The Baltimore County Department of Aging recently held its third annual advocacy conference, Shedding Light on Seniors’ Legal Rights—Empowerment for Seniors, Caregivers and Service Providers, at the Sheppard Pratt Conference Center in Towson. More than 200 social workers, nurses, nursing home administrators and other health care professionals, students, legal and public safety personnel, and local community leaders participated in this year’s conference.

Norma Nash, deputy director of the Baltimore County Department of Aging, welcomed attendees, and Arnold Eppel, director of the Department of Aging; Marsden McGuire, M.D., medical director of Geriatric Services at Sheppard Pratt; and Jim Smith, Baltimore County executive, offered opening remarks to begin the daylong event.

As keynote speaker, John Fader, a retired Baltimore County Circuit Court judge and senior judicial fellow at the University of Maryland School of Law, reflected on his more than 30 years of service in the county judicial system and on his experiences serving the interests of older adults.

Department of Aging Commended for Outstanding Efforts

“Being a circuit court judge is a wonderful job, but so many people bring so many problems,” Fader said.

He commended the Department of Aging for its ongoing efforts to assist older adults, their caregivers and family members through a vast range of programs and services. Fader emphasized that legal issues, particularly those related to long-term health care planning, financial decision making, medication management, guardianship and family disputes over money are everyday concerns settled in the modern legal arena on behalf of older adults, when “the ability of the mind to keep up with personal matters has lagged behind the body’s ability.”  

Commenting on the many changes, developments and strides made in assisting the aging population because of professionals whose work daily touches the lives of seniors, Fader said, “Today is an example of your dedication and commitment. Without your dedication, many would not enjoy the winter of their lives as much as they should.”

Fader pointed out that for many people facing advancing age, simple tasks and decisions often become too overwhelming. “We live in the busiest of worlds. It’s hard to think about life decisions, let alone death and advance directives.” His hope for the future, he said, is to see more roundtable discussions bringing together the expertise and experience of health care, social work, gerontology professionals and attorneys who could devise tools that would be helpful to individual decision making, promoting reflection and ultimately change for the future.

A Day for Learning, Networking and Sharing

Following Fader’s discussion, conference participants attended breakout sessions highlighting topics such as legal and policy issues related to health care decision making after loss of capacity, do-not-resuscitate and medical care orders, end-of-life issues for seniors and families, guardianship, lottery scams and consumer frauds targeting seniors, and grandparents’ rights.

Guest speakers included Jack Schwartz, director of health and policy development, Maryland Office of the Attorney General; Craig Coleman, deputy director, Maryland Institute of Emergency Medical Services Systems; Grace Cordts, M.D., medical director of palliative care, Johns Hopkins School of Medicine; Kandace Scherr, attorney and partner, Frank, Frank and Scherr; Deborah Chenoweth, police services officer, Baltimore County Police Department, Criminal Investigations Division; Emily Rody, chief attorney, Baltimore County Legal Aid Bureau; and Sandra Brushart, staff attorney, Baltimore County Legal Aid Bureau.

The day ended with a session on the future of Social Security and Medicare benefits, led by Sue Ward, director of Grass Roots, National Committee to Preserve Social Security and Medicare. 

Michael Lehmuth, conference coordinator and program manager for the Baltimore County Ombudsman Program, said, “It was a great day of learning, and many participants commented on how vital it is to understand the topics that were covered, in order to provide services to older adults.” He added, “The conference was also a great opportunity for networking and the sharing of ideas, since the 200 plus in attendance represented various agencies and organizations from throughout the state. I feel folks really walked away with useful information on seniors' rights.”

Revised January 8, 2007