Guardians needed to look out for seniors

The volunteer guardians of the RI Volunteer Guardianship Program develop many skills and qualities sought in the job market.
Decision-maker; communicator; observer; problem-solver; team-builder; compassionate empathizer: a guardian uses all of these abilities. Volunteer guardians also have a chance to change lives. Many dementia-afflicted seniors with low incomes need volunteer guardians to help with health care decisions when there are no family members filling that role.
Volunteer guardians trained and supported by the RI Volunteer Guardianship Program (VGP) become court-appointed, surrogate decision-makers for the many frail elders the VGP serves statewide.
Many elderly nursing home residents in our state never see a visitor. They have no one in their lives except for their caregivers. Some have outlived their relatives and friends. Others have family unable to take an active role because of infirmity or advanced age. In some cases, families are not willing or suitable.
Volunteer guardians can change the consequences of such circumstances because they are legally authorized to decide what is in the best interest of the senior, the “ward.” With the orientation, training and ongoing support of the VGP, a volunteer can ensure that someone with dementia is well-cared for and has dignity and comfort at life’s end.
Volunteer guardians in the VGP are not hands-on caregivers. Rather, they stand in the shoes of the ward as the decision-maker in the areas of health care, the appropriateness of the residential setting and the appropriateness of the ward’s social relationships.
Volunteer guardians from the VGP are not in charge of finances. They are “guardians of the person” only. Almost all of the seniors for whom VGP volunteers are sought are permanent residents in skilled-nursing facilities. Some referrals also come from assisted-living communities. Before agreeing to take a case, the interested volunteer visits the senior at the nursing home and talks with the social workers and nurses.
The volunteers have the ward’s team of nurses, social workers, nurse assistants and physicians available for information and support. A volunteer’s time commitment varies, but guardians should visit their wards at least once a month.
People drawn to the VGP are compassionate and understanding and want to make a difference for a senior with dementia. Many volunteers simply say that they have a “soft spot” in their hearts for the elderly who are alone. Guardians who volunteer their services are appropriately called “good Samaritan” guardians. There are currently more than 100 people on the roster trained and qualified through the RI Volunteer Guardianship Program. More volunteers are needed throughout the state, and especially in the Greater Providence area, northern Rhode Island and the West Bay.
The guardians are not the only volunteers who make the VGP work. Many others support the program. The guardian-ward relationship is created by a probate court, not by the VGP. Each city and town has its own probate court. Therefore, the VGP works closely with the Rhode Island Bar Association’s Lawyer Referral Service to obtain lawyers who donate their professional services to this cause.
Volunteer lawyers play a crucial role in preparing each guardianship case and representing the volunteer guardians at the probate-court hearings, where the guardianships are approved and the guardians are appointed. The volunteers’ training includes a review of the probate- court process and the volunteers are supported by the VGP throughout that process. Before the guardianship hearing takes place, the probate court appoints an individual called the Guardian Ad Litem to submit an independent report to the court.
Begun in 2001, the RI Volunteer Guardianship Program is administered by Cornerstone Adult Services, Inc., a member of the Saint Elizabeth Community, and is sponsored by the Rhode Island Department of Human Services Division of Elderly Affairs.
There is no other state-sponsored program serving the elderly in this way and hundreds of seniors have been helped by VGP guardians over the years.
Volunteer Theresa Buchanan put it this way: “My relationship with (my senior) and the caring and dedicated staff at (the nursing home) have enhanced my life in so many positive ways that I could not have imagined when I first accepted this responsibility.” •


Patricia A. M. Vinci is the director of the RI Volunteer Guardianship Program. She can be reached at
pvinci@cornerstone-ri.com.

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