The word "bully" usually brings to mind thoughts of behaviors found on elementary school playgrounds and on the back of the bus. However, bullying doesn't necessarily end when childhood does. In fact, it can continue throughout life and even into the senior years. Let's take a closer look at the problem of senior bullying, along with management tips for seniors and caregivers.
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Between the record number of Americans in the healthcare system due to the Affordable Care Act and the aging baby boomer population, physicians are in critical demand, with the doctor shortage predicted to reach as high as 90,000 by the year 2025, according to a report from the Association of American Medical Colleges. In an era during which healthcare practitioners face greater financial pressures than ever before, doctor visits are a dwindling precious commodity. Read on to learn how seniors and their caregivers can maximize visits to get the most of each appointment.
Planning ahead saves precious seconds.
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Approximately 116 million Americans have chronic pain, according to research from the Institute of Medicine (IOM). But chronic pain doesn't just affect the people who suffer from it; it also impacts the people who care for them. Let's take a closer look at the issue of chronic pain, and how to improve the quality of life of patients and caregivers alike.
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Although caregivers play an increasingly vital role in society while making momentous contribution to the lives of the ones they serve, they are often overlooked -- particularly when it comes to acknowledging and managing their own needs and wellbeing. This is what makes the Powerful Tools for Caregivers (PTC) program so special. Having reached over 80,000 caregivers in 36 states since its inception 12 years ago, this program offers invaluable assistance to this largely overworked and underserved segment of the population.
Caregiving is a challenge, but there are ways to cope, connect, and thrive in the role.
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Visiting someone with dementia can be overwhelming when it comes to expectations -- particularly if you're unfamiliar with the disease and its progression. Let's take a closer look at some tips and techniques designed to ensure that both you and your aging loved one get the most out of visits.
1. Keep it Short
The phrase "short and sweet" absolutely applies when it comes to visiting someone with dementia. Limit your visit to no more than an hour, particularly if you're spending time with someone who tires easily. And remember, quality of time is much more important than quantity of time.
Cardiologists. Neurologists. Gastroenterologists. Ophthalmologists. Urologists. As a caregiver of an older adult, you are probably struggling to juggle the long list of healthcare providers your loved one is seeing in addition to a primary care physician. But is it time to add one more to the list? Let's take a closer look at the role of geriatricians, and whether one might be a valuable addition to your aging loved one's healthcare team.
A geriatrician is trained to meet his/her specific needs.
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As many as a third of caregivers not only experience high levels of stress, but also report having less time to spend with friends and loved ones. These factors don't just affect your quality of life, they can also affect your quantity of life: research links chronic caregiver stress with a shortened mortality rate of up to eight years! Unfortunately, many caregivers suffer unnecessarily because they are unaware of programs and services available to help them, including respite care. Let's take a closer look at this valuable service designed to help families cope with the demands of caregiving.
What is Respite Care?Simply put, respite care offers temporary relief for caregivers. Available for a few hours on a one-time basis or for regular extended sessions -- even overnight -- respite care offers caregivers the important opportunity to take a break and tend to their own needs, as well as the needs of other family members.
Respite care serves a very different need than hospice. While hospice is focused on a dying person's needs, respite directly serves caregivers.
It’s exciting to see the amazing growth in the senior living industry and the constantly evolving levels of care available to senior residents. However, about 90 percent of seniors in America still live at home and most of those must receive care from family members for much of their daily needs. As professionals serving seniors first, I think we all want to know that all seniors are getting the best care they can, wherever they are. That compassionate kind of thinking really defines our industry in a special way.
As a young child I have vivid memories of my grandmother who had been paralyzed from a stroke sitting up in her bed and digging in her little coin purse to give us money for the ice cream vendor as he made the rounds in our neighborhood. My mother was the youngest of five siblings and had taken on the role of caregiver. My older brothers and me thought it was great especially whenever we were in trouble, her bed was a great hiding place and she forgave all our antics with a kiss and a few pennies for ice cream! Throughout her life mom not only cared for her mother, but her father-in-law, an uncle and an elderly neighbor; yet she never considered herself a caregiver, that was just what families did for one another.
