Moira Fordyce’s recommends the resources on the American Geriatric’s Society website

I was speaking with Moira Fordyce from the California Coalition for Caregivers and she told me about the wonderful resources available at the American Geriatrics Society website. http://www.healthinaging.org/public_education/index.php The great thing about this website is that you know you can trust this information because it is coming from physicians who specialize in helping the aging patient and their loved ones.

You may also want to take a look at the California Coalition for Caregivers as they are an advocacy organization and are fighting to make sure that resources and protections are in place for our aging population. http://www.californiacrc.org If you live in California, they will send you alerts when it is time to contact your local representatives about an upcoming bill or iss

Lastly, you might want to download some of the legal handbooks for senior care from Bet Tzedek Legal Services at  http://www.bettzedek.org/publications.html#guides.

Below I have listed the topics from the American Geriatrics Society’s site. They have Tip Sheets, What to Ask Your Doctor, and General Aging Topics. It is like having a trusted friend to turn to for help. Have a kind and respectful day and enjoy the resources.

Latest Foundation Tip Sheets

Caregivers

Guide to Advance Directives

Tips For Avoiding Caregiver Burnout

Healthy Aging

Advice for Improving Your Memory

Cognitive Vitality

“Geriatric Syndromes”

Good Health in Later Life for Older Men

Good Health in Later Life for Older Women

Improving Communication with Your Healthcare Provider

Overcoming Challenges to Healthy Aging

Persistent Pain Tips

Holidays

Tips for Beating the Holiday Blues New!

Top 10 Healthy New Year’s Resolutions for Older Adults New!

Safety

2009 H1N1 Flu (”Swine Flu”) Tips

Emergency Preparedness Tips

Falls Prevention Tips

Home Safety Tips

Hot Weather Safety Tips

Safe Travel Tips

Safe Sex Tips

Safety Tips for Seniors Considering Visits to Retail Medical Clinics

Walking Tips

Winter Safety Tips

Spanish

Spanish Language Health Tip Sheet: “Manejo del “Dolor Persistente” en la Tercera Edad”/“Managing Persistent Pain In The Elderly”

Surgery

Hip and Knee Joint Replacement Tips

Vaccinations and Medications

Avoiding Overmedication and Harmful Drug Reactions

Vaccination Tips

What to Ask?

Questions for Your Healthcare Provider

How We Age
• Physical Activity
• Prevention
Health Care Decisions and Issues
• Health Assessment
• Health Care Settings
o Community-Based Care
o Hospitalization
o Nursing Home Care
• Complementary and Alternative Medicines
• Drug Treatment
• Elder Mistreatment
• Ethical and Legal Issues
• Pain Management
• Palliative Care and Hospice
• Rehabilitation
Elder Health at Your Fingertips
• Cancer
• Diabetes
• The Digestive System
o Disorders of the Digestive System
o Disorders of the Mouth
• The Heart, Lungs, and Blood and Circulation
o Anemia and Other Blood Disorders
o Breathing Problems
o Fainting (Syncope)
o Disorders of the Heart and Circulatory System
o High Blood Pressure
• Hormone Disorders
• Joints, Muscles, and Bones
o Back Pain
o Falls
o Foot Problems
o Osteoporosis
o Walking Problems
• Mental, Neurological, and Psychological Conditions
o Anxiety
o Delirium (Sudden Confusion)
o Dementia
o Depression
o Diseases of the Nervous System
o Dizziness
o Mental Retardation
o Personality Disorders
o Psychological and Social Issues
o Psychoses (Delusions and Hallucinations)
o Sleep Problems
o Substance Abuse
• Nutrition
• Sexuality and Sexual Concerns
o Gynecological (Female) Disorders
o Prostate Disease
o Sexual Problems
• The Senses
o Hearing Loss
o Vision Loss and Other Eye Diseases
• The Skin
o Pressure Ulcers (Bed Sores)
o Skin Diseases
• The Urinary System
o Kidney Problems
o Urinary Incontinence

Topics at a Glance

How We Age
• The Aging Process
• Trends in the Elderly Population
• Physical Activity
• Prevention
Health Care Decisions and Issues
• Talking to Your Healthcare Providers
• Health Assessment
• Health Care Settings
o Community-Based Care
o Hospitalization
o Nursing Home Care
• Complementary and Alternative Medicines
• Drug Treatment
• Elder Mistreatment
• Ethical and Legal Issues
• Insurance, Financing, and Costs of Health Care
• Pain Management
• Palliative Care and Hospice
• Rehabilitation
Elder Health at Your Fingertips
• Cancer
• Diabetes
• The Digestive System
o Disorders of the Digestive System
o Disorders of the Mouth
• The Heart, Lungs, and Blood and Circulation
o Anemia and Other Blood Disorders
o Breathing Problems
o Fainting (Syncope)
o Disorders of the Heart and Circulatory System
o High Blood Pressure
• Hormone Disorders
• Infectious Diseases
• Joints, Muscles, and Bones
o Back Pain
o Falls
o Foot Problems
o Osteoporosis
o Problems with Joints, Muscles and Bones
o Walking Problems
• Mental, Neurological, and Psychological Conditions
o Anxiety
o Delirium (Sudden Confusion)
o Dementia
o Depression
o Diseases of the Nervous System
o Dizziness
o Mental Retardation
o Personality Disorders
o Psychological and Social Issues
o Psychoses (Delusions and Hallucinations)
o Sleep Problems
o Substance Abuse
• Nutrition
• Sexuality and Sexual Concerns
o Gynecological (Female) Disorders
o Prostate Disease
o Sexual Problems
• The Senses
o Hearing Loss
o Vision Loss and Other Eye Diseases
• The Skin
o Pressure Ulcers (Bed Sores)
o Skin Diseases
• The Urinary System
o Kidney Problems
o Urinary Incontinence

Having patience with your senior patients

I understand that it isn’t easy to have patience with a patient that is aging or has a physical or mental limitation. I know that I have tried to hurry patients along with little success. But it is important to understand that our senior patients aren’t doing this to annoy us. They are just at a different stage of life. As a people age, the need to be in a rush and to get a lot done changes. Older seniors have more important things to focus on, the work of aging. There are two main tasks that need to be accomplished: Keeping control over as much of their life as possible and legacy work. The need to keep a sense of control and power over one’s life is necessary as the seniors begin to experience significant losses. Seniors are losing their health, their abilities and those around them begin to die. As people come to terms with what they are losing, the need to hold on to what power they can becomes even more important.

This is why when you come in and tell the senior that they should do what you are telling them, you are not being seen as a trusted healer but as someone who is trying to boss them around. Yes you are in a hurry and yes the senior patient takes longer, but that is not the senior’s fault. The need to rush and get things scheduled is our agenda, not theirs. It is important to remember that the senior is not in a rush. He or she is trying to enjoy and appreciate the time remaining. If you can, allow the senior patient the time to think about the options. Ask your senior patients to tell you what is important to them and what they think of the options you have presented. Perhaps it would be best if you let them go home to consider what is best for their lives, then have them come back in or call you with their answers. Just because you think this is the right treatment plan for them, doesn’t mean that they agree.

One other thing to be aware of is that the senior is also doing legacy work. This is when the aging are trying to make sense of and to make peace with how their lives have gone. They want to be remembered. They want to be able to tell their story and to know that someone is listening. When seniors repeat a story, it serves many purposes. They need to make sure our families will remember our history so they can share it with future generations and the need to re-tell the story themselves so they can make sense of what has gone before. If you can, take the time to hear your senior patients and connect with the person they are, not the disease they represent.

For more information about how to communicate in a way that respects the journey of the senior, read David L. Solie’s book, How To Say It To Seniors.

Have a kind and respectful day.

Sign up for the free service, “The Kindness Reminder” - Remember to connect with your loved ones.

The “Kindness Reminder” is a brief weekly email to remind you to connect with your aging parent or other loved ones. The reminder is full of touching and fun ways to reach out and connect.

When a colleague asked me to create these reminders for him, I realized I have been doing this type of thing all my life. I used to call my brothers and remind them to call our dad. It wasn’t that they didn’t care; it was just that like all of us, we get caught up in our own lives.

People think I am amazing because I remember to call on birthdays or to call in once a week to check on my elders. I am not amazing, I am organized. I pre-book recurring appointments in my PDA so I it sends me reminders to call, write or show I care. Otherwise, it would slip my mind and weeks would go by before I would make the effort.

These reminders will give you a number of ways to show your concern and your love. I will also give you ideas on how to thank those who are taking care of your loved one when you are either far away or unable to be there. The more you show appreciation for those who take care of your loved one, the better care they will get.

Just sign up in the box in the upper right section of my blog at KindEthics.com. Thanks for helping me make the world a kinder place. Please let others know about this free service.

Have a kind and respectful day.

The Unbefriended Senior

What is an “Unbefriended Senior? The “unbefriended” is a word used to describe someone who doesn’t have any friends or loved ones in their lives that the doctor can talk to when the patient is sick or injured. This term could also apply to someone younger without any family or friends.

Let me tell you about what just happened. An 80 year old woman collapsed at the market and was brought to the emergency room. She has had a massive stroke and may not live. The social worker looks through the patient’s wallet to find her insurance card and any information about who to contact in case of an emergency. Only the insurance card and an address are found. The social worker begins to make calls, goes to the patient’s house and tries to find anyone who might know this person. But nobody is found.

So what can the doctors do? If the patient gets better, then the patient will be able to speak for herself but if she doesn’t wake back up then the doctors will have to apply the “Best Interest Standard.” What is this? The Best Interest Standard is used when the healthcare team doesn’t know what the person would want and when nobody is available to talk to.

The healthcare team and possibly the bioethics committee will meet to evaluate what medical options are available for this patient. This way it is not just one person making the decision but a moral community. Next, there will be a discussion about the benefits and burdens of each of the options. Then they will do the best they can to decide what should be done. They may have to make the difficult decisions about dying and death for this person.

The other option for the healthcare team is to have the court assign a public or private conservator or guardian for them. This court appointed person will make their medical and/or financial decisions for the patient. But of course, they don’t know anything about this person either so the choice they will make might be wrong.

My question for you is, “Would you want a stranger to be making life and death decisions for you?”

If the answer is no, then please tell your doctor who they should talk to if you are injured, write it down in your wallet and fill out your Advance Directive. I don’t want you to ever be the unbefriended patient.

Got a question? Ask Viki.