DHSS to participate in Jan. 23 Aging in Place Community Forum

The Department of Health and Social Services will participate in Aging in Place, a Jan. 23 community forum at Cape Henlopen High School about programs to help Delaware’s seniors age safely and with dignity in their homes.

At the free forum from 5:15 to 9 p.m. in the school's auditorium, DHSS Secretary Rita Landgraf will present what the state is doing to build capacity for community-based services to support seniors remaining in the community.

"With our fast-growing senior population, especially in Sussex County, it's critical that the state support individuals who want to remain in their communities and age with dignity and respect in their homes," Landgraf said. "This forum will help consumers better understand the services and supports that are available to them."

Jeffrey Fried, president and CEO of Beebe Healthcare, will moderate the forum’s six presentations and facilitate question-and-answer sessions. More than 40 exhibitors also are expected.

Dennis Leebel, founder of the Parkinson Education and Support Group of Sussex County, said he saw an increasing need for this type of forum, especially in Sussex County.

“I believe that the information we’ll be presenting and the information that will be available from the exhibitors is not well or widely understood in Sussex County, in Delaware, or outside the state,” Leebel said. “There is a lot an individual can do to age in place and postpone moving into an assisted-living or nursing facility.”

In addition to DHSS and the Parkinson Education and Support Group of Sussex County, the event is sponsored by Beebe Healthcare, St. Francis Healthcare's LIFE Program, the Greater Lewes Community Village, Griswold Home Care, Christiana Care Visiting Nurses Association, the Sussex County Advisory Council on Aging and Adults with Physical Disabilities, and the Cape Gazette.

No registration is required. The snow date is Jan. 30.