Fellowship winner to research US elderly home care services

26/06/2008 | Jaycee Fellowship Winner

Supportlinks service coordinator Jessica Collinge will take up an opportunity to fly to America and research home care services for the elderly next year thanks to the Jaycee Trust Travelling Fellowship Scholarship Scheme.

She is one of two recipients of the annual fellowship which provides $5000 assistance each toward overseas travel costs for study for special projects which will bring local benefit.

Jessica will spend next April in Florida gathering information for comparison with New Zealand’s approach to home care services.  In America she plans to visit up to five Florida branches of national American home care agencies where she will interview staff, collect data and compile surveys. She also hopes to see some of their work in action.

Her work coordinating homebased disability support, at Enable New Zealand’s Supportlinks in Palmerston North, gives her good insight into New Zealand programmes like Supported Independent Living and Home Help. “I’m definitely in the right place,” she says of the position she took up last September. Previously she worked as a service coordinator at Healthcare NZ.

The comparisons between America and New Zealand will form the basis of Jessica’s Masters’ thesis and then PHD, which will look into home care services in New Zealand and how to improve them.

Jessica has a Bachelor of Arts in Psychology and Sociology and a post graduate Diploma in Rehabilitation. “My favourite area of concern is rehabilitation for people over 65,” Jessica says – adding that this is particularly relevant given New Zealand’s aging population.

She plans to complete her Masters and PhD part-time while continuing to work at Supportlinks.

CONTACT:Communications Unit: (06) 350-8945.