2010-06-15
CITY OF ENCINITAS
SENIOR CITIZEN COMMISSION MINUTES
Special Meeting Date June 15, 2010; 10:45 AM
1. CALL TO ORDER/ROLL CALL
The meeting was called to order at 10:45 AM
Present: Chair Finch, Vice-Chair Campbell, Commissioners Harp, Pollack, Van
Houghton and Vance
Also
Present: Senior Center Manager Goodsell, Recreation Supervisor Roherty and
Program Assistant Roff
Absent: Commissioner Drielsma
2. PLEDGE OF ALLEGIANCE
Commissioner Pollack led the Pledge of Allegiance
3. CLOSING AND ADOPTION OF THE CONSENT CALENDAR
A. Approval of Minutes for the regular meeting May 18, 2010.
VICE-CHAIR CAMPBELL MOTIONED, COMMISSIONER HARP SECONDED TO
APPROVE THE MINUTES. MINUTES WERE APPROVED 5-0 (COMMISSIONER VAN
HOUGHTON ABSTAINED AND COMMISSIONER DRIELSMA ABSENT).
4. OLD BUSINESS
A. Distribute Exploring Senior Issues Report of Findings
Chair Finch requested a motion to report findings to Council. Commissioner Pollack
motioned Vice-Chair Campbell seconded; motion unanimously approved 6-0.
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B. Review 1 phase of City Website Enhancements and New Design
Commissioners reached consensus to postpone.
5. NEW BUSINESS
A. Commission Tour of Carlsbad Senior Center
Commissioners left City Hall on a bio-friendly van and toured the Carlsbad Senior
Center.
6. ADJOURNMENT
Meeting adjourned at City Hall at 1:09 PM.
NEXT MEETING DATE: Tuesday, September 21, 2010 at 2:00 PM
CITY HALL COUNCIL CHAMBERS
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Exploring Senior Issues
Focus Group, June 29, 2010
(Second Focus Group of 2010)
Conducted by
The Outreach Subcommittee of the Encinitas Senior
Citizen Commission
Report of Findings
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Introduction and Acknowledgment
On January 26, 2010, the Outreach Subcommittee of the Encinitas Senior Citizen Commission
conducted a 90-minute focus group session at the Belmont Village Senior Living facility in
Encinitas, California. Following an analysis of the findings from that “qualitative” focus group
research session, the Outreach Subcommittee designed a “quantitative” survey and
administered the survey at the April 29, 2010, Senior Fair.
All findings and recommendations from both research projects are contained in separate
reports, and led to the development of a second focus group session (again at the Belmont
Village Senior Living facility) held on June 29, 2010. This document reports the findings and
recommendations from this second, 2010 focus group session.
Senior Citizen Commission Vice Chairman, Robert Campbell, moderated both focus group
sessions. This second focus group was guided through seven general questions (see
Appendix One
: “Moderator’s Focus Group Session Guide”). The questions continued
exploration of the group’s opinions and views on a variety of Encinitas-Senior-Citizen issues
and the various ways Seniors are heard, communicated to, and served; and, to what extent and
Appendix Two
how, their issues are identified and addressed. See for a list of this focus
group’s participants.
The Outreach Subcommittee wishes to express our gratitude to Ms. Belinda Hunter and her
outstanding support staff at the Belmont Village Senior Living facility for their gracious
hospitality in hosting this event and for the subsequent, delicious luncheon.
Summary
This focus group was an extension of the research from the first focus group and the
subsequent quantitative survey. The findings below clearly indicate that there is a general
feeling that our community—and the City of Encinitas—can and should do more to address the
key issues facing Senior Citizens, as identified and quantified via this research process.
Transportation emerges strongly as a priority—especially when local service offerings are
compared to those offered in other, nearby communities.
Findings
Similar to the first focus group session of 2010, this session began with a couple of “warm-up”
questions for the group pertaining to Encinitas’ environment for Senior Citizens and the group’s
awareness of services for Seniors. The session then evolved to focusing on the major issues
facing Encinitas Senior Citizens—issues whose importance was quantified and ranked via the
quantitative survey cited above. What follows below are the detailed findings from the focus
group session, using the Focus Group Session Guide as the reporting format.
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Is Encinitas “Senior Friendly”?
The group mostly cited positive aspects of Encinitas’ environment for Senior Citizens. First was
mentioned the high number of community volunteers—some of which have helped for over 30
years—who selflessly devote time to various programs for Seniors.
The Senior Center and the City Council’s Senior Citizen Commission were cited as evidence
that Encinitas is “Senior friendly”. Other factors included community outreach programs, Meals-
on-Wheels, and a high compliance with ADA regulations by local businesses and facilities.
The factors contributing to an “unfriendly” environment included the limited available
transportation options and emergency services sometimes experiencing difficulty in getting to
Senior patients. It was felt that Encinitas needs more, highly educated doctors, especially for
geriatrics services. The lack of low income housing was also mentioned.
A couple of specific items were mentioned which has caused concern. NTCD’s removal of the
bus stop on Via Cantebria near the Senior Center has reduced convenience. Also, the new
Library is situated atop a steep hill, with no Senior-Citizen-oriented assistance for access.
Are you aware of “City” services and/or other cities’ Senior-Center-services
provided in other communities that you wish were provided here?
Yes, several services were discussed.
The City-owned golf course offers no discounts for Senior Citizens, whereas the nearby
communities of Carlsbad and Oceanside do offer discounts at their golf courses.
Also, in Carlsbad, the Senior Center offers a fitness center and related programs.
The currently limited hours of the Senior Center were mentioned, as other Centers appear to
offer “extended hours” serving “younger” Senior Citizens.
Some communities have broader-based referral services, whereby out-of-state adult children
and extended family can more easily check upon their Senior parents and family living here.
Finally, neighborhood co-ops were mentioned, along the lines of Beacon Hill’s ‘The Villages’.
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What is your impression of the “Encinitas Senior Fair”, held at the Senior
Center, and what other events or services do you envision the Senior Center
providing?
There was sentiment that the Senior Fair could become much more than what is currently
configured. One participant described the Fair as a “Senior Trick-or-Treat”--in part due to all
the exhibitors’ offerings of candy. The group felt that a change in format could improve both
attendance and usefulness.
Some other communities hold Fairs around a “central theme”, wherein there are focused
presentations by experts and service providers—not just “booths”. There is also an
“entertainment draw” at these events. Medical and health assessments and screenings are
also valuable at these events, along with education on “advanced directives” (such as orders to
“not resuscitate”). To “beef up” the content, perhaps the Senior Fair can be tied into San Diego
County, Family Resource Centers, Social Security Administration, and/or Scripps Encinitas
Hospital programs, themes, or health initiatives.
Another suggestion centered upon making the Fair more “family oriented”, increasing the
amount of education for older children with Senior Citizen parents. The timing (hours) of the
Fair also needs to be reviewed vis-à-vis working folks (both Senior Citizens who must--or
choose to--work and their caring adult children), who may want to attend, but cannot during
normal working hours.
Exercise: Please rank, from 1 to 6 (with 1 being the most important) these six
issues facing Encinitas Seniors today. (List 6 issues on Flip Chart as they
were listed in survey--Food, Housing, Transportation, Living Assistance,
Medical Care, Communication about Senior Services; tabulate results;
discuss differences in rankings.)
The participants were then led through an exercise identical to one conducted for respondents
to the questionnaire administered at the Senior Fair, wherein six issues facing Senior Citizens
were ranked in importance. Although the results of the two sets of rankings are not
comparable, due to the difference in research methodologies (one is qualitative; the other,
quantitative), the participants in the focus group ranked the issues of Housing, Food, and
Medical Care—in that order—as the top three. (Given the backgrounds of the focus group
participants—see Appendix Two—this prioritization is not surprising.)
The discussion that ensued following this exercise was dominated by Senior Citizens’ medical
care needs (see next topic).
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At April’s “Senior Fair”, the Encinitas Senior Citizens Commission conducted
a survey as attendees both entered and exited the Fair. Survey respondents
were asked to rank six issues—in order of importance—facing Senior
Citizens today. The resulting ranking was 1) Medical Care, 2) Transportation,
3) Communication about Senior Services, 4) Housing, 5) Food, and 6) Living
Assistance. Considering the top three, what aspects of those issues do you
feel are most important? (Identify specific problems and brainstorm
solutions.)
The following list comprises the topics which were discussed as both existing problems and
their obvious solutions (“more” and “better”).
1) transportation to and from medical services
2) greater participation with the area’s hospitals
3) explaining Medicare options
4) educating families on caring for Seniors
5) benefits (and risks) of medical advice via the Internet
6) more information on illness and ailment prevention alternatives
7) soliciting greater corporate and business support and involvement in these issues
(Del Mar Community Connections was mentioned as an exemplary program)
The survey also asked respondents for the best “media” via which to
communicate with Senior Citizens. The two daily newspapers, direct mail,
and email were cited most often. What ways do you feel are the best ways to
communicate news and information to Seniors?
The media mentioned were U.S. mail, neighborhood newspapers, local TV stations and CATV
(community access TV—local programming), community volunteers, organizations’ newsletters,
and the Internet.
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Any other comments to add?
The open discussion section of this focus group included a number of various topics and ideas,
such as:
1) Exploring private funding of programs for Senior Citizens via wills and bequeaths
2) Supporting the AARP Driving Skills course
3) Examining the possibility of allowing golf cart utilization on city streets
4) Seeing if the Encinitas “Grant Program” could support specific Senior programs.
The session closed with more discussion on the issue of Transportation for Senior Citizens. (It
was announced that Del Mar had a 15-passenger van for sale.) Problems with existing
transportation alternatives included the “need to wait” and the “need to call ahead”; limited
hours of availability; no weekend transportation; and simply “not enough” transportation for
Senior Citizens.
Next Steps
Ninety minutes do not permit an in-depth exploration of issues. Nevertheless, this second
Focus Group of 2010 confirmed and expanded upon the important issues and unmet needs
facing Senior Citizens in our community.
With the issue of Transportation emerging as such a strong, pervasive subject throughout all
three research projects undertaken by the Outreach Subcommittee in 2010, the most impactful
next step would be for specific transportation recommendations to be made to the Encinitas
City Council—during the budget allocation and approval process.
Concurrently, clearly there are many ideas to explore for helping Senior Citizens face and deal
with critical issues. However, with the exception of volunteers, there are no dedicated
personnel who can conduct additional, focused research and make/implement
recommendations. This situation severely retards progress in addressing Seniors’ needs.
Participants in this focus group unanimously felt the session was valuable and expressed a
desire for this type of discussion to be continued and expanded.
This report, compiled by the Outreach Subcommittee of the Encinitas Senior Citizen
Commission, will be submitted to the Commission. The Outreach Subcommittee will encourage
the distribution of this report to the Encinitas City Council for their review and action.
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Appendix One
Moderator’s Focus Group Session Guide
June 29, 2010
1. Is Encinitas “Senior Friendly”?
2. Are you aware of “City” services and/or other cities’ Senior-Center-services
provided in other communities that you wish were provided here?
3. What is your impression of the “Encinitas Senior Fair”, held at the Senior Center,
and what other events or services do you envision the Senior Center providing?
4. Exercise: Please rank, from 1 to 6 (with 1 being the most important) these six
issues facing Encinitas Seniors today. (List 6 issues on Flip Chart as they were
listed in survey--Food, Housing, Transportation, Living Assistance, Medical Care,
Communication about Senior Services; tabulate results; discuss differences in
rankings.)
5. At April’s “Senior Fair”, the Encinitas Senior Citizens Commission conducted a
survey as attendees both entered and exited the Fair. Survey respondents were
asked to rank six issues—in order of importance—facing Senior Citizens today.
The resulting ranking was 1) Medical Care, 2) Transportation, 3) Communication
about Senior Services, 4) Housing, 5) Food, and 6) Living Assistance. Considering
the top three, what aspects of those issues do you feel are most important?
(Identify specific problems and brainstorm solutions.)
6. The survey also asked respondents for the best “media” via which to
communicate with Senior Citizens. The two daily newspapers, direct mail, and
email were cited most often. What ways do you feel are the best ways to
communicate news and information to Seniors?
7. Any other comments to add?
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Appendix Two
Focus Group Participants*
June 29, 2010
Alphabetical List
Focus Group Participants
1. Marty Dare Aging & Independence Services
2. Patrick Davis Over 50 advocate
3. Gail Dupler Senior Center Out & About Transportation Coordinator
4. Charlotte Fan Meals on Wheels
5. Belinda Hunter Belmont Village
6. Bobbi Jordon Real estate agent
7. Joanne Price Fall Prevention
8. Al Redsun Former High Country Villas Recreation Club VP
9. Filipa Rios Encinitas Community Resource Center
10. Sandy Shapiro Parks & Recreation Commission Chair
Other Attendees:
11. Shirley Finch Senior Citizen Commission Chair
12. Robert Campbell** Senior Citizen Commission Vice Chair
13. Charles Harp Senior Citizen Commissioner
* Mr. David Witkowski of Cognition Ignition (cognitive therapy), Ms. Toni Friedman and Ms.
Bobbi Jordan of the YMCA, and Ms. Christie Goodsell, Encinitas Senior Center Manager were
invited, but unable to attend.
**Mr. Campbell moderated the session.
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