Kevin Lozo from the Traverse City office of the Michigan Disabilities Network describes options counseling to assist persons with disabilities navigate systems and find adaptive technology. This free service is available in all 83 counties of Michigan.
Kevin Lozo from the Traverse City office of the Michigan Disabilities Network describes options counseling to assist persons with disabilities navigate systems and find adaptive technology. This free service is available in all 83 counties of Michigan.
Good morning. This is Kitty Glomski along with my cohost
Brooke Mainville:Brooke Mainville
Kitty Glomski:from Region 9 Area Agency and Aging and another episode of Let's Talk About Aging. Today I have a special guest Kevin Lozo. He comes from Disability Network of Northern Michigan. He's an independent living program specialist in options counseling. Kevin, that is a long title just like mine, and I can't wait to learn a little bit more about what it means and what you do for the Disability Network of Northern Michigan.
Kevin Lozo:Allow me to introduce myself, Kevin Lozo with Disability Network, Northern Michigan based here in Traverse City. We do cover 17 counties across lower Northern Michigan. And, to answer your question What is options counseling or an independent living specialist? Options counseling, it's a free service, which helps you and your family explore long-term support service options, all while considering medical needs, personal values, personal budgeting, housing needs. Keeping one independent as long as possible as we all age in place. That is a quick version of my role as options counselor, which is pretty similar to independent living specialist.
Brooke Mainville:Okay, for the options counseling, you said you covered 17 counties, which is huge. Do a lot of people then meet with you in person? Do they meet with you virtually? How do you cover such a broad and wide scope?
Kevin Lozo:Our service area is quite large and a lot of rural areas out there. We are able to reach individuals, all 17 counties virtually, phone calls, face-to-face. We do have staff in certain areas in northern lower Michigan. If it's someone's requiring a face-to-face, I try my best to meet and make an appointment with that individual or family. If I'm unable, I try to collaborate internally within our staff that may be on the other side of the state or may be closer to the Mackinac Bridge. For now we can do virtually, we can FaceTime, we can email whatever works, what's ever convenient, and that's how we reach individuals. It can be a one time or a series of phone calls, emails, or perhaps face-to-face.
Brooke Mainville:So not just one meeting, but maybe several. What are some situations or examples of options counseling that you can give us?
Kevin Lozo:For example if an adult child lives downstate or out of state has a parent that lives in one of our 17 county areas and they're like, Hey, we have some concerns with mom, she's aging in place, what are some options? Give us the scenario and we can work with the adult child, bring mom or dad or both on board. We kind of all work together and have a conversation to see what are some challenges? Are there any barriers? Does mom or dad, wish to stay in their own home? Do they want to explore more community-based living, such as assisted living? Or what does it look like for them to remain as independent as possible. Basically we work with everything that we're given what does it look like for mom or dad or an aging parent to remain home? Example that I can give is just aging in place what are your wishes? Where do you see yourself in a couple years?
Brooke Mainville:Let's say the barrier is they need a ramp, then do you help find a program to get that ramp? Is that something that you do? Let's say that someone calls you and they need help with that.
Kevin Lozo:Absolutely. And that's what we refer to as a home modification. We don't necessarily do the physical home modifications or support the financing; however, we will listen to what the needs are and we will recommend some options and that's one nice thing about options counseling. If someone does need more of a permanent ramp to their home, there's of course private pay or there may be some grants out there for those who qualify or meet eligibility. So there are options and what my job would be is to inform the owner of the home or the caller of those options and then give them the information and assist them to connect with the source and then help'em navigate. We don't fill out the applications for them. We will assist. We like to make them as independent as possible to do some of the paperwork because there's always a lot of paperwork but we do our best to help them navigate the paperwork.
Brooke Mainville:It sounds like it's a very person-centered program. Like here's the problem. Here are your different options. You choose which one works best for you.
Kevin Lozo:Yes the person-centered planning, that's a big part of the Disability Network or commonly known as Centers for Independent Living, the philosophy that's how it started.
Brooke Mainville:Yeah. That's Region 9's philosophy as well is person centered. You are talking about your job title and what you do. Can you go into maybe some more of the core services of the disability networks?
Kevin Lozo:I'm gonna start off a little bigger picture. Disability Network of Michigan consists of actually 15 offices. We are one of Centers for Independent Living or known as Disability Network in the State of Michigan. All 15 facilities do share pretty much the same core services and information and assistance. A good example would be a telephone call or a walk-in someone saying, who can help me when my social security has been denied, or where can someone get information and purchase assistive technology. That could be one question and it's done. We've provided the information or the options, the caller or walk-in is satisfied, or it may be something a little bigger where we have to actually work with that individual and meet with them several more times. With that said information and assistance is one core service that we have. Next would be individual and systems advocacy. For example, someone may say, how can I be my own advocate? Very simple. How can we work together to make our community welcoming for people with all abilities? There's a lot of systems in place that individuals need help navigating. Learning how to navigate public transportation.
Brooke Mainville:I was gonna ask for example of this one.
Kevin Lozo:Anything with a system, we can help conquer that. Another core service, independent living skills. For example, I need help learning to live with my new disability and it can be a game changer.
Brooke Mainville:Kevin, what is the age range? Who can come to you? What age can someone go to disability network?
Kevin Lozo:18 years of age, all the way up, and if there are individuals that are under 18 years of age, we welcome a parent, guardian, a grandparent to seek us out. We can assist.
Brooke Mainville:That's good to know, especially for the independent living skills. What would be an example of the independent living skills?
Kevin Lozo:I want to learn how to navigate living on my own, budgeting, grocery shopping, navigating public transportation, how to apply for any benefits, community inclusion. How do I participate? How do I network? That would be some more examples of independent living skills. Peer support, that's another. An example of that is, where can I meet other individuals in my community that share similar disabilities; let's share our abilities.
Brooke Mainville:Are you hosting a support group for them then, or are you just sharing the information where they then can go if they want.
Kevin Lozo:Both and for example, I can mention that we do have a job club women's and a men's peer group. For those of us who love to eat, we have some cooking classes. All those peer supports can be virtual or face-to-face. Then we have, an exercise class as well. We do have a nice selection and I always tell people, if you're looking for a little more detail on the disability network peer support groups, check out the websites, find your local disability network and check out their website. Okay.
Brooke Mainville:So then they do have local ones, but then you also have one major one then?
Kevin Lozo:Yes, the network itself has a main office in Lansing, which oversees all of the disability network. All of the disability networks kind of vary. They share the same core services and they vary a little bit. But definitely each disability network varies a little bit with, peer supports. What we offer here out of the Traverse City office maybe a little different than what they're offering, say in the capital Lansing Area Disability Network.
Brooke Mainville:That's good to know and you're probably gonna state it at the end again, but do you mind giving the website people would go to for most of the information?
Kevin Lozo:Absolutely. I was actually gonna bring that we can do it now. We're at the end. Disability network, all one word. Dot org.
Brooke Mainville:So disability network.org.
Kevin Lozo:That's gonna bring you to the main disability network of Michigan and then from there, you can see all of the disability networks of Michigan and you can click on one that suits your area or you can zoom it in by county. And it'll route you to your nearest disability network location.
Brooke Mainville:Good. Very user friendly. You were talking about the five core services and you got to the fourth one.
Kevin Lozo:And last but not least is transition. That could mean a younger person with a disability transitioning after high school. College. Not everyone is going to college these days. Individuals sometimes with disabilities live at home longer. For someone who may not have a disability and they need a little help transitioning maybe into their own space, their own home, their own apartment. Or maybe what does employment look like for that individual that is transitioning out of school. We have programs and staff that help with that. And then on the other side of that, speaking of transitions, you may have someone that lives in a non-conventional setting, such as a nursing facility. Maybe they're homeless. That's where options counseling also comes in. Someone could say, I've been living in a nursing home for the last several years, my doctor says I could probably live independently. I don't know what to do. I don't have much. And we can work with that individual and connect them with supports and services to work them out of the nursing facility and into more independent living. That could be another example of a transition as a core service.
Brooke Mainville:Two different spectrums, but doing the same thing- transitioning. That's a great, core services that you have. And then you said, they have varying services. Does each disability network then have their own programs on top of that then?
Kevin Lozo:Correct. Yes. For example, say a job club, what's the need and you can mix it up a little bit. You can go a little traditional. We're not afraid to try different programs.
Brooke Mainville:So Is job club then where people are searching for a job and you do interview skills, is that what job club is?
Kevin Lozo:All of that? Yes.
Brooke Mainville:Fun. Yeah, that's always skills people need when looking for jobs. Kevin, previously you touched a little bit on assistive devices. What is the definition of assistive devices?
Kevin Lozo:I like to give a shout out to, it's called Michigan Assistive Technology Program. An example of that is, it's any tool, software or app that can help people with disabilities, including older adults, do what they want to do. The Michigan Assistive Technology Program provides access and information on low tech and high tech assistive technology device options available for people with disabilities. For example an individual with vision loss. There's, looking at my little cheat sheet here. Cooking and eating, outdoor recreation, gaming. Or a simple calendar reminders. There are devices available today that can assist and the cool part about it is the Michigan Assistive Technology Program is a free program for people with disabilities by people with disabilities. How cool is that? That is really cool. And I do have some contact information for the Michigan Assistive Technology program if I could share that.
Brooke Mainville:Yes, I would like to hear that.
Kevin Lozo:I have one 800 number that I'll share first. It's 1-800-578-0280. Or if someone needs help placing that phone call, there's the Michigan Relay number of 7-1-1. Or if you want to send an email that would be and that's D as in David, R as in rake, and C as in cat, dot o r g. Again, that's at@mymdrc.org. It's a wonderful program that I think a lot of us are unaware of here in the State of Michigan. But definitely the Centers for Independent Living are very knowledgeable.
Brooke Mainville:I think assisted devices as a whole are underutilized. I don't think a lot of people realize there are devices out there to help with things as opening a jar or holding a pencil to cooking. I think a lot of people don't know about assistive devices and don't know about the program.
Kevin Lozo:Absolutely. And there's another wonderful program. It's called assistive technology exchange or known as ATX and it's a virtual website here in Michigan that users can view, buy, sell, or donate. This can be durable medical equipment. Anything that's considered assistive technology. It's a free site. It's safe and secure. I may have some assistive technology items that are in perfect condition. I can donate them or if I choose to put a fair price on that, you are allowed to do that. A lot of people end up with devices that they just don't know what to do with. You can donate it or you can try to sell it. Or you can do trades or swaps. In that website, we use it all the time at our agency. I have quite a few clients that may not be computer or internet savvy. I check the website a couple times a week, looking for items that they're looking for, maybe that their insurance will not pay for or they just can't find at a medical loan closet. That website is atxchange.org. That's another useful resource tool.
Brooke Mainville:Very handy because if you have hip surgery, you might need a walker or cane for that moment and then you have no use for it for a couple years. What do you do with it? You can donate it. That's really nice or especially if you're looking for it for a month. Kevin, I know there's many things that we could dig in deeper with all of these, is there any other topics that we wanna hit today?
Kevin Lozo:I think we've hit on the main ones, but I just wanna stress that disability networks, throughout Michigan basically, we're here to help. We like to think of ourselves as the disability experts in our communities, and often we are that first initial phone call or contact for those individuals who may not know where to start or begin. No matter what county you are in Michigan, and I think there's 83 counties in Michigan, each county is represented by a disability network or centers for independent living. You just got to find which one services your area and it's always a friendly voice on the other end to help navigate to connect people.
Brooke Mainville:Kevin, what is the fee for your service or your programs?
Kevin Lozo:As of now, we are mainly federally and state funded many are grants Most of our programs are no cost, no fee. There's no terms. Basically you can work with us as long as you need to. Like I said, just a simple phone call or a simple visit and we provide the service. It's free and confidential.
Brooke Mainville:That's great. Great community resource.
Kevin Lozo:Yes. My contact information again, I'm Kevin Lozo, Options Counselor with Disability Network, Northern Michigan based in Traverse City, but we do cover the 17 counties that's all the way from Manistee Michigan, which is over by Lake Michigan, and kind of draw a line diagonal all the way to Alpena and then up towards the Mackinac Bridge. That's pretty much our 17 county area. My direct line would be area code 231-922-0903 extension 330 and an email address. It's an easy one. It's my first name kevin@disabilitynetwork.net. That would be business hours, 9:00 AM till 4:30 PM and we do have walk-in appointments Monday through Thursday, from 10:00 until 2:00.
Brooke Manville:Perfect. Well, I know I learned quite a bit from your presentation today and I'll carry this information on to the family caregivers and the older adults that I work with. Thank you much for sharing this. Thank you much. Kevin, I really appreciate you being on today.
Kevin Lozo:You're welcome. Thank you for having me.
Kitty Glomski:This is Kitty Glomski and Brooke Mainville, with the Calendar of Events. On the second Wednesday of June that's June 14th, the MMAP program has a new to Medicare presentation starting at 10:00. This is a virtual presentation on zoom. This is information for anyone that is new to Medicare, is starting Medicare due to disability or has questions and wants to know how Medicare works. Then afterwards you get to meet one on one with a counselor and talk about your personal situation. To register, you can call 1-800-803-7174 or contact your local Senior Center, your Commission or Council on Aging, and they can make the appointment for you.
Brooke Mainville:So for the calendar events for May and June, we have some in-person and virtual workshops. The first are the Powerful Tools for Caregivers. That is a six week workshop for family caregivers, and it takes place once a week for six weeks. We have two taking place on May 16th, and it goes till June 20th. One is in Alpena from 9:30 AM to 11:30 AM and one in Hillman the same days from one to 3:30 PM. Also are doing one virtual via Zoom, June 14th to July 19th, and that's from 1:00 to 2:30. We have one in Crawford County starting June 5th through July 17th, and that's from 10:00 AM to 11:30 AM So we're covering Montmorency, Alpena and Crawford County if you can't hit those in person and we wish to do a virtual, feel free. Again, that was the powerful tools for caregiver workshop. No cost for the participants. We also have some upcoming dementia webinars, and it is taking place on June 8th and it's the Dementia Friends Michigan. Participants will learn about dementia, understanding what it is to live with the disease, receive tips on communicating with a person who has dementia and turn their understanding into practical action. So you'll learn how to be a dementia friend for the community members or maybe for a caregiver of someone caring for dementia. So again, that's June 9th from one to 2:00 PM via Zoom. If you're interested in any of these events, please contact me, brook Mainville at 989-358-4616, or you could visit our Facebook page or our website at www.nemcsa.org
Kitty Glomski:So this is Kitty Glomski and Brooke Mainville asking you to join us again next time on Let's Talk About Aging.
Carla:Let's Talk About Aging is a production of the Region 9 Area Agency on Aging, 2569 US 23 South, Alpena, Michigan 4 9 7 0 7. This Podcast was supported, in part, by grant number 90MPPG0039 from the US Administration for Community Living, Department of Health and Human Services, Washington, DC. Podcast music provided by Groove Music, selection titled"Modern Logo," created by Vadym Kuznietsov and can be found at https://elements.envato.com/modern-logo-ZVHFBJ6