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September 2009 Edition
AGS Foundation For Health in Aging News
New Resources Elsewhere on the Web
Other News
Become a Fan! The FHA Now Has a Facebook Page!
The American Geriatrics Society Foundation for Health in Aging is getting word out in a new way - it now has a Facebook page. We hope you'll become one of our Facebook fans!
With more than 250 million active Facebook users worldwide -- and the fastest growing demographic of users aged 35 and older -- Facebook is another vehicle for sharing information about elder health and healthcare. (See below story)
If you're already "on Facebook", sign in now and search for the Foundation for Health in Aging - then "fan" us and invite your friends to do so as well.
Not on Facebook? Get your Facebook account today. It's a great way to keep in touch with friends and family, reconnect with old colleagues - and there's now the added benefit of being able to "fan" the Foundation for Health in Aging.
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FHA Seeks Stories for its "Health in Aging Stories Web Site"
For its "Health in Aging Stories" Web site, the AGS Foundation for Health in Aging is seeking stories from older adults and their caregivers describing the care they've received from geriatrics healthcare providers. The idea behind the site -- which includes stories from older adults and caregivers in a variety of situations -- is to illustrate the difference that geriatrics care can make in the lives of older adults.
The site is designed to help older adults and caregivers find appropriate care. The FHA also plans to share the stories with policy makers and members of the media to help them understand the unique healthcare needs of older adults.
Please help spread the word about the "Health in Aging Stories" Web site and encourage older adults and caregivers you know to submit their stories online. The more stories the site includes, the more information we can share with older adults, their caregivers, the media, and policymakers.
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New Aging in the Know Feature: Online Glossary
Most of us aren't familiar with scientific and medical terms - words like "amyloid," and "bursa." To make them understandable, the FHA's comprehensive elder health Web site -- Aging in the Know - includes a glossary of medical terms.
Now, to make these definitions easily accessible on each page of the Web site, the FHA will be updating Aging in the Know over the next few months. We've already completed some of the updates. In the "Disorders of the Heart and Circulatory System" section, for example, you can now click on medical and other technical words for clear and concise definitions.
Visit Aging in the Know for:
- information about common diseases and disorders that affect older adults
- the "What to Ask?" series of questions you may want to ask your healthcare provider about common health problems and concerns
- links to the Web sites of other organizations that offer related information and resources
- a mailing list to join so you can stay up-to-date on the most recent resources regarding aging and health
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Older Adults Get Free Falls Risk Screenings Through FHA Falls Prevention Program; Many Found at Significant Risk of Falls
Dozens of older Chicagoans began the month of May on surer footing thanks to the many volunteers who turned out for the second annual "Get Up and Go: A Falls Prevention Program" organized by the American Geriatrics Society (AGS) and the AGS Foundation for Health in Aging (FHA).
More than 30 AGS and FHA volunteers - all visiting Chicago for AGS' 2009 Annual Scientific Meeting - offered Windy City seniors and others free falls screenings, along with information about falls prevention, elder health, and the many services the AGS and FHA provide. Falls are a leading cause of injuries, including fatal injuries, among older people.
The Falls Prevention Program was held at two sites on two separate days. At Northwestern Memorial Hospital, AGS and FHA volunteers screened older clinic patients and seniors from affiliated senior centers on May 1. The following day, volunteers screened visitors at Chicago's famous Navy Pier.
AGS volunteers at the event found that a number of the older adults were at moderate or high risk of falling. The volunteers also found that many of the older adults who got free screenings weren't regularly tested for falls risks and didn't realize how dangerous falls could be. Among older adults, falls are a leading cause of injuries and death.
The volunteers - geriatrics fellows-in-training, nursing, social work, and pharmacy trainees as well as medical students and residents - screened visitors using the Timed Get Up and Go Test. The simple but effective test measures how long it takes to get up from a chair, walk about 10 feet, turn around, and return to the chair. Older adults whose scores indicated a significant risk of falling were advised to talk to their healthcare providers about their screening results, and review their medications with their providers to determine whether any might boost risks of falls. They also received information about the services the AGS and FHA offer older adults and their caregivers; a new, easy-to-follow FHA "tip sheet" offering advice on preventing falls.
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To Raise Awareness of and Bolster Recruitment in Geriatrics, AGS and FHA Turn to YouTube
To raise awareness of and boost recruitment into geriatrics, the AGS and its Foundation for Health in Aging recently posted interviews with AGS members on YouTube. Nine filmed interviews with AGS geriatric healthcare providers -- who explain, on camera, what geriatrics is, and why they chose and love the field -- are now on the Society's popular YouTube channel, www.youtube.com/user/123grandparents. Members answer questions like, "What is geriatrics?" "Why did you choose a career in geriatrics?" and "What's it like to work in the field?"
In addition to the interviews, the 123grandparents channel is home to the runaway hit, "Cheating for a Kiss." A genuine and delightful portrait of love in later life, the clip has chalked up nearly 16,000 hits since it was posted last year. To watch the AGS member interviews and "Cheating for a Kiss" visit the Society's popular YouTube channel, www.youtube.com/user/123grandparents.
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FHA Publishes Two New Health "Tip Sheets" for Older Adults
The American Geriatrics Society's Foundation for Health in Aging (FHA) has published two new easy-to-read health "tip sheets" for older adults. The two are the latest in the FHA's series of health tip sheets, which offer authoritative and up-to-date information concerning the health and healthcare needs of older people. The new additions include:
"How to Talk to Your Healthcare Practitioner"
This tip sheet outlines steps older adults and their caregivers can take before, during, and after a visit to a practitioner. Before visiting a healthcare provider, older people should make a list of any current or past health problems, any treatments they've undergone, and any adverse reactions they've had to them to discuss on the visit. They should put medications, supplements and other remedies they're taking in a bag and bring it to their appointment.
During a visit, older patients and their caregivers should answer all questions frankly, request explanations when needed, and ask follow-up questions. Patients and caregivers should repeat back what providers tell them about their health and treatments to ensure that they've understood correctly.
After an appointment, the tip sheet advises older patients to contact their practitioner's office if they don't feel better, if they have an adverse reaction to a medication or other treatment, or if they realize they've forgotten to mention something important that's relevant to their health.
"For Older Women: Tips for Good Health in Later Life"
American women are more likely to live longer than American men, with a life expectancy of 80 years, compared with about 75 years. But older women often have worse health than older men and are more likely to have ongoing health conditions such as osteoporosis, high blood pressure, and arthritis, and greater trouble with daily activities such as walking or bathing without help.
To help older women stay as healthy and fit as possible, the FHA's latest health "tip sheet" offers advice just for them. The tip sheet, "For Older Women: Tips for Good Health in Later Life," includes advice on taking medications safely, eating well, and exercising safely in later life. It includes information about recommended screening tests - such as mammograms and bone density, cholesterol, and colorectal cancer screening - and vaccinations for older women. And it explains how older women can lower their risks of falls and quit smoking.
All FHA tip sheets are posted on the AGS' Foundation for Health in Aging Web site, at www.healthinaging.org, and can be printed and shared at no cost.
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FHA's "New Research" Web Page Includes Summaries of New JAGS Studies
Written for the general public, each summary in the "New Research" section of the FHA's Aging in the Know Web site describes the findings from a new study in the Journal of the American Geriatrics Society (JAGS). Studies in the journal keep healthcare providers abreast of cutting-edge research in the field of geriatrics and the FHA summaries make this research easy to understand. Each summary begins with an introduction that puts the new research in context, and includes a subsection, subtitled "What Should I Do?" that offers advice on how to put the new information to use. For readers who want to know more, each summary also includes a link to the original JAGS study. The "New Research" section is updated monthly.
The most recent new study summary is:
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The FHA Physician Referral Service Now Online
The American Geriatrics Society Foundation for Health in Aging's revamped geriatrician referral service allows older adults and their loved ones to quickly obtain a list of physicians in their area who are sensitive to the special healthcare needs of older adults. All website visitors need to do is fill out an online form, listing their name, email address, mailing address, and who they are filling out the form for (self, spouse, parent, etc.). The website visitor will then be given access to an online search which will provide immediate results, which he or she can print, free of charge. Users can search by city, state, zip code or a healthcare provider's last name.
If an older adult or caregiver can't use a computer, lists of geriatric healthcare providers can be obtained by mail. Please contact Shirley Burnett at sburnett@americangeriatrics.org or (800) 563-4916. This list will take 2-3 weeks to receive via standard mail.
All physicians participating in our referral service are members of the American Geriatrics Society and are board-certified in either Family Practice (FP) or Internal Medicine (IM). Many have also acquired additional training necessary to obtain the Certificate of Added Qualifications in Geriatric Medicine (CAQGM).
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FHA Resources for Treating Pain in Older Adults
The American Geriatrics Society (AGS) released a new, updated guideline for the pharmacological management of persistent pain in older adults during its Annual Scientific Meeting in Chicago in May. In a significant departure from AGS' previous guideline, published in 2002, the updated document advises that both non-selective, non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs (NSAIDs) and COX-2 selective inhibitors be considered rarely, with extreme caution, and only in certain elderly patients.
The guideline recommends that acetaminophen be considered as a first and ongoing drug therapy for patients with mild to moderate musculoskeletal pain. It recommends that all patients with moderate to severe pain or diminished quality of life due to pain be considered for opioid therapy, which may be safer for many seniors than long-term use of NSAIDs and COX-2s.
The Foundation for Health in Aging (FHA) has updated its practical and easy-to-use resources on the Management of Persistent Pain based on these new guidelines. These tools are intended to help older adults and their caregivers better manage persistent pain in consultation with their physicians and other health care providers.
- Patient Education Forum (PEF): Frequently asked questions with answers on the assessment and management of persistent pain.
- My Pain Diary (.PDF file): A tool to help describe and keep track of how and when pain is experienced.
- Assessing Pain in Loved Ones with Dementia (.PDF file): This brochure for family members and other caregivers provides advice from the experts on assessing pain in older adults with dementia.
- Eldercare at Home is the FHA's free comprehensive online guide for family caregivers. Chapter 11 offers an orderly problem-solving approach to managing pain at home and working cooperatively with health care providers
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New Resources Elsewhere on the Web
AHRQ Launches New Education Website, Healthcare 411
The Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality (AHRQ) has launched a new health education website, Healthcare 411. The site features weekly audio and video programs spotlighting AHRQ's latest health research. It also provides consumers with access to information designed to help them better understand the healthcare system and improve the quality of care they receive.
Access to Healthcare 411 is free. After subscribing, participants can download programs to their mobile media players or computers. All programs remain available and searchable on the Healthcare 411 site indefinitely.
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Smiles for Seniors
Smiles for Seniors -- an oral health initiative of the Ohio Dental Association -- is a comprehensive and informative program designed to help educate caregivers and loved ones of older adults, health professionals and those who care for older adults to help maintain and preserve good oral hygiene.
Assistance with daily oral hygiene is often necessary for adults who have lost strength or mobility or have experienced illnesses such as a stroke, Parkinson's disease or Alzheimer's. The program contains easy-to-understand information and suggestions on how to maintain a daily oral hygiene regimen for semi-dependent older adults, including those with dentures. The information also helps educate on the correlation between good oral health and good overall health.
The resources in the program can help older adults and caregivers figure out solutions for basic challenges such as difficulties flossing, brushing, squeezing toothpaste from a tube, and forgetting to brush teeth, among other things, and more serious issues like dry mouth, gum disease, and possible side effects of medications on oral health.
The program materials are available in print, VHS or CD-ROM format. The program itself is free, although a $10 shipping and handling charge applies. Duplication of all materials, including the video and fact sheets, is encouraged.
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Other News
Older Adults Soon to Outnumber Children Under Five, For First Time in History, NIA Report Finds
The global population of older adults is growing at the fastest rate ever and those 65 and older will soon outnumber children younger than five for the first time in history, according to U.S. researchers. "Aging is affecting every country in every part of the world," says Richard Suzman of the National Institute of Aging, which commissioned the report.
Within the next couple of years, the numbers and proportion of older adults - especially those 80 and older - will begin to rise rapidly in most developed and many developing countries. With these changes will come challenges.
"Shrinking ratios of workers to pensioners and people spending a larger portion of their lives in retirement will increasingly tax existing health and pension systems," the report notes. If countries and businesses plan appropriately and make needed policy changes, however, an aging population could create opportunities for economic growth, according to the report.
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Growing Numbers of Seniors Join Social Networks and Researchers Begin to Examine the Benefits
A growing number of older adults are joining social networks like Facebook, MySpace, and the boomer network Eons for support and companionship. In fact, among older adults using the Internet, the number joining online social networks grew nearly twice as fast as overall Web use among seniors, The New York Times reports in "Online, 'a Reason to Keep on Going'"
The numbers are so significant, that researchers are now investigating "whether these networks can provide some of the benefits of a group of friends, while being much easier to assemble and maintain," writes The Times' Stephanie Clifford. Those benefits may be substantial. Some studies, for example, suggest that loneliness may hasten the onset of dementia. And research examining social interaction and aging is now burgeoning, with the National Institute on Aging awarding more than $10 million in grants for research in social neuroscience alone.
"One of the greatest challenges or losses that we face as older adults, frankly, is not about our health … it's actually about our social network deteriorating on us, because our friends get sick, our spouse passes away, friends pass away, or we move," Joseph F. Coughlin, director of the Massachusetts Institute of Technology's AgeLab, tells Clifford. "The new future of old age is about staying in society, staying in the workplace and staying very connected. And technology is going to be a very big part of that. (It) provides a way to make new connections, new friends and new senses of purpose."
The Times article is accompanied by compelling comments posted by readers, including this one from Eleanor Feldman Barbera, PhD:
Thank you for writing about this topic, one of my passions in my work as a psychologist in nursing homes. While one of the benefits of living in a nursing home is the easy access to peers and the ability to make new friends, one of the challenges is staying connected to old friends and family members. An online support network solves this problem. I envision a day when, upon admission to the nursing home, people are greeted not only by the resident welcoming committee, but also assisted in setting up their social networking accounts on the nursing home computer.
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Making Home Safer for Older Adults, Without Breaking the Bank
A growing number of adults 70 and older are staying put, rather than moving to assisted living and related facilities. They're doing it not only because they'd prefer to but because it's more affordable. "But while home might be cozier and cheaper than a residential center, it's not always safer," notes The New York Times' recent "Making Home A Safer Place, Affordably." "Every year in this country about 7,000 elderly people die in home-related accidents, and millions are seriously injured," the article reports. "Falls are the leading cause of injuries, but the elderly are also at risk for being burned by the stove, scalded by hot water or drowning in the tub."
The article goes on to describe how to make home safer for older people and notes that "an entire service industry is slowly taking shape around the goal of letting people age in place." And it both offers guidelines for taking the most effective and cost effective approach to adapting a home to an older person's needs, and includes links to the Home Safety Council's website, MySafeHome.net, and an interactive home safety checklist that the AARP created with the National Association of Homebuilders.
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