All events are Eastern Time unless otherwise indicated.
Date/Time
Date(s) - Jun 11
2:00 pm - 3:00 pm
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Join us for an overview of how JFS of the Desert has integrated its social outreach, mental health and case management programs to more efficiently identify and meet the psycho-social needs of low income seniors. The focus will be on innovations that allow more widespread screening for depression and more rapid response to financial emergency through both intra and inter agency collaborative models.
Speaker: Maureen Forman, Executive Director and Kraig Johnson, Community Outreach Coordinator
Maureen obtained her master’s degree in Social Welfare, specializing in Community Mental Health from UC Berkeley. After graduation she became a field instructor for the UC Berkeley Social Welfare Master program before moving to the Desert with her husband in 1990.
She has served in multiple capacities in the Coachella Valley in both inpatient and outpatient social service settings. She served as Supervisor of Interns at Family Service of the Desert from 1990 to 2000 and Supervisor of Social Services at JFK Memorial Hospital from 1994 to 2006 where she also served as Co-Chair of the Bioethics Committee. Maureen was the Supervisor of Clinical Social Work at Eisenhower Hospital from 2006-2011, where she developed a program for uninsured patients to receive their medication on discharge to prevent re-hospitalization. Since 2011 she has been at Jewish Family Service, first as Clinical Director and now as Executive Director. She is a social work field instructor for Cal State San Bernardino. Loma Linda and Brandman University and USC.
She has served as a member of multiple planning committees throughout her career including Martha’s Village Clinic, Volunteers In Medicine, Mental Health Stakeholders, multiple senior needs panels and presentations, and most recently has worked with the Clinton Health Matters Initiative to develop a Collaborative of Agencies working with low income seniors. She is also the current vice chair of Coachella Valley Economic Partnership Workforce Excellence Mental Health Group which has started a 5-year plan to develop a career pathway for local high school and college students to enter the mental health job market right here in the valley.
Maureen’s passion for social work has always been focused on meeting the needs of the underserved in her community by re-shaping outmoded service delivery systems, expanding outreach and collaborating with other agencies to deliver rapid, compassionate care.
Kraig is responsible for coordinating multiple socialization opportunities for isolated seniors, volunteer recruitment and training, and he serves as the JFS Desert liaison to several internal groups and external bodies.
After receiving his bachelor’s degree in Biology from Claremont McKenna College, his work primarily focused on the area of coordinating continuing medical education at hospitals. In 2014, he accepted a position with Oasis Community Services, shifting his vocational focus to mental health. While with Oasis and now with JFS Desert, he has served on Advisory Board to the Coachella Valley Health Collaborative, was Co-Chair of the Riverside County TAY (Transitional Age Youth) Collaborative, and he serves on the HIV & Aging Program Committee.
He is a passionate advocate for senior well-being, and his responsibilities put him in a position to assist many in need throughout the Coachella Valley.
