Click here for latest DASH news.
The Disability and Aging Services Helpline (DASH) Network came out of a nation-wide Aging and Disability Resource Center Project. It’s a collaborative pilot project aimed to improve awareness of and access to long-term supports for older adults, adults with disabilities and caregivers.
The geographic location covered by this project is the area served by the BAT bus line, which includes the towns of Bangor, Brewer, Hampden, Old Town, Orono and Veazie. The local coalition is coordinated by United Way of Eastern Maine and the pilot site is located at Eastern Area Agency on Aging.
The DASH Network is important because its intended result is to improve information and referral to formal and informal supports, to the elderly and disabled who are seeking long-term care so that people may live as independently as possible for as long as possible.
The DASH Network means that seniors and people with disabilities will have one place to call to get help finding the services they need. DASH can give them a list of services based on what their individual needs.
It can be difficult searching through the phone book or on a computer if a person doesn’t know the right keyword, that’s why the DASH Network has a trained resource specialist to help find the needed services.
Seniors and people with disabilities can be involved in this project by providing feedback about their experience, calling for assistance and reporting whether the information given was helpful or not. They can also be involved by joining the consumer advisory board that meets quarterly.
The DASH Network is so important for so many reasons that seniors and people with disabilities should be involved. This project was created to support them with their needs. If seniors and people with disabilities don’t voice their needs and give feedback about their experience, there is no way to know how to best serve them.
For more information about the DASH Network, call:
Val Sauda at Eastern Area Agency on Aging, 941-2865 or email vsauda@eaaa.org.
Eastern Area Agency on Aging 941-2865 or email info@eaaa.org.
How the DASH Network is funded
The DASH Network is being funded through the federal Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services and the federal Administration on Aging and is being administered by the Maine Department of Health and Human Services/ Office of Elder Services. The center is housed at Eastern Area Agency on Aging, the local coalition is coordinated by United Way of Eastern Maine.
The following are partners in the DASH Network:
211 Maine, Inc
Acadia Hospital / InfoLine
Alpha One
AMICUS
Brain Injury Association
City of Bangor Health and Welfare
Community Health & Counseling Services
DHHS, Adult Protective Services
DHHS, Bureau of Family Independence
DHHS, Office of Elder Services
DHHS, Region III
Eastern Area Agency on Aging
Eastern Maine AIDS Network
Kindred Healthcare
Maine Alzheimer’s Association
Muskie School
New England Home Health Care
Penobscot Community Health Center
Penquis CAP
Regional Medical Center of Lubec
Rosscare—Eastern Maine Healthcare Systems, Center for Healthy Aging
RSVP - UM Center on Aging
Senior Companion Program
Senior Sense Program - UM Center on Aging
Spruce Run
UMaine, Center on Aging
United Way of Eastern Maine |
