset