I am involved with the Long term Care Ombudsman Program with the Baltimore City Health Department; and the Long Term Care Assistance Program with the Legal Aid bureau. Both programs are designed to ensure that residents of long term care facilities are receiving good care and are having their rights respected. I regularly visit local nursing homes and assisted living facilities and talk with residents to determine if they have issues regarding their day to day living arrangements that they need help with. I try to resolve problems.

I enjoy meeting and conversing with seniors. But most of all I enjoy the satisfaction that accompanies successful problem resolution. I like being able to help people who are unable to do as much for themselves as they would like to. Whether their needs are large or small, just being able to help gives me a great deal of satisfaction.

The experience and satisfaction of working with other dedicated and selfless public sector employees to help the large and growing population of seniors who desperately need assistance.

I would suggest to them that this is a great opportunity to help others and to see and appreciate what others who may not be as fortunate as their older friends or relatives are experiencing as they grow older.

I have found my time (I have been a volunteer ombudsman since 2012) and efforts at the Baltimore City Health Department very meaningful and satisfying, if not frustrating and stressful, because many residents of long term care facilities have a difficult time because of insufficient staffing and inadequate training of staff. The office in I work is also under staffed with only 3 paid ombudsmen, including the supervisor and a small number of volunteers. We are responsible for the monitoring of approximately 35 nursing homes and rehab facilities and several hundred Assisted Living Facilities.

"I used to complain because I had no shoes until i met a man who had no feet."