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WASHINGTON — Lutheran Services in America today announced it is launching Phase II of its “Great Plains Senior Services Collaborative.” The project is a collaborative, multi-year effort led by Lutheran Services in America in tandem with Lutheran Social Service of Minnesota, Lutheran Social Services of North Dakota, and St. John’s Lutheran Ministries, Inc. in Montana. The Collaborative is designed to leverage the unique assets and resources of rural communities and develop person-centered approaches to help seniors maintain their independence, remain in their homes and communities, and live with purpose and meaning.

Funded by a generous three-year grant from Margaret A. Cargill Philanthropies, the Collaborative will work together to deliver services in over 22 communities across the three rural states addressing the unique challenges of rural aging.  The Collaborative also will work with North Dakota State University to evaluate the success of different programs and approaches in rural communities and ensure that programs can be sustained beyond the grant.

“Older Americans in rural areas are no different from their urban and suburban counterparts when it comes to wanting to remain healthy, independent and connected,” noted Charlotte Haberaecker, president and CEO of Lutheran Services in America. “A major difference, however, is the significant challenge rural Americans face when it comes to accessing needed services and resources. This project is so promising because it incorporates social determinants such as transportation, nutrition, isolation and mobility that directly affect seniors’ health in rural areas.”

Building on Success

This second phase builds upon the success of an earlier grant also funded by Margaret A. Cargill Philanthropies in which more than 1,500 older adults and their families were supported in over 70 rural communities across Minnesota and North Dakota, and where over 130 partners and stakeholders were engaged.

The project’s Phase II launching today incorporates valuable lessons learned and best practices gained from the project’s first phase, which emphasized the importance of local partnerships and the value of collaboration to  expedite program delivery and improve program quality by leveraging a multi-state approach.

About Lutheran Services in America:

Lutheran Services in America is the national network of Lutheran social ministry organizations—connecting over 300 health and human services nonprofit service providers located throughout the country. Recognized by The Chronicle of Philanthropy and Forbes as one of the nation’s largest nonprofits, the Lutheran Services in America network operates with more than $22 billion in annual revenue and over 250,000 member employees. Together, the network lifts up the nation’s most vulnerable people from children to seniors—making a difference in the lives of one in 50 Americans every year. To learn more, please visit www.lutheranservices.org.

WASHINGTON — Harvard University scholar Dr. Antonio M. Oftelie has been elected to the Lutheran Services in America Board of Directors. The Board is comprised of 13 senior executives from health and human services, business, academia, and the Lutheran Church and social ministries who are dedicated to transforming the lives of people and communities. Lutheran Services in America leads one of America’s largest health and human services networks with over $22 billion in annual revenue. The Washington, DC-based organization consists of over 300 social ministry organizations working in over 1,400 communities nationwide.

“Dr. Oftelie’s unique, worldwide perspective on issues so directly tied to our work will strengthen our organization even more. His experience aligns with what we strive to do at Lutheran Services in America: build and enhance the value our network provides through inventive strategies that transform people’s lives,” noted Charlotte Haberaecker, president and CEO of Lutheran Services in America. “In particular, Dr. Oftelie’s focus on innovation will be invaluable, including his groundbreaking work creating the Human Services Value Curve to improve outcomes and value for human services organizations.”

“The work Lutheran Services in America and its member organizations are doing when it comes to transforming communities and the lives of those they serve is vital, particularly given stretched government resources and programs,” Dr. Oftelie added. “I am excited to further this mission by offering insights from my work tied to improving organizations, thereby adding value to the power and outcomes of the network.”

A Doctor of Law and Policy graduate of Northeastern University and Master in Public Administration graduate of Harvard Kennedy School, Dr. Oftelie is based at the Harvard John A. Paulson School of Engineering and Applied Sciences where he is an Innovation Fellow at the Technology and Entrepreneurship Center (TECH), as well as executive director of Leadership for a Networked World, an applied research and executive education initiative. In these roles, he conducts research and teaches at the intersection of policy, technology, innovation, and leadership. The Minneapolis native also has advised senior corporate and government officials, including a presidential administration and three governors, on creating performance and outcome measures.

About Lutheran Services in America

Lutheran Services in America is the national network of Lutheran social ministry organizations — connecting over 300 health and human services nonprofit service providers located throughout the country. Recognized by The Chronicle of Philanthropy and Forbes as one of the nation’s largest nonprofits, the Lutheran Services in America network operates with more than $22 billion in annual revenue and over 250,000 member employees. Together, the network lifts up the nation’s most vulnerable people from children to seniors — making a difference in the lives of one in 50 Americans every year. To learn more, please visit www.lutheranservices.org.

Phase 2 Expands Implementation of Successful Post-Acute Transitional Care Model

WASHINGTON — In a vote of confidence for Lutheran Services in America’s Connect-Home Learning Collaborative, The Harry and Jeanette Weinberg Foundation has awarded a $225,000 continuation grant to fund the Collaborative’s second phase. The Phase 2 grant enables the Collaborative to double in size from four states to eight. Connect-Home, the brainchild of Dr. Mark Toles of The University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, is a team-based model designed to improve the delivery of transitional care during the critical time following acute care. The Collaborative empowers staff and family caregivers to support older adults in their efforts to successfully return home and avoid rehospitalization – an improvement so needed given our nation’s aging demographics and related challenges tied to post-acute care recovery time.

“Connect-Home is a model poised to help address the post-acute care needs of so many more older adults in America, and we gratefully acknowledge The Harry and Jeanette Weinberg Foundation for supporting such a unique, active learning environment that paves the way for it to scale nationally,” said Charlotte Haberaecker, president and CEO of Lutheran Services in America. “Phase 2 of our Connect-Home Learning Collaborative is an opportunity to build on the success of our national network’s efforts to help older adults recover and live independently in their homes, where they want to be. Through Connect-Home, providers now are well-positioned to improve outcomes and reduce rehospitalization for low-income older adults.”

More than three-quarters of 30-day hospital readmissions are estimated to be preventable, according to the Medicare Payment Advisory Commission. To return home successfully and avoid hospital readmission, older adults need better transitional care, Haberaecker emphasized. To achieve this, participants in the Connect-Home Learning Collaborative use tools developed by Toles and his team to train patients and caregivers on how to safely transition from a post-acute care facility to home care with few complications.

Under the 12-month plan of Phase 2 of the Collaborative, Lutheran Services in America will expand implementation of Connect-Home to 275 low-income vulnerable adults transitioning from post-acute to home-based care. The Phase 2 expansion grows Lutheran Services in America’s partner sites to locations in Ohio, Pennsylvania, New York and Wisconsin.

The Collaborative’s Phase 2 extends the results-yielding work of its successful first phase, whichreached over 325 vulnerable older adults in Maryland, Michigan, New Jersey and North Carolina. Phase 1 sites that implemented the Connect-Home model witnessed 90 percent of caregivers attending both midpoint and discharge meetings, more than 90 percent of discharged patients scheduling and confirming physician appointments, and 90 percent of patients completing follow-up calls within 72 hours after discharge. In addition, one site reported the lowest hospital readmission rates in its county.

These results speak collectively to the importance of implementing a multi-disciplinary approach early in the patient’s admission to a post-acute care facility. Clinical leaders who implemented Connect-Home during its first phase reported improved processes and outcomes in patient care, with one nursing leader noting that Connect-Home “helps us pull all the disciplines together.” Without such organization, important individual steps can fall through the cracks for older adults and their caregivers that too often leads to avoidable rehospitalization.

“Our ability to integrate discharge planning early in a patient’s post-acute stay is what sets Connect-Home apart,” Haberaecker added. “Given the impressive results we saw from our Phase 1 efforts, by doubling the size of Connect-Home to four additional partner sites in four more states we expect we’ll be able to help transform the lives of so many more underserved seniors and their caregivers.”

For further information about the Connect-Home Learning Collaborative, contact David Zauche at 202-499-5837.

About Lutheran Services in America

Lutheran Services in America is the national network of Lutheran social ministry organizations—connecting over 300 health and human services nonprofit service providers located throughout the country. Recognized by The Chronicle of Philanthropy and Forbes as one of the nation’s largest nonprofits, the Lutheran Services in America network operates with more than $22 billion in annual revenue and over 250,000 member employees. Together, the network lifts up the nation’s most vulnerable people from children to seniors — making a difference in the lives of one in 50 Americans every year. To learn more, please visit www.lutheranservices.org.

Iverson Fills Seat Vacated by New Minnesota DHS Commissioner Jodi Harpstead

WASHINGTON — Adriene Iverson, president and CEO of the California-based Elder Care Alliance, has been elected to the Lutheran Services in America board of directors. Iverson’s term begins this month and runs through June 2021. She replaces Jodi Harpstead, who was appointed in August by Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz as commissioner of Minnesota’s Department of Human Services after serving four years on Lutheran Services in America’s board.

Iverson brings a wealth of knowledge from the senior living, nonprofit and faith worlds with her to Lutheran Services in America. Since 2010, she has been a leader at the senior living-focused Elder Care Alliance, which has been serving seniors across California for more than 20 years. In her post with Elder Care Alliance, Iverson was instrumental in implementing electronic health records and ushering in evidence-based dementia care programming. She also has been active in the senior living industry through board service, and served as vice president of operations at the CNH District Church Extension Fund, a $60 million church loan fund. Iverson holds a bachelor of science in marketing from Santa Clara University.

“When it comes to America’s most vulnerable populations, our nation in many ways is facing unprecedented challenges,” Iverson noted. “With a rapidly aging population and growing workforce shortage, the efforts of Lutheran Services in America’s national network of health and human services organizations are needed now more than ever. This reality, combined with this trusted organization’s broad, national reach, makes me proud to be able to join and support its active efforts. I look forward to using lessons learned here in California on the national level to help create communities free from ageism and ableism.”

“Adriene’s years of experience and diverse portfolio will add another fresh perspective to our board that will help inform our work,” said Charlotte Haberaecker, president and CEO of Lutheran Services in America. “We’re crafting novel solutions and forming nontraditional partnerships that leverage our network’s role in enabling people to live fuller, healthier lives. Adriene’s insights will help us expand our initiatives that look at solutions through an entirely different lens.”

Iverson’s appointment follows three other recent additions to Lutheran Services in America’s board of directors. Colleen P. Frankenfield of Lutheran Social Ministries of New Jersey and Karen L. Himle of Thrivent joined the organization’s board in July; Harvard University scholar Dr. Antonio M. Oftelie joined in February.

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About Lutheran Services in America

Lutheran Services in America is the national network of Lutheran social ministry organizations, connecting over 300 health and human services nonprofit service providers located throughout the country. Recognized by The Chronicle of Philanthropy and Forbes as one of the nation’s largest nonprofits, the Lutheran Services in America network operates with more than $22 billion in annual revenue and over 250,000 member employees. Together, the network lifts up the nation’s most vulnerable people from children to seniors — making a difference in the lives of one in 50 Americans every year. To learn more, please visit www.lutheranservices.org.

WASHINGTON — For the second consecutive year, The Chronicle of Philanthropy has named Lutheran Services in America to its annual list of “America’s Favorite Charities.” The Washington, DC-based organization’s national network of 300 health and human service organizations works with one in 50 Americans each year, improves the health and quality of life for low-income people throughout the nation, and operates with over $22 billion in annual revenue.

The Chronicle’s 2019 “America’s Favorite Charities” list, featured in the magazine’s November issue, ranks the top 100 nonprofits that raised the most contributions for their efforts in 2018, and establishes which U.S. charities attract the most giving from people, foundations and corporations. Having earned more than $810 million in support — representing a 10.8 percent increase from $732 million the prior year — Lutheran Services in America ranked 13th on the list of 100 organizations.

“The generosity of so many people toward our efforts is really changing lives. It has meant moving the needle on critical challenges facing our nation, and has played a defining role in expanding the work of our national network of 300 health and human services organizations,” said Charlotte Haberaecker, president and CEO of Lutheran Services in America. “Whether helping change the life trajectory for children and youth, or creating and deploying national solutions that improve the lives of so many seniors, we’re able to accelerate innovation given the immense reach and trusted presence of our network. This just wouldn’t be possible without the generous support we’ve received.”

Lutheran Services in America’s national network tackles a broad scope of issues affecting millions of Americans every year — ranging from health care, senior services and affordable housing to disability services, disaster response, and children, youth and families. The network is deeply embedded in the fabric of over 1,400 communities, and viewed as trusted providers of service known for high-quality, compassionate care and support.

Increasingly, Lutheran Services in America is attracting notice for its groundbreaking programs and collaboratives that promote the inherent value of helping all people grow, thrive, and live independent, productive lives — regardless of where they were born, their income, gender, faith, skin color or ZIP code. This is the case with the organization’s Results Innovation Lab, whose moonshot goal is transforming the lives of 20,000 children and youth by 2024. Already, the initiative has changed the lives of over 7,000 children and youth, having delivered concrete results in numerous states. These successes include increasing high school graduation rates for foster youth in Colorado; reducing re-arrest for over 700 youth of color in South Dakota; and improving outcomes for hundreds of youth of color existing homeless youth programs in Minnesota.

The organization’s LSA Senior Connect program represents another prime example of the organization’s reach and results. The program, an innovative service coordination model that connects seniors with chronic health conditions to needed resources in their communities, is improving seniors’ quality of life and reducing unnecessary health care spending. And Lutheran Services in America’s award-winning Great Plains Senior Services Collaborative represents another prime example; the initiative has improved the health and quality of life of 1,100 isolated older adults in 70 rural Midwest communities, with expanded efforts that will reach even more rural seniors underway.

About Lutheran Services in America
Lutheran Services in America is the national network of Lutheran social ministry organizations — connecting over 300 health and human services providers located throughout the country. Recognized by The Chronicle of Philanthropy and Forbes as one of the nation’s largest nonprofits, the Lutheran Services in America network operates with more than $22 billion in annual revenue and over 250,000 member employees. Together, the network lifts up the nation’s most vulnerable people from children to seniors — making a difference in the lives of one in 50 Americans every year. To learn more, please visit www.lutheranservices.org.

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Contact: Christopher Findlay
202-499-5833
cfindlay@lutheranservices.org

WASHINGTON — Forbes has recognized Lutheran Services in America as one of “America’s Top Charities” in 2019. Ranked 16th on the list of America’s top 100 charities, the Washington, DC-based organization earned a slot among the nation’s largest 20 charities for the sixth consecutive year.

The publication’s prestigious list records the top charities’ intake of private donations; organizations recognized on the list must have received “at least $146 million in private donations from last year,” according to Forbes. In ranking 16th on the annual list, Lutheran Services in America attracted $810 million in private donations, up from $732 million the year prior, marking an 11 percent increase.

The Lutheran Services in America national network is comprised of 300 nonprofit health and human service organizations that improve the health and quality of life for one in 50 Americans each year, working with groups ranging from children and families, to seniors, veterans and people with disabilities. Lutheran Services in America organizations are active in over 1,400 communities in 46 states nationwide.

“The generous support we receive from people around the country is fueling our work to transform lives. That support helps expand our network’s efforts for so many Americans of all ages,” said Charlotte Haberaecker, president and CEO of Lutheran Services in America. “Whether helping change the life trajectory for children and youth, or creating and deploying national solutions that improve the health and quality of life for so many seniors, we’re able to accelerate innovation given the immense reach and longtime trusted presence of our network. The contributions we receive play a major role in the real results we’re seeing.”

2019 saw groundbreaking progress for the Lutheran Services in America network. By the end of 2019 its Results Innovation Lab had helped improve the lives of over 7,000 children and youth, and in January 2019, the organization launched the second phase of its Great Plains Senior Services Collaborative to enable low-income seniors in rural communities to live independently at home with purpose and meaning. In 2019 Lutheran Services in America launched the second phase of its Connect-Home Collaborative, which is empowering seniors and their caregivers to manage seniors’ illness at home. Also in 2019, Lutheran Services in America launched LSA Senior Connect, a new and innovative service coordination model whose goal is to improve the health and quality of life of seniors. The initiative is focused on empowering seniors to live independently at home while reducing unnecessary emergency room visits and hospitalization, increasing seniors’ satisfaction and lowering total costs of care.

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About Lutheran Services in America
Lutheran Services in America is the national network of Lutheran social ministry organizations — connecting over 300 health and human services providers located throughout the country. Recognized by The Chronicle of Philanthropy and Forbes as one of the nation’s largest nonprofits, the Lutheran Services in America network operates with more than $22 billion in annual revenue and over 250,000 member employees. Together, the network lifts up the nation’s most vulnerable people from children to seniors — making a difference in the lives of one in 50 Americans every year. To learn more, please visit www.lutheranservices.org.