On isolated Vashon, social workers have plenty to do

Home to an older population, overgrown rural roads and a saltwater moat separating the island from the mainland, Vashon life can mean isolation and challenging access to health and social services.

For seniors, those challenges weren’t helped by the 2021 shuttering of Vashon Community Care, the island’s primary assisted living facility which for two decades helped elderly residents live dignified, connected lives.

“People say, ‘We always thought we had Vashon Community Care, and that was part of our aging plan, and we don’t know what to do now,’” said Robyn Stover, a social worker at Vashon Senior Center.

Stover is part of an initiative on the island to address those concerns. She’s one of two clinical social workers recently hired to help seniors and their families get in touch with available care.

Both Vashon Island Fire and Rescue’s Mobile Integrated Health (MIH) program and the Senior Center opened up social worker positions in early 2025, and are now serving distinct but complementary roles helping islanders get and stay healthy.

Stover brings 40 years of experience as a geriatric social worker to the Vashon Island Senior Center. Funded by the Vashon Health Care District, the position helps seniors and their families two days a week at no cost to the individual.

Since the program launched six months ago, it has helped over 60 different seniors — many of whom schedule multiple appointments. The focus is particularly on supporting isolated older adults.

Clients don’t need to be members of the Senior Center to get care.

Some days, Stover helps seniors enroll in long term care or Veterans Affairs benefits. Other days, she offers supportive counseling, or advises a family member who is the primary caregiver for an aging loved one.

Maria Glanz, executive director of the Senior Center, likened finding the right care resources without a social worker to “falling through a rabbit hole.”

“Sometimes people will say, ‘I just need a plan. I live alone, and I’m nervous about that. I need to know what can be in place if I need help.’ So we create a plan,” Stover said.

The Senior Center works with organizations including MIH, Vashon Social Services Network, Dispatch Health, Vashon HouseHold and Vashon Youth and Family Services to expand care for seniors.

Stover recalled the initial response to her hiring: “There was a rush of people that were just really, almost desperate to learn about resources for cognitive issues for themselves or loved ones.”

That demonstrates a longstanding hole in services on the island, she said. Since Vashon Community Care closed in 2021, Glanz said she’s seen a major gap in senior care on the island.

Many seeking help from a geriatric social worker ask for education about memory loss, where to get a cognitive assessment or for emotional and caregiver support. Some, Stover said, are navigating their own aging changes while trying to navigate care for a loved one.

Meanwhile, the fire district’s MIH program saw an immediate need for a clinical social worker after its launch in early 2024, said Program Director Lilie Corroon. VIFR recently hired Lisa Coley, a licensed clinical social worker, to meet that demand.

Unlike Stover, who focuses on seniors, Coley supports patients of all ages. But older adults still make up a majority of those served by the program, in large part due to the island’s demographics. In April, 58% of MIH’s 100 patients were aged 65 or older. That figure was 52% in May.

MIH increased Coley’s hours from two to three days per week within her first month on the job due to high demand. Still, there’s more need than there is funding. VIFR is actively looking for more grants and funding partners to expand social work hours and is in talks with the Health Care District.

MIH and the Senior Center have worked closely since the beginning, sharing referrals, ideas, and strategies to better serve island residents. An agreement allows the two organizations to share patient cases without violating the Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act.

“I don’t see how we could do it on our own,” said Corroon. “Both the workload and the type of work [is] heavy. Social work is no easy feat.”

Corroon says that the collaboration between Coley and Stover makes the program better able to meet the large demand for social services.

“The fact that they are able to balance each other out for the community is so helpful,” Corroon said.

Coley moved to Vashon in 2007. “I’m still amazed, after all these years … how isolated so many people are on this island. It is a lot of our older population,” she said.

The island’s rural nature is a contributor. Houses hide down long winding roads in the woods and specialty care is extremely limited without taking a ferry into the city. Coley says it can be a challenge to sign up for county resources from the island, too.

Imagine, for example, that you are an island resident who wants to sign up for King County’s Access Transportation — a van service for those whose disability prevents them from taking the bus.

First, you must go to Harborview Medical Center for a medical assessment to register, which already presents a Catch-22, Coley says: Many need transportation assistance to get to the hospital in the first place.

Second, you must have access to a bus line to sign up. In Seattle, the bus is often a block away, but some islanders may need to walk miles to get to one of the island’s two bus lines.

“We may be King County, but we are just floating out here on our own so much of the time,” Coley said. “Even if these resources are technically available to our residents, the … hoops you have to jump through in order to get them are more difficult by our geographical location.”

Even self-screening for eligibility is difficult. The Access program only serves those who are disabled. Someone in her eighties, for example, wouldn’t necessarily be able to walk the mile it takes to get to public transit, but she also wouldn’t necessarily label herself as disabled. Coley says the language of the program can make people write off their own eligibility.

For seniors, the isolation can be cultural too, Coley says.

“It’s a generation that didn’t necessarily feel like they needed to ask for help, or they’re trying to be self-sufficient, or some things have changed in their life and they aren’t really recognizing themselves, and maybe they do need extra help,” Coley said.

MIH’s home-based model is especially well-suited to reach these isolated residents. Referrals often come from within the MIH team — nurses and paramedics — as well as neighbors, and family members living on- and off-island. MIH personnel live on Vashon and know the community.

Coley recently responded to a call from out-of-state, placed by a family member of an older island resident whom she was concerned about. Other reports come from neighbors concerned about someone down the street who may need help. Many of those she visits are relieved and grateful to know help is available.

“I think it’s … enlivening a community that maybe felt like they were forgotten or on their own, and closing that gap to make sure that they know that we’re here,” Corroon said.

Those in need of social services can call the Senior Center at 206-463-5173 to schedule an appointment with Robin Stover. MIH offers appointments on their website at mih@vifr.org or by phone at 206-463-2405.

Mari Kanagy is a contributing journalist to The Beachcomber.