Making an Impact – Case Manager Persistence Pays Off for Holocaust Survivor
In the Making an Impact series, clients and services are featured to expand awareness of the wide array of help available at JFS and to ensure donors understand the lives they touch and the difference they make throughout the community. Client names have been changed to protect their confidentiality.
Holocaust survivor Sheldon lives independently and uses a wheel chair to get around. The only service he must have is a health alert system, a device he wears around his neck that allows him to simply push a button if he needs help. Sheldon is unable to get up if he falls, so the service is not optional.
For many years JFS paid for his Health Alert system through the Holocaust Survivor Support fund. When that fund was nearly depleted recently, his case manager was very concerned. Sheldon would not be able to pay for the system with his meager monthly income. In order to continue to live independently, he had to have the device.
Before Sheldon was even aware that there was a problem, the JFS case manager began to search for alternatives. After many persuasive calls, she was able to convince the company providing the Health Alert system to reduce its rate to Sheldon by over 50 percent temporarily until the Survivor Support fund received new funding in the coming months. After this potential solution was identified, the case manager went to Sheldon to explain the problem and present a possible solution. Sheldon was delighted, and was happy to pay the reduced rate until the JFS Holocaust Survivor fund could again cover this expense.