AAA Director Survey Center on Aging and Policy At Mount Saint Mary College Newburgh, N.Y. 12550 Dear Director:         We are conducting a national survey of all directors of Area Agencies on Aging. Our research study is funded by the National Institutes of Health (NIH) and we are most interested in your opinions about evolving directions in service provision by AAAs. The specific aims of our study relate to health promotion, disease prevention and civic engagement in late life.     The survey will take only fifteen to twenty minutes to complete and it can be returned in the enclosed self-addressed envelope. Alternatively, you may also respond to the survey online at:                www.centeronagingandpolicy.com/survey_t.htm     We will send all survey participants a summary of our findings and a Certificate of Appreciation suitable for framing. In addition, there will be a drawing from completed surveys and three prizes will be offered: an Ipod, a web-camera and a $100 Barnes and Noble gift certificate.     Participation in the survey is voluntary and data reported will not identify participants or their organization. We hope you will answer as many questions as you can in order to help us have a successful survey. We thank you for your support and interest.                                                             Dr. Lawrence T. Force              force@msmc.edu                845.569.3164 Dr. Jeffrey S. Kahana               kahana@msmc.edu             845.569.3151 Service Provision 1. How important is it for AAAs, working within current resources, to provide services to meet the following needs of older adults?   Very important   Important   Somewhat important   Of little importance   Not at all important a. Basic needs (food/shelter)         b. Health promotion and disease prevention         c. Social activities         d. Educational programs         e. Civic engagement         f. Financial management         2. How important is it for AAAs, working within current resources, to introduce new programs for... a. prevention and health promotion?   Very important   Important   Somewhat important   Of little importance   Not at all important b. facilitation of civic engagement?   Very important   Important   Somewhat important   Of little importance   Not at all important Services Now Provided by your AAA 3. Which of the following services does your AAA provide (check all that apply): Health promotion and disease prevention:   AAA provides directly   AAA provides via subcontracts   AAA does not provide a. Exercise programs     b. Nutrition counseling     c. Health screening     d. Dental screening     e. Falls prevention     f. Mental health counseling     g. Health care consumer education     h. Consumer advocacy     Social programs:   AAA provides directly   AAA provides via subcontracts   AAA does not provide i. Educational programs     j. Social activities     k. Volunteer opportunities     l. Computer literacy training     m. Community networks     Transportation services:   AAA provides directly   AAA provides via subcontracts   AAA does not provide n. To medical appointments     o. For grocery shopping     p. To senior centers     q. To cultural and social activities     r. For volunteer activities     4. Does your AAA provide any innovative services for prevention and health promotion?   Yes   No If yes, please describe: 5. Does your AAA provide any innovative services for social activities and civic engagement?   Yes   No If yes, please describe: 6. Which of the following resources and strategies have you used to develop innovative services at your AAA:   Yes   No a. Private fundraising   b. Private grants   c. State grants   d. Partnering with other agencies   e. Other   If other, please describe: 7. How much of a barrier did each of the following present to new program developments?   Not at all   A little   Some   Much   A great deal a. Financial resources         b. Staff acceptance         c. Political environment         d. Existing service providers who contract with AAAs         e. Custoner acceptance         8. For which of the following special needs populations do you now provide services?   Yes   No a. Developmentally disabled   b. Mentally ill   c. HIV-AIDS patients   d. Terminally ill patients   e. Non-English speakers   f. Homeless   9. Do you currently provide services to the well-elderly in the communities that you serve?   Yes   No If yes, please specify types of services: 10. Do any of your programs require a fee for service?   Yes   No If yes, please describe these programs: 11. Which outreach programs do you use to contact seniors in the community?   Yes   No a. Newsletters   b. Brochures   c. Public speaking   d. Door-to-door contact   e. Other   If other, please specify: 12. Staff characteristics at your AAA:   1-15   16-30   31 or more a. Approximate number of full-time staff     b. Approximate number of part-time staff     c. Approximate number of volunteers     d. Number of staff members with advanced degrees (e.g. M.A., J.D., M.S.W., etc.) e. Do you have any dedicated staff members focused on issues of health promotion and disease prevention?   Yes   No f. Do you have any dedicated staff members focused on social activities/ civic engagement?   Yes   No g. Do you have any dedicated staff who are grant writers?   Yes   No h. How would you characterize the work environment at your agency in terms of formality?   Very formal   Formal   Somewhat formal   Informal   Very informal i. How would you characterize staff involvement in organizational decision-making at your AAA?   Very involved   Involved   Somewhat involved   A little involved   Not involved j. What is your total annual budget?   Under $500,000   $500,000- 1.5 million   1.5 million to 5 million 13. Client characteristics: a. Please indicate the approximate number of clients served annually: b. What is the percentage of urban clients served?   Less than 25%   25-50%   More than 50% c. What is the percentage of rural clients served?   Less than 25%   25-50%   More than 50% d. What is the percentage of minority clients served?   Less than 25%   25-50%   More than 50% e. What is the percentage of clients served that are below the federal poverty level?   Less than 25%   25-50%   More than 50% f. What is the percentage of clients served that are homebound?   Less than 25%   25-50%   More than 50% g. What is the percentage of high income/affluent clients served?   Less than 25%   25-50%   More than 50% 14. Agency director background: a. What is your gender?   Female Male b. What is your age? c. What ethnic/racial group do you identify with? d. What is your academic background (degree field)? e. How many years have you been an agency director? f. What is your prior work experience? 15. To what extent do you consider changes in service provision to be desirable?   A great deal   Much   Somewhat   A little   Not at all 16. To what extent has your agency been involved in the following initiatives?   A great deal   Much   Some   A little   Not at all a. Private fundraising         b. Applied for private foundation grants         c. Developed partnerships with other agencies         d. Other initiatives (creative programs)         If other, please describe a creative program that is run by your agency: 17. What do you consider to be the three most important factors for success in developing new programs at AAAs? a. b. c. 18. What do you consider to be the three most important barriers to new program development? a. b. c. 19. During the past two years, has your AAA:   Yes   No a. Offered a new service to a new user group?   b. Offered an existing service to a new user group?   c. Offered an new service to an existing user group?   d. Made major improvements or modifications to an existing service for an existing user group?   20. What federal, state and local policies would benefit disease prevention and health promotion services offered by AAAs? 21. Other comments: 22. If you are a long-serving AAA director (ten years or more), would you be willing to participate in a telephone oral history interview (about 30 minutes) arranged at your convenience? This interview is intended to better understand the history of service development at AAAs across the country. Participants will receive a $50 gift certificate.   Yes   No Name: Agency: E-mail: Phone: Thank you again for your time and interest in this NIH funded research project.

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