HERRIN (WSIL) -- With seniors some of the most at risk for COVID-19, there's been some hurdles to overcome when it comes to keeping up care.
Shawnee Alliance oversees hundreds of seniors, who live in 18 southern Illinois counties.
The group works with participants and their caregivers to provide information on services such as physical and behavioral health, nutrition, transportation and more.
The goal is for seniors to be able to live safely and happily while having some independence of their own.
However, the group is overcoming some challenges when it comes to taking care of clients as it must be cautious due to COVID-19 concerns.
Amanda Groaning-Marks, Care Coordinator Supervisor, says one example is that they are no longer allowed to do in-person visits.
"We're calling our clients to do our assessments and to do all of our screenings for nursing home residents," she explains."We have identified our at-risk seniors so that we can call them and make sure they have the things that they need."
Shawnee Alliance recently received a grant to help seniors aged 60 and older with unmet needs due to the Coronavirus and isolation.
Groaning-Marks says the funds were issued by the Department on Aging and applies to those who are not medicaid recipients through managed care associations.
Those who are approved are able to get needed essentials like food.
"We really wanna focus on providing our seniors with hot meals as opposed to perishable items, because those are a little harder to come by at this time," she says. "So we're really going to work with home-delivery meals sites as well as local restaurants to provide hot meals."
Others items include hygiene, sanitation and medical supplies such as oxygen and catheters.
Shawnee Alliance will also be able to pay for some transportation to and from acute medical appointments and and medicine pick-ups.
For more information click or call (618) 985-8322.
