CATHY SAUNDERS is the Chair of the Information & Referral Initiative with the Virtual Center and a member of Virginia's Commission on Alzheimer's Disease and Related Disorders.  She recently agreed to sit down with us for an interview and here's what we had found out...

So, Cathy, tell us a bit about yourself...

Over the past thirty years, I had been involved in a variety of programs dealing with aging, and in particular, with Alzheimer's disease.  At one point or another, I had held such positions as Virginia's Long-Term Care Ombudsman, Director of Long Term Care Programs for the Department of Aging, Director of the Long Term Care Council.  And in all of these positions, I had the opportunity to learn and interact with all the "main players" of the aging field - the Department for the Aging, the Department of Social Services, Alzheimer's Association Chapters, Area Agencies on Aging, various mental health organizations, and so on...  And once you learn who does what, who needs what, and who helps whom, that's the point where you begin to act as a liaison, putting together demand with supply, need with solution, and question with answer.  So, I guess, in many senses, there’s no surprise why, now, I chair the Information & Referral Initiative with Virginia's Virtual Center on Alzheimer's Disease...  

You have a Bachelor’s Degree in Social Work and a Master's in Gerontology though now, you work as a most successful real estate agent…  How do all these come together while serving on Virginia’s Commission on Alzheimer’s Disease and the Virtual Center?

When I was first nominated to the Virginia’s Commission on Alzheimer’s Disease, I thought I could be at a disadvantage, simply because I am not a researcher, nor am I (at this point) directly involved in various policy-making or caregiving issues.  As a real estate agent (work which I have been doing for the past nine years at Long & Foster), my focus has been in helping the elderly identify and locate the best housing solution for their needs.  But that doesn’t mean just finding a place for them to live but a complex solution-making process that looks at and incorporates “what-if” scenarios and a variety of conditions and concerns.  So, here’s where the I&R comes back into the picture: you find the information, you access the resource and then build the best solution there is!  And I love that, I truly do! 

So, coming back to my role with the Virginia’s Commission on Alzheimer’s Disease as well as that with the Virtual Center, I believe that I bring a distinct perspective to the group, one that is anchored in my education (my Bachelor's in Social Work and Master's degree in Gerontology) as well as the day-to-day interaction with elderly clients who face so many situations, struggles or problems.  On the other hand, my past experience at the state and policy-making level, my knowledge of all the pieces of the "aging" puzzle, allow me a much broader grasp of the resources available at any given point and the multitude of possibilities that are now open to any Virginian.  

Take for instance, Senior Navigator - a tremendous tool that is built by Virginians for Virginians! You simply go to their site, enter a specific service you are looking for and a zip code, and voila: you get answers right at the tip of your fingers!  It is this kind of solutions, blending the ultimate in technology with detailed information, that will allow us to offer better services to those in need. 
 

Cathy, what can you draw from your work with the Virtual Center?

Bottom line, it is this thinking outside the box that has made me recognize the value of the Center.  In any task force or any group that comes together from different organizations, geographic areas, angles or missions, there is an inherent tendency to “keep onto each one’s territory,” so to speak, a desire to defend the “boundaries” of their own organization, sometimes to the disadvantage of the “bigger picture.”  But what we have experienced with the Virtual Center is an amazing exercise in breaking these boundaries for a total win-win.  It is truly a work-in-progress, for we are all learning how to work in an ensemble of this caliber, and we are all looking at symbiotic relationships where we aim for much wider results and outcomes.  It is exciting and I am really thrilled to be part of this team of professionals!