Helping children with severe health challenges and their families to live as normal a life as possible is deeply rewarding, says Mary Kuhn. As an Assessor Nurse on the Jewish Family Service (JFS) Assess and Coordination Team (ACT), her job is to determine eligibility for and manage the Medicaid accounts for CASA clients to ensure they get the optimum long term care they need.

JFS assumed administration of the nursing component of the Community Alternative System Agency (CASA), a program of the Erie County Department of Social Services, in 2007.

“It’s a great collaboration because of the similar mission philosophies of the two agencies, and because JFS brings so much in the area of social work and mental health care,” says Kuhn, whose caseload includes children with cerebral palsy, congenital birth defects or who are mentally retarded, among other debilitating medical conditions.

The CASA Care at Home (CAH) program – included among a broad range of CASA services for the chronically ill and disabled of all ages – provides support for technology-dependent children under the age of 18 whose families would not otherwise be eligible for Medicaid. Sick Kids need Involved People (SKIP), a New York State program for physically handicapped children, provides case management for CAH.

“There are so many children that are being served through this partnership, from little babies all the way through to 18 years old. A lot of them come right out of the hospital, and we are able to make sure that they really get the same kind of care at home as they did in the hospital. And they are getting one-on-one care,” Kuhn says.

As a 27-year nursing veteran who has worked in corporate, community health and hospital settings, Kuhn says she feels energized by the seamless collaboration of JFS with its county and state partners. Looking forward, she is focused on the continued development of CASA to ensure that as many children as possible lead fulfilling lives at home with their families.