Sunday Self Care with David Bass Dr. David Bass, Senior Vice President, Senior Research Scientist and Director of the Center for Research and Education at Benjamin Rose Institute on Aging, discusses resources for older adults and caregivers with Rabbi Brown of Temple Israel Akron. Read more
Research to Practice (R2P) Series Brief: A Novel Intervention to Identify and Report Suspected Abuse in Older, Primary Care Patients Background: Previous research has identified several barriers faced by clinicians in detecting and reporting elder abuse, such as lack of knowledge about the process to report suspected cases of abuse and lack of access to experts to consult with. A novel intervention was designed and tested that embedded two Adult Protective Services (APS) specialists in a healthcare system operating primary care clinics serving a large Medicare population. Objectives: To examine the types of roles the APS specialists played in the healthcare system and the number and types of cases of suspected abuse among older patients that clinicians consulted them about and reported to APS. Read more
A Novel Intervention to Identify and Report Suspected Abuse in Older, Primary Care Patients Previous research has identified several barriers faced by clinicians in detecting and reporting elder abuse, such as lack of knowledge about the process to report suspected cases of abuse and lack of access to experts to consult with. A novel intervention was designed and tested that embedded two Adult Protective Services (APS) specialists in a healthcare system operating primary care clinics serving a large Medicare population. Read more
Responding to COVID-19 as a Caregiver News about the coronavirus (COVID-19) fills every airway. There is information about social distancing, tips for staying healthy and guidelines if you think you are ill. But there has been little, if any discussion about how to handle this public health crisis if you are the caregiver for an older adult or someone else in a high-risk category. How can you best manage their physical and emotional needs, and what can you do to take care of yourself? Read more
5 Ways Caregivers Can Improve Relationship Strain with the Person They Care For When we begin providing care for a loved one, our relationship with that person can take on a new meaning as our role in their life changes. Whether we are their spouse, child, sibling or friend, taking on the role of managing their care or helping them cope with a disease or condition comes with unique responsibilities and relational dynamics. In some cases, caring for a loved one may make our relationship with them stronger, but in others, the stresses of caregiving may lead to increased strain which in turn can negatively impact our relationship with a loved one. Read more
Shaping identity: Older adults’ perceived community volunteering experiences in Shanghai This study explores elderly volunteers’ identity during their experiences volunteering in the community in Shanghai. Purposive and snowball sampling strategies were used to recruit elderly volunteers to participate in semi-structured, in-depth interviews (N = 40). Participants developed new identities during volunteering. Through volunteering, they also continued to sustain their professional identities and Chinese Communist Party identities. Volunteering had both positive and negative implications for participants’ identities. Our findings suggest that volunteering strengthened participants’ role identity and social identity to better adapt to life after retirement. Volunteering also helped participants achieve identity continuity. This study offers nuanced sociocultural context to current elderly volunteering research and informs tailored policy and practice development in urban China. Read more
Using Team Meetings to Develop a Dementia Care Strategy for a Loved One An individual with dementia or Alzheimer’s disease often requires a village of caregivers to help take care of their needs during different stages of the disease. Whether they be family caregivers or providers, caregivers must always be vigilant to make sure their loved one is well cared for and protected. Read more
Keeping the Kitchen Safe for a Loved One with Late Stage Dementia The kitchen is the heart of most families' homes. If we have a loved one living with dementia at home, especially in the later stages, we will want to do everything we can to help keep their kitchen as safe as it can be. Read more
What We Can Do About Robocalls The term robocall has been around since the 1990s, but in the last few years, they’ve become an ever-present part of our lives. According to the YouMail Robocall Index, in 2018, 47.8 billion robocalls were placed in the US, and just in the first half of 2019, 34 billion calls were made. You’re not imagining that it’s gotten worse – it has. Read more
Creating Your Own Self-Care Kit It is no secret that self-care can have many benefits to our mental, physical and emotional health. According to research, practicing self-care can decrease stress, improve well-being, lower mortality, increase relaxation responses and decrease healthcare costs. While it can often be challenging to find the time to practice self-care, it is important for us to plan for and look for ways to integrate it when possible. Read more
