The Lake Cumberland Area’s long-term care ombudsmen advisory council held their first-ever meeting at a nursing home last week when they met at Fair Oaks Nursing Home in Jamestown.

The council “represents the needs and interests of nursing home residents” but had never actually held a business meeting at a facility before Nov. 20, according to Opal Carter, the district’s ombudsmen.

Fair Oaks co-owners Greg Faulkner and Chris Minnich welcomed the members of the program and provided food and beverage before their meeting as well as a tour of the facility.

A relatively unknown program in the 10 county Lake Cumberland area, Carter wanted to get the word out on the council and let others know they could join in looking out for the best interests of nursing home residents in our area.

Carter said that long-term ombudsmen have an abundance of duties to help maintain the best possible healthcare for nursing home residents in the area.

Some of these duties include resolving complaints made by or for residents of long-term care facilities, advocating residents’ rights, representing the interest of residents before governmental agencies, analyze, comment on and recommend changes in law and regulations concerning health, safety and rights of residents, educate consumers and residents about issues related to long-term care, promote community involvement through volunteer opportunities and promote family councils and residents councils.

One can get involved in the program by volunteering through the local ombudsman, visiting long-term care facilities and reporting concerns and problems to the local ombudsman, according to Carter.

Carter urges everyone that has a concern regarding a long-term care facility or would like to volunteer in the Lake Cumberland area, which includes Adair, Casey, Clinton, Cumberland, Green, McCreary, Pulaski, Taylor, Wayne and Russell Counties, to contact her at 606-305-9225 or 1-877-770-7778 or e-mail her her at opal@lc-caa.org

Present at the meeting was Carter, Secretary Judy White, Jo Thomas, Lillian Weston, Claude Tiller and Philip Cox.

Carter, White, Thomas and Tiller are from Somerset, Cox is from Green County and Lillian Weston is a resident of Jamestown.

Unable to attend the meeting were Vice Chair James Dick, Mary Dick, Mary Wesley and Helen McClendon.

Resident Council President Evelyn Rose was invited to attend the gathering, but was unable to make it.