Service credit banking programs are designed to assist elders to remain in their homes through the provision of volunteer services. Volunteers, mostly elders themselves, are trained in the basics of helping a frail elder and are then assigned to provide services for a specific person, for which they earn credits. Credits can be redeemed for services. Service credit banking programs rely on computers to match volunteers to those in need from expansive datasets. This research uses the experience of six service credit banking sites funded by The Robert Wood Johnson Foundation to create a package of computer software and related program materials that will significantly improve a potential sponsor's ability to perform the volunteer matching and credit accounting functions. The package will streamline the technical aspects of program operation so that local senior citizens organizations and Area Agencies on Aging can sponsor service credit banking. In the short time that service credit banking projects have been in operation, they have augmented the resources available for assisting elders to remain independent. The increased number of elders without informal supports makes the creation of additional resources for informal assistance an important component for the future of long-term care.Awardee's statement of the potential commercial applications of the research:Over the last year there has been a growing interest in service credit banking programs. Several articles and television shows, including Newsweek and Inside Edition, have focused on it potential to help elders remain independent. Community organizations are increasingly looking to service credits as a way of responding to the growing need for assistance with the instrumental activities of daily living. The following research has direct commercial application in meeting the needs of agencies and organizations starting service credit banking programs. A product consisting of software, technical assistance and programmatic assistance will be developed to meet the needs of several types of users. As service credit programs begin to grow in popularity, this product will allow agencies and other organizations to perform at a technical level that would not otherwise be possible.National Institute on Aging (NIA)
