…Sonja Adams, Case Manager for the SAJD Supported Living Program.
8:00 a.m. I start my day by checking for messages and mail. I get a lot of snail mail because most of my clients have their bills and important paperwork forwarded to me. I sort through it all to help them figure out what needs to be followed up on. In many cases, JFS is the representative payee, so I pay the bill on the client’s behalf. I track these payments on each person’s account ledger.
9:30 a.m. Leave the office to pick up a client for his psychiatry appointment.
10:00 a.m. We arrive at the psychiatrist’s office. I’m really there to be an extra set of ears and help him remember what’s been challenging over the past week. We discuss what’s been going well and the fight he had with his roommate earlier in the week. The psychiatrist suggests some ways of handling the frustrating situation with the roommate. We also talk about his trouble sleeping, and the psychiatrist suggests adjusting his sleeping pills. I make a note to tell his care team later.
11:00 a.m. I drive the client home. On the way back, we review what the psychiatrist told us and set goals for the next week.
11:30 a.m. I have an appointment in a client’s home. This is helpful because it gives me a glimpse into how she is doing. When I arrive, I see three old pizza boxes sitting on the table. This makes me wonder if she hasn’t been getting out much or feeling up to cleaning. We talk about how the past week went and come up with ideas for how she can get out more and keep up with the cleaning.
2:00 p.m. I’m back in the office and quickly check messages before my next appointment. I have a missed call from a doctor’s office. I call back and set up another client’s annual physical.
2:30 p.m. I have my third client meeting of the day, this time at the JFS office. When he arrives, we discuss his finances for the week. We work together to make a budget that is comfortable for him. Like many people I work with, he doesn’t have a bank account, so I handle his money for him. I went to the bank earlier in the week and took out cash. Cash works better for him because he can see how much is left.
3:30 p.m. I coordinate with my teammates to make sure all my clients’ needs are taken care of. I ask an Instruction and Support Specialist to run some errands for the woman I visited earlier in the day. She needs a new mop and pillow, which my colleague will bring to their appointment. I also let her know about the adjustment the psychiatrist made to the patient’s sleeping meds. She will remind him about this when it’s time to take his nightly meds.
4:15 p.m. I update my case notes and tackle the paperwork that needs to be filled out. One person’s food benefits need to be renewed, so I start on those forms. Another person needs his insurance adjusted, so I work on that.
5:55 p.m. Before I know it, it is time to wrap up. I end the day by updating my to do list. Even though I’ve accomplished a lot today, there is still more to be done. High on tomorrow’s list – helping a previously homeless client fill out paperwork to keep his stable housing.
By Jenelle Birnbaum
Violinist, hiker and all-around arts nerd Jenelle Birnbaum is the Marketing Coordinator at JFS. Outside of that, she enjoys speaking French and vegan cooking.
