How many years of healthy active life people live after the age of 50 varies greatly across Europe, a study has shown.
People grew old most comfortably in Denmark, where men could look forward to 23.64 "healthy life years" and women 24.12. In sharp contrast, men in Estonia could expect no more than 9.05 trouble-free years after their 50th birthday.
Women in eastern European country had just 10.42 years of healthy life ahead of them after turning 50.
Generally, people in "established" western EU countries were far more likely to enjoy good health in their later years than those in the newer eastern states, the study found.
Experts believe "healthy life years" (HLYs) provide a better way to make health comparisons between regions than life expectancy. The new research involved studying 2005 disability statistics from 25 European countries.
A "healthy life year" is defined as one in which a person's activity is not limited by ill-health.
The research showed that in 2005 an average 50-year-old man in the EU could expect to live a healthy active life until the age of 67.3. Women were likely to enjoy good health until 68.1.
HLY variation across the EU was much greater than that for life expectancy, the research found. Life expectancy at the age of 50 differed by up to 9.1 years for men and 6.1 for women. But "healthy life years" varied by as much as 14.5 years for men and 13.7 for women.
The UK was ranked seventh in the HLY league table, with a healthy life expectancy for 50-year-olds of 19.74 years for men and 20.78 for women. The research was reported in an early online edition of The Lancet medical journal.
Professor Carol Jagger, from the University of Leicester, and colleagues wrote: "We noted a large variation in the remaining years spent free of activity limitations in men and women at 50 years of age between the 25 EU countries in 2005, amounting to a difference of around 14 years of healthy life."
Source: http://www.google.com/hostednews/ukpress/article/ALeqM5gu7Q3JqkfbiVQYf8MX1EuI042Nmg
Thursday, November 20, 2008
Tuesday, November 18, 2008
Circle of Support for an Elderly Neighbor
A few years ago, I met an older gentleman while I was out walking dogs. His dog was always out in his front yard so we got to know one another as I would pass by. At the time, his wife was undergoing dialysis at the end of a lifetime of diabletes and I offered to care for his dog on the days he had to take his wife to the doctor. That became a regular thing and eventually, when his wife passed away, we had become friends.
This man had no children or close relatives and did not know his neighbors well. Consequently, the loss of his wife hit him even harder than this kind of tragedy ordinarily would have. Since my work hours were (and are) very very long, I could only spend a little time with him, so I started talking to his neighbors when I would see them out in their yards, letting them know that his wife had just died and that he was having a hard time. Within a short time, the neighbors began stopping by his house.
It is now almost 10 years later, and far from being lonely, this man's home is now sort of a social center of the neighborhood! A group of 6 women, of which I am one, banded together to be his "support group". Together, we have kept him going through depression, a hip replacement and several surgeries. Someone in our group calls him daily, another walks his dog when he cannot, one drives him whereever he needs to go, someone else brings him food occasionally and together we all make a huge deal out of his birthday and Christmas each year.
This group, and his other neighborhood friends, have helped keep our friend involved in life. He sends text messages to his friends on his cell phone and has just this week gotten his first computer! Our arrangement evolved easily and naturally and makes us all very happy. I wish all older people could have something like this!
by falsemonkeypuzzl
Source: http://www.helpothers.org/story.php?sid=10239
This man had no children or close relatives and did not know his neighbors well. Consequently, the loss of his wife hit him even harder than this kind of tragedy ordinarily would have. Since my work hours were (and are) very very long, I could only spend a little time with him, so I started talking to his neighbors when I would see them out in their yards, letting them know that his wife had just died and that he was having a hard time. Within a short time, the neighbors began stopping by his house.
It is now almost 10 years later, and far from being lonely, this man's home is now sort of a social center of the neighborhood! A group of 6 women, of which I am one, banded together to be his "support group". Together, we have kept him going through depression, a hip replacement and several surgeries. Someone in our group calls him daily, another walks his dog when he cannot, one drives him whereever he needs to go, someone else brings him food occasionally and together we all make a huge deal out of his birthday and Christmas each year.
This group, and his other neighborhood friends, have helped keep our friend involved in life. He sends text messages to his friends on his cell phone and has just this week gotten his first computer! Our arrangement evolved easily and naturally and makes us all very happy. I wish all older people could have something like this!
by falsemonkeypuzzl
Source: http://www.helpothers.org/story.php?sid=10239
Thursday, November 13, 2008
Guide for Aging Computer Users
Discover How to Make the Computer Easier to See, Hear, and Use
Having trouble seeing things on your computer screen? By the time we reach our fifties, two-thirds of us have vision, hearing, or dexterity impairments that will impact our use of the computer. There are easy ways to adjust your computer without downloading or purchasing anything. This guide shows you the features in Microsoft Windows that make it easier to see, hear, and use your computer.
Make the Computer Easier to See
* If you have trouble seeing the screen, explore ways to increase text and icons, change colors, and add contrast to what you see on your computer screen.
* Try the built-in bifocals, called Magnifier, in Windows. Magnifier opens a floating window that magnifies a portion of the screen—just like a magnifying glass or pair of bifocals.
Make the Computer Easier to Hear
* If you have difficulty hearing videos or other computer sounds, try cranking up the volume. Also, using headphones can help block out background noise.
* Having trouble hearing email alerts? Try using text or visual alternatives for sounds and consider adjusting computer system sounds to tones that are easier for you to hear.
Make the Keyboard Easier to Use
* If you experience typing errors due to a mild tremor or stiff fingers, try Filter Keys to ignore brief or repeated keystrokes.
* If you find it difficult to press multiple keys at once, try Sticky Keys.
Windows Speech Recognition
* If still joints or dexterity issues are slowing you down, try using Windows Speech Recognition in Windows Vista. You can talk to your computer and use voice commands to dictate text, send email, and more. You'll be surprised how easy it is to get started once you plug a microphone into your PC.
Make the Internet Easier to Use
* If you have trouble seeing things on the Web, many options are available in Internet Explorer 7 to make the Internet easier to see and explore. Try zooming in on a Web page to magnify text, images, and controls. Also, try changing text, color, font, and other options to make Web pages easier to see and read.
Make the Mouse Easier to Use
* If you find yourself searching for your mouse cursor more often than you search the Web, adjust the mouse cursor size, appearance, and pointer options.
* If you find yourself wrestling to control the mouse, you can change the way the mouse scrolls and how the buttons work, including the double-click speed.
* Is dragging a drag? Try using ClickLock if you don't want to hold the mouse button down while you drag items with the mouse.
Courtesy: http://www.microsoft.com/enable/aging/default.aspx
Having trouble seeing things on your computer screen? By the time we reach our fifties, two-thirds of us have vision, hearing, or dexterity impairments that will impact our use of the computer. There are easy ways to adjust your computer without downloading or purchasing anything. This guide shows you the features in Microsoft Windows that make it easier to see, hear, and use your computer.
Make the Computer Easier to See
* If you have trouble seeing the screen, explore ways to increase text and icons, change colors, and add contrast to what you see on your computer screen.
* Try the built-in bifocals, called Magnifier, in Windows. Magnifier opens a floating window that magnifies a portion of the screen—just like a magnifying glass or pair of bifocals.
Make the Computer Easier to Hear
* If you have difficulty hearing videos or other computer sounds, try cranking up the volume. Also, using headphones can help block out background noise.
* Having trouble hearing email alerts? Try using text or visual alternatives for sounds and consider adjusting computer system sounds to tones that are easier for you to hear.
Make the Keyboard Easier to Use
* If you experience typing errors due to a mild tremor or stiff fingers, try Filter Keys to ignore brief or repeated keystrokes.
* If you find it difficult to press multiple keys at once, try Sticky Keys.
Windows Speech Recognition
* If still joints or dexterity issues are slowing you down, try using Windows Speech Recognition in Windows Vista. You can talk to your computer and use voice commands to dictate text, send email, and more. You'll be surprised how easy it is to get started once you plug a microphone into your PC.
Make the Internet Easier to Use
* If you have trouble seeing things on the Web, many options are available in Internet Explorer 7 to make the Internet easier to see and explore. Try zooming in on a Web page to magnify text, images, and controls. Also, try changing text, color, font, and other options to make Web pages easier to see and read.
Make the Mouse Easier to Use
* If you find yourself searching for your mouse cursor more often than you search the Web, adjust the mouse cursor size, appearance, and pointer options.
* If you find yourself wrestling to control the mouse, you can change the way the mouse scrolls and how the buttons work, including the double-click speed.
* Is dragging a drag? Try using ClickLock if you don't want to hold the mouse button down while you drag items with the mouse.
Courtesy: http://www.microsoft.com/enable/aging/default.aspx
History of Gerontology
It may be said that the history of gerontology begins with agriculture; prior to this the hunter-gatherer societies that existed could only support a marginal existence: food supply was short; frequent movement a necessity. These and other reasons meant that extremely few reached 'old age'. However, it could be argued that in a society with a life expectancy of 14 (such as 10,000 BC), being '40' was 'old'.
Things changed with the coming of agriculture. A more stable food supply and the lack of frequent movement meant that humans could now survive longer, and beginning perhaps around 4000 BC, a regular segment of the population began to attain 'old age' in places such as Mesopotamia and the Indus river valleys. Agriculture didn't simply bring a steady food supply; it also suddenly made older persons an economic benefit instead of a burden. Older persons could stay and watch the farm (or children); make pottery or jewelry, and perform social functions, such as story-telling (oral tradition, religion, etc). and teaching the younger generation techniques for farming, tool-making, etc.
After this change, the views of elder persons in societies waxed and waned, but generally the proportion of the population over 50 or 60 remained small. Note that in ancient Egypt, Pharaoh Pepi II was said to have lived to 100 years old. Certainly Ramses II lived to about 90; modern scientific testing of his mummy supports the written record. Ancient Greeks valued old persons for their wisdom (some reaching 80, 90, or 100 years old), while old age was devalued in Roman times.
In the medieval Islamic world, elderly people were valued by Muslim physicians. Avicenna's The Canon of Medicine (1025) was the first book to offer instruction for the care of the aged, foreshadowing modern gerontology and geriatrics. In a chapter entitled "Regimen of Old Age", Avicenna was concerned with how "old folk need plenty of sleep", how their bodies should be anointed with oil, and recommended exercises such as walking or horse-riding. Thesis III of the Canon discussed the diet suitable for old people, and dedicated several sections to elderly patients who become constipated.
The Canon of Medicine recognized four periods of life: the period of growth, prime of life, period of elderly decline (from forty to sixty), and decrepit age. He states that during the last period, "there is hardness of their bones, roughness of the skin, and the long time since they produced semen, blood and vaporal breath". However, he agreed with Galen that the earth element is more prominent in the aged and decrepit than in other periods. Avicenna did not agree with the concept of infirmity, however, stating: "There is no need to assert that there are three states of the human body—sickness, health and a state which is neither health nor disease. The first two cover everything."
The famous Arabic physician, Ibn Al-Jazzar Al-Qayrawani (Algizar, circa 898-980), also wrote a special book on the medicine and health of the elderly, entitled Kitab Tibb al-Machayikh or Teb al-Mashaikh wa hefz sehatahom. He also wrote a book on sleep disorders and another one on forgetfulness and how to strengthen memory, entitled Kitab al-Nissian wa Toroq Taqwiati Adhakira, and a treatise on causes of mortality entitled Rissala Fi Asbab al-Wafah. Another Arabic physician in the 9th century, Ishaq ibn Hunayn (died 910), the son of Hunayn Ibn Ishaq, wrote a Treatise on Drugs for Forgetfulness (Risalah al-Shafiyah fi adwiyat al-nisyan).
In medieval Europe on the other hand, during its Dark Ages, negative opinions of the elderly prevailed; old women were often burned at the stake as witches. However, with the coming of the Renaissance old age returned to favor in Europe, as persons such as Michelangelo and Andrea Doria exemplified the ideals of living long, active, productive lives.
While the number of aged humans, and the maximum ages lived to, tended to increase in every century since the 1300s, society tended to consider caring for an elderly relative as a family issue. It was not until the coming of the Industrial Revolution with its techniques of mass production that ideas shifted in favor of a societal care-system. Care homes for the aged emerged in the 1800s. Note that some early pioneers, such as Michel Eugène Chevreul, who himself lived to be 102 in the 1880s, believed that aging itself should be a science to be studied. The word itself was coined circa 1903.
It was not until the 1940s, however, that pioneers like James Birren began organizing 'gerontology' into its own field. Recognizing that there were experts in many fields all dealing with the elderly, it became apparent that a group like the Gerontological Society of America was needed (founded in 1945). Two decades later, James Birren was appointed as the founding director of the first academic research center devoted exclusively to the study of aging, the Ethel Percy Andrus Gerontology Center at the University of Southern California. In 1975, the USC Leonard Davis School of Gerontology became the first academic gerontology department, with Birren as its founding dean.
In the 1950s to the 1970s, the field was mainly social and concerned with issues such as nursing homes and health care. However, research by Leonard Hayflick in the 1960s (showing that a cell line culture will only divide about 50 times) helped lead to a separate branch, biogerontology. It became apparent that simply 'treating' aging wasn't enough. Finding out about the aging process, and what could be done about it, became an issue.
The biogerontological field was also bolstered when research by Cynthia Kenyon and others demonstrated that life extension was possible in lower life forms such as fruit flies, worms, and yeast. So far, however, nothing more than incremental (marginal) increases in life span have been seen in any mammalian species.
Today, social gerontology remains the largest sector of the field, but the biogerontological side is seen as being the 'hot' side. Indeed, some have said that social gerontologists look to the past; biogerontologists look to the future.
Source: http://www.reference.com/browse/all/gerontology
Things changed with the coming of agriculture. A more stable food supply and the lack of frequent movement meant that humans could now survive longer, and beginning perhaps around 4000 BC, a regular segment of the population began to attain 'old age' in places such as Mesopotamia and the Indus river valleys. Agriculture didn't simply bring a steady food supply; it also suddenly made older persons an economic benefit instead of a burden. Older persons could stay and watch the farm (or children); make pottery or jewelry, and perform social functions, such as story-telling (oral tradition, religion, etc). and teaching the younger generation techniques for farming, tool-making, etc.
After this change, the views of elder persons in societies waxed and waned, but generally the proportion of the population over 50 or 60 remained small. Note that in ancient Egypt, Pharaoh Pepi II was said to have lived to 100 years old. Certainly Ramses II lived to about 90; modern scientific testing of his mummy supports the written record. Ancient Greeks valued old persons for their wisdom (some reaching 80, 90, or 100 years old), while old age was devalued in Roman times.
In the medieval Islamic world, elderly people were valued by Muslim physicians. Avicenna's The Canon of Medicine (1025) was the first book to offer instruction for the care of the aged, foreshadowing modern gerontology and geriatrics. In a chapter entitled "Regimen of Old Age", Avicenna was concerned with how "old folk need plenty of sleep", how their bodies should be anointed with oil, and recommended exercises such as walking or horse-riding. Thesis III of the Canon discussed the diet suitable for old people, and dedicated several sections to elderly patients who become constipated.
The Canon of Medicine recognized four periods of life: the period of growth, prime of life, period of elderly decline (from forty to sixty), and decrepit age. He states that during the last period, "there is hardness of their bones, roughness of the skin, and the long time since they produced semen, blood and vaporal breath". However, he agreed with Galen that the earth element is more prominent in the aged and decrepit than in other periods. Avicenna did not agree with the concept of infirmity, however, stating: "There is no need to assert that there are three states of the human body—sickness, health and a state which is neither health nor disease. The first two cover everything."
The famous Arabic physician, Ibn Al-Jazzar Al-Qayrawani (Algizar, circa 898-980), also wrote a special book on the medicine and health of the elderly, entitled Kitab Tibb al-Machayikh or Teb al-Mashaikh wa hefz sehatahom. He also wrote a book on sleep disorders and another one on forgetfulness and how to strengthen memory, entitled Kitab al-Nissian wa Toroq Taqwiati Adhakira, and a treatise on causes of mortality entitled Rissala Fi Asbab al-Wafah. Another Arabic physician in the 9th century, Ishaq ibn Hunayn (died 910), the son of Hunayn Ibn Ishaq, wrote a Treatise on Drugs for Forgetfulness (Risalah al-Shafiyah fi adwiyat al-nisyan).
In medieval Europe on the other hand, during its Dark Ages, negative opinions of the elderly prevailed; old women were often burned at the stake as witches. However, with the coming of the Renaissance old age returned to favor in Europe, as persons such as Michelangelo and Andrea Doria exemplified the ideals of living long, active, productive lives.
While the number of aged humans, and the maximum ages lived to, tended to increase in every century since the 1300s, society tended to consider caring for an elderly relative as a family issue. It was not until the coming of the Industrial Revolution with its techniques of mass production that ideas shifted in favor of a societal care-system. Care homes for the aged emerged in the 1800s. Note that some early pioneers, such as Michel Eugène Chevreul, who himself lived to be 102 in the 1880s, believed that aging itself should be a science to be studied. The word itself was coined circa 1903.
It was not until the 1940s, however, that pioneers like James Birren began organizing 'gerontology' into its own field. Recognizing that there were experts in many fields all dealing with the elderly, it became apparent that a group like the Gerontological Society of America was needed (founded in 1945). Two decades later, James Birren was appointed as the founding director of the first academic research center devoted exclusively to the study of aging, the Ethel Percy Andrus Gerontology Center at the University of Southern California. In 1975, the USC Leonard Davis School of Gerontology became the first academic gerontology department, with Birren as its founding dean.
In the 1950s to the 1970s, the field was mainly social and concerned with issues such as nursing homes and health care. However, research by Leonard Hayflick in the 1960s (showing that a cell line culture will only divide about 50 times) helped lead to a separate branch, biogerontology. It became apparent that simply 'treating' aging wasn't enough. Finding out about the aging process, and what could be done about it, became an issue.
The biogerontological field was also bolstered when research by Cynthia Kenyon and others demonstrated that life extension was possible in lower life forms such as fruit flies, worms, and yeast. So far, however, nothing more than incremental (marginal) increases in life span have been seen in any mammalian species.
Today, social gerontology remains the largest sector of the field, but the biogerontological side is seen as being the 'hot' side. Indeed, some have said that social gerontologists look to the past; biogerontologists look to the future.
Source: http://www.reference.com/browse/all/gerontology
Wednesday, November 12, 2008
International Conference on Aging and Spirituality 2009
Sunday 30 August to Wednesday 2 September 2009 at the University of Auckland Business School, Grafton Road, Auckland City, Auckland New Zealand.
Hosted by Selwyn Centre for Aging and Spirituality (SCAS)
Journey to Auckland for a Voyage into Faith-based Aging and Care
Evidence-based models of medical care have paved the way for people to live much longer, healthier, physical lives. But has the quality of spiritual guidance and care offered to older people kept pace? Are older people’s spiritual needs being adequately met in healthcare and social systems around the world?
The 2009 International Conference on Aging and Spirituality will bring together researchers, aged care practitioners, and anyone with an interest in helping older people find deepest meaning and fulfillment in life.
The issues of aging and spirituality will be discussed against the backdrop of gender, culture and new models of care. This conference will consider the positive possibilities of aging well, and flourishing, despite difficulties.
Conference Themes:
- Advocacy, Policy formation and influencing political thinking
- ‘Baby Boomers’: spiritual models of care and lifestyle for the free thinking, wealthier, independent generation.
- Indigenous issues and cultural experiences: real life case studies on aging and spirituality in non-Western societies.
- Holistic ‘whole person’ care in an age where science is king
- End of life issues: touchstones and challenges
- Pastoral care and ministry in aging communities
- Funding and spiritual models of care: is the recognition there?
Call for Papers
The Organising Committee of the 2009 International Conference on Aging and Spirituality is pleased to invite submission of papers for presentation at the conference on any of the themes listed above. Initial expressions of interest should be as paper abstracts, a maximum of 400 words, and as MS-Word attachments to an email sent to conference@selwyncare.org.nz. Please include author and organisation information as well as an indication of the theme area the paper fits within.
Key dates (subject to minor changes)
June 08 - initial call for abstracts
December 08 - abstract submission close off
February 09 - paper reviews completed
June 09 - speakers and conference programme confirmed and published
30 August 09 to 2 September 09 - Conference
Recommended for:
- Health professionals working with older people of diverse cultures and faiths in indigenous cultural environments
- Clergy, chaplains, theologians, spiritual or faith leaders
- Pastoral care givers
- Diversional therapists
- Aged care leaders, administrators and directors of listed and non-listed aged care organisations
- Researchers in aging, spirituality, and new models of aged care
- Aged care policy makers and funders
- Political leaders
- Media with interests in aged care, social or health policy or matters of faith
- Older people with interests in this area
Register here: http://www.selwyncare.org.nz/?t=139
Hosted by Selwyn Centre for Aging and Spirituality (SCAS)
Journey to Auckland for a Voyage into Faith-based Aging and Care
Evidence-based models of medical care have paved the way for people to live much longer, healthier, physical lives. But has the quality of spiritual guidance and care offered to older people kept pace? Are older people’s spiritual needs being adequately met in healthcare and social systems around the world?
The 2009 International Conference on Aging and Spirituality will bring together researchers, aged care practitioners, and anyone with an interest in helping older people find deepest meaning and fulfillment in life.
The issues of aging and spirituality will be discussed against the backdrop of gender, culture and new models of care. This conference will consider the positive possibilities of aging well, and flourishing, despite difficulties.
Conference Themes:
- Advocacy, Policy formation and influencing political thinking
- ‘Baby Boomers’: spiritual models of care and lifestyle for the free thinking, wealthier, independent generation.
- Indigenous issues and cultural experiences: real life case studies on aging and spirituality in non-Western societies.
- Holistic ‘whole person’ care in an age where science is king
- End of life issues: touchstones and challenges
- Pastoral care and ministry in aging communities
- Funding and spiritual models of care: is the recognition there?
Call for Papers
The Organising Committee of the 2009 International Conference on Aging and Spirituality is pleased to invite submission of papers for presentation at the conference on any of the themes listed above. Initial expressions of interest should be as paper abstracts, a maximum of 400 words, and as MS-Word attachments to an email sent to conference@selwyncare.org.nz. Please include author and organisation information as well as an indication of the theme area the paper fits within.
Key dates (subject to minor changes)
June 08 - initial call for abstracts
December 08 - abstract submission close off
February 09 - paper reviews completed
June 09 - speakers and conference programme confirmed and published
30 August 09 to 2 September 09 - Conference
Recommended for:
- Health professionals working with older people of diverse cultures and faiths in indigenous cultural environments
- Clergy, chaplains, theologians, spiritual or faith leaders
- Pastoral care givers
- Diversional therapists
- Aged care leaders, administrators and directors of listed and non-listed aged care organisations
- Researchers in aging, spirituality, and new models of aged care
- Aged care policy makers and funders
- Political leaders
- Media with interests in aged care, social or health policy or matters of faith
- Older people with interests in this area
Register here: http://www.selwyncare.org.nz/?t=139
This May Be the Most Useful Alzheimer's Advice
Here's the first step to solving countless behavior problems presented by someone with Alzheimer's: Ask, "Why is this happening?"
I'm not referring to the rhetorical question, "Oh why is this happening to me?" although it's sure understandable if that one crosses your mind. But when you're faced with upset, a refusal to cooperate, or even a catastrophic reaction, don't write it off to the craziness of the disease. You can usually solve the matter by stepping back to consider, "Why is this behavior happening? What might be triggering it?"
I first grasped this concept from Joanne Koenig Coste, whose insightful 2003 classic, Learning to Speak Alzheimer's, describes her theory of "habilitation care." Her basic idea: You can't rehabilitate someone with Alzheimer's, but you can habilitate them -- step into their world and adjust things accordingly in order to help them be as capable as possible. (Coste's husband developed early Alzheimer's at 44, when she was pregnant with their fourth child, and she cared for him until his death four years later.)
Then this week came this insightful account of Cameron J. Camp, an experimental psychologist in Ohio who's spent 20 years adapting the learning principles of Montessori preschools to people with Alzheimer's. Because the mind's first-developed abilities are the last to go, cognitive similarities exist between adults with dementia and preschoolers. (Both respond well to sensory input, for example.) This insight illuminates the path to many solutions.
As Camp says, "We don't say they're crazy, we say this is where they are in the developmental sequence...you only come up with the fix if you say, 'Why is this happening?'"
Some examples of this idea in action:
* A man stops using the toilet and has an increase in accidents.
Why is this happening? Depth perception fades for someone with Alzheimer's. A white commode fades into a beige wall and is easily overlooked -- therefore not used.
Solution: Instead of concluding incontinence, paint the wall behind the commode a bright red to make it stand out. (from Coste)
* A person becomes upset, claiming that she's being watched, especially in the bathroom.
Why is this happening? The person has lost the ability to understand that the mirror is showing a reflection of herself, not of another person.
Solution: Instead of trying to soothe the distraught individual over and over, cover the mirror or install a shade over it. (from Cameron)
* A woman continually asks why her daughter never visits -- beginning five minutes after her daughter just left.
Why is this happening? She's lost her working (short term) memory and truly doesn't remember.
Solution: Instead of trying to explain the truth, the daughter can keep a logbook of her visits, writing loving notes about each and when she'll visit next. When the mother feels abandoned, her caregiver can direct her to the sit in a comfortable chair with the logbook. This not only calms her in the short term, but eventually builds a positive association with that comfortable chair -- a kind of learning Cameron says people with dementia are still capable of because it builds on remaining cognitive strengths.
Alzheimer's may be maddening, but it can be made less mysterious.
By Paula Spencer
Source : http://www.caring.com/blogs/caring-currents/this-may-be-the-most-useful-alzheimers-advice
I'm not referring to the rhetorical question, "Oh why is this happening to me?" although it's sure understandable if that one crosses your mind. But when you're faced with upset, a refusal to cooperate, or even a catastrophic reaction, don't write it off to the craziness of the disease. You can usually solve the matter by stepping back to consider, "Why is this behavior happening? What might be triggering it?"
I first grasped this concept from Joanne Koenig Coste, whose insightful 2003 classic, Learning to Speak Alzheimer's, describes her theory of "habilitation care." Her basic idea: You can't rehabilitate someone with Alzheimer's, but you can habilitate them -- step into their world and adjust things accordingly in order to help them be as capable as possible. (Coste's husband developed early Alzheimer's at 44, when she was pregnant with their fourth child, and she cared for him until his death four years later.)
Then this week came this insightful account of Cameron J. Camp, an experimental psychologist in Ohio who's spent 20 years adapting the learning principles of Montessori preschools to people with Alzheimer's. Because the mind's first-developed abilities are the last to go, cognitive similarities exist between adults with dementia and preschoolers. (Both respond well to sensory input, for example.) This insight illuminates the path to many solutions.
As Camp says, "We don't say they're crazy, we say this is where they are in the developmental sequence...you only come up with the fix if you say, 'Why is this happening?'"
Some examples of this idea in action:
* A man stops using the toilet and has an increase in accidents.
Why is this happening? Depth perception fades for someone with Alzheimer's. A white commode fades into a beige wall and is easily overlooked -- therefore not used.
Solution: Instead of concluding incontinence, paint the wall behind the commode a bright red to make it stand out. (from Coste)
* A person becomes upset, claiming that she's being watched, especially in the bathroom.
Why is this happening? The person has lost the ability to understand that the mirror is showing a reflection of herself, not of another person.
Solution: Instead of trying to soothe the distraught individual over and over, cover the mirror or install a shade over it. (from Cameron)
* A woman continually asks why her daughter never visits -- beginning five minutes after her daughter just left.
Why is this happening? She's lost her working (short term) memory and truly doesn't remember.
Solution: Instead of trying to explain the truth, the daughter can keep a logbook of her visits, writing loving notes about each and when she'll visit next. When the mother feels abandoned, her caregiver can direct her to the sit in a comfortable chair with the logbook. This not only calms her in the short term, but eventually builds a positive association with that comfortable chair -- a kind of learning Cameron says people with dementia are still capable of because it builds on remaining cognitive strengths.
Alzheimer's may be maddening, but it can be made less mysterious.
By Paula Spencer
Source : http://www.caring.com/blogs/caring-currents/this-may-be-the-most-useful-alzheimers-advice
Saturday, November 8, 2008
NGO's working for Elderly in Delhi
Helpage
C-14 Qutab Institutional Area
Ph: 011 41688955-56
E-mail: headoffice@helpageindia.org
Website : http://www.helpageindia.org/
Agewell Foundation
M-8A, Lajpat Nagar-II, New Delhi-110024,
Ph.:091-11-29836486, 29840484
Fax: 011-29830458
E-mail: agewell@bol.net.in
Website: www.agewellindia.org
ARDSI (Alzheimer's socierty of
163 Kailash Hills
(Ground Floor Back Portion)
Tel: 91 11 26922940, 91 11 64533663
Email: ardsi_dc@hotmail.com ; bogra30@aol.com
Website: http://alzheimersdelhi.org/index.htm
International Network for Prevention of Elder Abuse (INPEA) Representative for India & South Asia
POSTAL ADDRESS: D 104 Anand Niketan,
Email : malakapurshankardass@hotmail.com
Anugraha
B-33, Arya Nagar Apts.,91, I. P. Extension, Patparganj,
Ph. 011-22726632
E-mail: anugrahaindia@yahoo.com
Website: http://www.anugrahaindia.net/
Source: www.silverinnings.com
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