Nursing School coordinates new program

The School of Nursing "cut the ribbon" yesterday on a new program designed to provide coordinated health care for the elderly. CARE, the Collaborative Assessment and Rehabilitation for Elders Program, located at the Ralston-Penn Center at 3615 Chestnut Street, is an attempt to provide the elderly in West Philadelphia with integrated nursing, medical and therapeutic care out of a single location. In recognition of the official opening of the center, Interim President Claire Fagin, Richard Celeste, chairman of the National Health Care Campaign, and several CARE representatives spoke about the program's success. "This program began under my tenure here," Fagin said. "So it's a particular thrill for me?.We're all thrilled that CARE is fully equipped." The approximately 150 faculty, alumni and representatives from the University Medical Center and local government agencies in attendance seemed to agree. "CARE is an important piece of [the program at Ralston] and is very, very welcome," said Joe Hill, president of the Ralston House. Celeste, former governor of Ohio, was sent on behalf of President Clinton in order to show his support for the program. "I commend [CARE] for being so new and forward-looking," Celeste said. "But ultimately, it's the people who really make the difference." And the people of the CARE center, according to Fagin, are truly dedicated to their work. The program admitted its first patient last October, and 20 others have since been through the program, according to Johana Yurkow, director of Clinical Services for CARE. "There are currently five or six patients on a waiting list," she said. "The number [of patients] depends on the intensity of the services the patients need." The facilities at the Ralston Center provide physical and occupational therapy, speech and language pathology, mental health services, social work and medical care to patients. Medicare and the major medical component of most insurance plans cover most CARE fees. The program, sponsored by the Nursing School, Medical School, Hospital of the University of Pennsylvania and the Ralston-Penn Center, is funded primarily by the William Penn Foundation and the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation.