It was developed in 1997 by Patricia Jakobi, Associate Director of the University of Texas Center on Aging, and George Jakobi, who has a background in economic development. In Galveston, a suburb for Houston, TNP's targeted housing stock presents challenges to individuals with disabilities. About one third of the homes are Victorian and most are elevated in case of hurricanes or storms. The staff and board members of TNP spent over a year using different approaches to develop awareness of their services and a referral network. A part-time team consisting of an occupational therapist, an estimator, physical therapists, registered nurses, and a master gardener work on a contractual basis on evenings and weekends.
Volunteers also perform services.
To promote their services, TNP actively participates in a Monthly Providers Breakfast that attracts local health and aging professionals. It also serves as a resource for local reporters, participates in radio programs directed toward seniors, established an 800-telephone number, and placed advertisements in the yellow pages. To expand their client base, TNP plans to provide more consumer education that addresses the four points above, and establish themselves with HMOs as a service provider that offers an alternative to institutional long term care. For housing professionals, Mr. Tenenbaum stresses the importance of understanding both how the housing environment impacts the person and how the person impacts the housing environment. Knowledge of remodeling and construction is not sufficient to deliver effective HMs.