Livingston County senior citizens may receive a phone call this week asking for their participation in a survey that aims to better understand the community’s needs.

The Area Agency on Aging 1-B is conducting an assessment of senior needs in Livingston County. Individuals over the age of 60 may receive a phone call this week from Mitchell Research requesting that they participate in the survey. Katie Wendel, Senior Manager of Advocacy, says that the survey callers will identify themselves as being with the national polling company Mitchell Research. The caller will state that they are talking to people over the age of 60 about issues facing them and that their answers will remain strictly confidential. Wendel reminds that the company is not selling anything and that the survey call will appear on caller-ID’s with a Livingston County area code.

Wendel says the survey includes questions about seniors’ needs and preferences regarding housing, transportation, health, social support and service needs. The information will be used by service providers in the county to help plan programs and services that are responsive to the community’s needs. Wendel tells WHMI the Agency is trying to get the word out because they know seniors get a lot of scam phone calls, and they want them to know it’s a legitimate research project. She adds that participants will not be asked for any important identifying information.

Calls will begin today and will continue through Saturday, August 24th, 2019. Wendel says the survey aims to get a random sample of people in the county and to reach individuals that the Agency may not have interacted with before. Anyone with questions about the survey is asked to contact Jim McGuire, Director of Research, Policy Development and Advocacy at the Area Agency on Aging 1-B at 248-761-6480. (DK)