Programs and Services

Adult Day Services are provided to adults with medical or disabling conditions in order to prevent or delay the need for institutional care. Case management authorized participants attend State approved day centers and receive care designed to meet their physical, mental, and emotional needs. Depending on the level of their need and the number of days authorized, participants may enroll in one or a combination of the services listed below:

Adult Day Care Programs (Core Services)

• Personal care (e.g., body care, eating, positioning, transfer, toileting)
• Social services, routine health monitoring (e.g., vital signs, weight, dietary needs)
• General therapeutic activities (e.g., recreational activities and relaxation therapy)
• General health education (e.g., nutrition, stress management, preventive care)
• Supervision, assistance with arranging transportation
• First Aid as needed.

Adult Day Health Programs (Includes Core Services mentioned above, plus)

• Skilled nursing services
• Skilled therapy services (e.g., physical therapy, occupational therapy, or speech therapy)
• Psychological or counseling services.

Caregiver Support focuses on both the individual caregiver and the system that supports the caregiver. Depending upon the funding source, services range from kinship care for grandparents (age 60+) caring for relatives, to caregivers caring for persons age 18 and over.

Services may include:

• Referrals to local support groups, counseling, and other resources
• Training on specific caregiving topics
• Advice on use of supplies and equipment
• Practical information and caregiving suggestions
• Respite care, if a caregiver needs a break

We also support Kinship Care (when an adult raises a relative’s child) as an alternative to foster care. The Kinship Care Navigator helps kinship caregiver identify services and supports.

For more information visit Community Living Connections.

Amy Wong Client Fund | Long-Term Services and Supports: COPES, MAC, TSOA | Nurse Consultation | Screenings and Referrals | Resource Materials | Care Transitions

Aging and Disability Services (ADS) helps people live independently with Care Coordination Services designed to help people live at home. The Care Coordination Program connects in-home care services to adults (age 18 and up), most of whom are Medicaid-eligible and challenged by two or more “activities of daily living” (e.g., eating, bathing, dressing, toileting, transferring/walking, and continence).

The ADS Care Coordinators authorize and arrange for in-home services for adults who need personal care services to remain safe and healthy in their home. Care Coordinators conduct in-home assessments and consult with clients and caregivers to develop and implement a service plan that addresses the individual’s personal care needs. Care Coordinators monitor service plans during the year, following up regularly with clients and service providers to ensure that their situations have stabilized.

Through the program, clients can select Home Care Aides to help with their personal care needs. ADS contracts with home care agencies and a client can select an individual they know if the individual meets State requirements.

Services may include:

Amy Wong Client Fund

• The charitable Amy Wong Client Fund (available only to ADS Care Coordination clients), provides services such as in-home care, emergency services and other health-related items for adults with disabilities who wish to remain living independently in their own homes.
• Services are authorized by Care Coordinators and provided through ADS service providers and outside vendors.

Long-Term Services and Supports: COPES, Community First Choice, New Freedom, Medicaid Alternative Care (MAC), Tailored Supports for Older Adults (TSOA)

• Eligibility is established by the Department of Social & Health Services’ Home & Community Services division and is then transferred to Aging & Disability Services for ongoing assistance.
• Services that may be authorized by a Care Coordinator for clients unable to care for themselves include assistance with dressing, bathing, eating, toileting, and transferring.
• Limited household services are also available to maintain individuals in a safe and healthy environment.

Nurse Consultation

• Care Coordination Nurses focus on high-risk older people and adults with disabilities who have medically unstable health conditions.
• Services provided include appropriate referrals and coordination with health care professionals.
• The frequency and amount of service is based on individual need that is defined by eligibility and client assessment.

Screening and Referrals

Screening and referral for Care Coordination Services are provided through the Washington State DSHS Home and Community Services and Community Living Connections.

• King County Residents (age 60+): Contact Community Living Connections (toll-free) at 1-844-348-5464 or e-mail info@communitylivingconnections.org.
• King County Residents (age 18–59): Contact DSHS Home and Community Services-King County at 206-341-7750 (toll-free 1-800-346-9257).
• King County Residents with Developmental Disabilities: Contact Washington State Developmental Disabilities Administration (Region 2) at 206-568-5700 (toll-free 1-800-314-3296) or e-mail dd4fso@dshs.wa.gov.

Resource Materials

• Caregiver Support Brochure Community Living Connections

Care Transitions

A short-term program for patients discharging from the hospital who need assistance, cannot access services on their own, and do not have someone who can access and obtain services for them. The Care Transitions Program helps patients transition back to living in the community after hospital stays or time in other care settings.

Community Living Connections provides caring, highly-trained advocates who give easy access to information, individual consultations and service options. The Community Living Connections program includes an extensive network of community partners able to answer questions and find the most appropriate help for each individual. Staff can also determine eligibility for programs, services and public benefits to help individuals or their loved ones live with dignity and enjoy the best quality of life possible.

These services are free, confidential and may include:

• Information and assistance accessing community resources
• Individual consultation and help planning for Long Term Care needs
• Access to family Caregiver Support Services

Help | Resources

Seattle Mayor Bruce Harrell has proclaimed June 15, 2024 to be Elder Abuse Awareness Day in Seattle. Click on the image above to open the document.

Aging and Disability Services (ADS) provides support for Seattle-King County residents age 60+ who are abused, neglected and/or exploited by someone they trust. We work closely with medics, fire fighters, police, and the county prosecuting attorney’s office to improve health outcomes for vulnerable adults.

The following are examples of abuse:

• Physical Abuse (e.g., se of force to threaten or physically injure)
• Emotional Abuse (e.g., verbal attacks, threats, rejection, isolation, or belittling acts that cause or could cause mental anguish, pain, or distress)
• Sexual Abuse (e.g., sexual contact that is forced, tricked, threatened, or otherwise coerced, including anyone who is unable to grant consent)
• Exploitation (e.g., theft, fraud, misuse or neglect of authority, and use of undue influence as a lever to gain control over another person’s money or property)
• Neglect (e.g., a caregiver’s failure or refusal to provide for safety, physical, or emotional needs)
• Abandonment (e.g., desertion by anyone with a duty of care)

Help is Available

Whether the abuse is new or there is a long pattern of abuse (past or current), help is available. Aging and Disability Services Case Managers provide clients with a broad range of support and access to community resources, enabling them to live more self-sufficiently. Case Managers identify community resources and can assist clients in accessing available services as appropriate.

If you suspect that a crime against a vulnerable adult is occurring or has occurred:

• Report the crime to the police by calling 911, and
• Report the crime to the Washington State Abuse Hotline at 1-866-EndHarm (1-866-363-4276).

To access Victim Support Services, call Community Living Connections (toll-free) at 844-348-5464.

Resources

• Elder Abuse Awareness Day in Seattle: Proclaimed by Seattle Mayor Bruce Harrell and all members of the Seattle City Council on June 15 2022. Since 2022, communities around the world plan and hold Elder Abuse Awareness events and activities on or near June 15 each year.
• Washington State Long Term Care Ombudsman Program: With the assistance of trained volunteers, the office investigates and resolves complaints made by or on behalf of residents, and identifies problems that affect a substantial number of residents to improve the quality of life for residents of nursing homes, congregate care facilities, boarding homes and adult family homes. The office also advocates for needed changes in federal, state, and local laws to protect adults in long-term care communities.
• National Center on Elder Abuse
• National Clearinghouse on Abuse in Later Life
• Money Smart for Older Adults: Prevent Financial Exploitation Consumer Financial Protection Bureau and FDIC Resource Guide
• Video: An Age for Justice: Confronting Elder Abuse in America Elder Justice Now

Health Promotion programs help people manage their chronic conditions and live healthier lives, and are a key strategy in delaying more expensive Long-Term Care services.

• Aging and Disability Services partners with Public Health Seattle-King County to offer Evidence-Based programs.
• King County’s Veterans Seniors and Human Services Levy (VSHSL) also funds evidence-informed and promising practices health promotion programs.

The purpose of Legal Services is to enable older people to secure rights, benefits and entitlements under federal, state and local laws. It also seeks to effect favorable changes in laws and regulations that affect older people and strives to maintain public and private resources that benefit low-income elderly people.

Services may include:

• Group legal representation (including class action lawsuits, advocacy training and information to service providers)
• Private attorneys and volunteer advocates, and
• Individual client legal services.

The LGBTQ Cultural Competency Training and Support program helps older adults age successfully in the community through peer support and cross-generational support activities and assistance connecting to community resources. The program also provides cultural capacity training for aging, health, and human services providers to address unique risks, challenges, and strengths of LGBTQ older adults, families and caregivers.

The Mobile Integrated Health Program is a partnership between the Seattle Human Services Department and Seattle Fire Department. It comprises four main activities: the Health One response unit, high utilizer case management, the Vulnerable Adult program, and most recently the Overdose Response Team. Together, Case Manages in Seattle Human Services and specially-trained Fire Fighters and staff Health One Mobile Units ensure that clients receive the medical care, mental health care, shelter or other social services they need.

Nutrition Services includes Congregate or Community Meals, Home Delivered Meals, and Outreach Services.

Congregate Meal Program

• The Congregate Meal Program helps meet the dietary need of older people by providing nutrition education, and nutritionally sound meals served in a group setting.
• Thirteen agencies manage over 50 nutrition sites  located throughout King County.
• Meal sites serve the African American, Asian, East African, Pacific Islanders and Polynesian, and Native American communities. 
• Some sites focus on a specific ethnic or language group including Bhutanese, Cambodian, Chinese, East Indian, Ethiopian, Eritrean, Filipino, Hispanic/Latinx, Japanese, Khmer, Korean, Nepali, Tongan and Vietnamese. 

Home Delivered Meals Program

• The Home Delivered Meals Program provides nutritious meals to older people who are homebound and unable to prepare meals for themselves.
• Frozen meals are delivered to individuals throughout Seattle and King County.

Did you know that, compared with their peers, senior center participants have higher levels of health, social interaction, and life satisfaction?

Senior centers are Community Resource Centers that meet the physical and emotional needs of older adults (usually age 50+) by providing opportunities for fitness, volunteerism, lifelong learning, transportation, and healthy meals as well as services and resources such as immunization, health screening, and foot care.

Aging and Disability Services funds transportation programs in King County that focus on improving the ability of older adults to access health services and healthy food, including:

• Hyde Shuttle Routes serving nutrition sites
• Sound Generations Volunteer Transportation Program providing rides to medical appointments and other health services
• Catholic Community Services-Volunteer Services providing transportation
• Northshore Senior Center providing transportation for older adults and people with disabilities in North and East King County and South Snohomish County

Aging and Disability Services is a member of the King County Mobility Coalition and the Puget Sound Regional Council Transportation Policy Board, and we work together in addressing transportation gaps and identifying new strategies to improve transportation services.