Assisted Living
How to Live in Assisted Living (Judith Graham, The New Old Age, NY Times, 3-20-13). Graham interviews Martin Bayne about the emotional experiences of older adults in assisted living and what changes he would like to see made in this type of long-term care. Bayne, who lives in assisted living, writes an excellent blog:
The Voice of Aging Boomers . Read some of his blog posts for frank discussions of what goes on and what should and shouldn't go on, among the elderly who need help.
Assisted Living: All the Right Questions. What to know and what to ask when choosing an assisted-living facility. Julyssa Lopez (Washingtonian, 11-09) explains key questions to get info on: What care is provided? Is the facility well run? Can it handle emergencies? What if my health gets worse? What do I look for in a contract? Can I change the contract? Are there hidden fees? Can I get a refund? Can they kick me out?
10 Things to Know About Assisted Living (Jane Gross, New Old Age, NY Times, 10-20-08).
Ten Things You Need to Know About Assisted Living (Martin Bayne, 2-25-13)
Tenure (Martin Bayne, 2-9-13). On his 10th anniversary in assisted living, Bayne writes "Purpose is the magic elixir that trumps pain, transcends any notion of limitation and opens our minds and hearts to possibility. It is also the single most accurate predictor of joy and fulfillment in an aging population." (Among other things.)
A Room With A Grim View: The Ambient Despair That Marks Life In Assisted Living (Martin Bayne, Health Affairs, 7-26-12). After entering an assisted living facility at age fifty-three because of young-onset Parkinsons, an observer-advocate contemplates the dire need for long-term care reform. In another,
blog post, he writes that sub-standard wages are the biggest obstacle to better assisted living facilities. "The women of color that are the backbone of this countrys network of institutional aging facilities many of them single parents are denied a living wage. This creates a 'revolving door' phenomenon that cripples moral and destroys any sense of continuity for the residents."
How is society to look after the ever-growing number of people with dementia? (Martin Bayne, The Voice of Aging Boomers, 8-18-12). A curiously uplifting care home near Amsterdam may have the answers
How to Choose Between Home Health Care, Assisted Living, and a Nursing Home
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Babyboomer demand boosting universal home design (Realty Times)
Boomer Tsunami (Judy Steed's excellent Atkinson Fellowship/Toronto Star series, on issues and aspects of promoting a good life for the elderly)
Caregivers, caregiving, and preventing or minimizing caregiver burnout (links to many helpful resources and articles)
Caring for an Ill Spouse, and for Other Caregivers Alix Kates Shulman (NYTimes 9-9-11).
Caregiving 101 (Debbie Newsham's blog on trying to stay positive while caring for her father, who has dementia)
Caring for the Elderly (Jane Grosss excellent list of resources, categorized as government sites, housing and services, caregiving, legal and financial, end of life, miscellany, advocacy, emotional support)
Caring Todays blogs, including Debbie Newsham's
My So-Called (Caregiver) Life
Center for Aging with Dignity (scroll down to find useful articles on various aspects of aging and caregiving, for practical advice on safety concerns with aging drivers, and for insights into grieving)
CAST (Center for Aging Services Technologies, some useful links for disabled or older people)
Designing a Better Day: Guidelines for Adult and Dementia Day Services Centers by Keith Diaz Moore, Lyn Dally Geboy, and Gerald D. Weisman
A difficult drive in a suit that mimics aging (Vivian Nereim, Boston Globe, 6-18-09)
The Digital Divide of Disability.NPR's On the Media hosts people from Knowbility, an organization that advocates for technology that allows blind, deaf and otherwise disabled people to use the Internet (and things like AbleGamer video games)
Dignity Therapy. For the Dying, A Chance to Rewrite Life (Alix Spiegel, Morning Edition, NPR 9-12-11). Listen or read transcript.
Disability.gov (online resource for Americans with disabilities)
Disabled World (disability and health news)
Disaster preparedness for people with special needs (Red Cross)
Discussion groups and chat rooms about specific problems (assistivetech.net)
Doctors say medication overused in dementia (AARP Bulletin)
Eldercare locator (you can download their useful booklets on transportation and housing options)
Engage with Grace and the One Slide Project. To help ensure that all of us--and the people we care for--can end our lives in the same purposeful way we lived them.
Watch the Engage with Grace Story (Video, Za's Story)
Download the One Slide (PDF)
Everyone Communicates (augmentative and alternative communication, for when a person loses the ability to speak)
Family Support 360 Initiative (providing grants to local service providers to help families with developmental disabilities)
*Family Village (a global community for disability-related resources)
Finding Activities for Parents with Memory Loss (Cynthia Green, The New Old Age, NY Times blog, 4-6-10)
For the Elderly, Emergency Rooms of Their Own (Anemona Hartocollus, NY Times, 4-9-12). Geriatric emergency rooms, specifically designed for the elderly, are part of a growing trend. See also
Emergency Rooms Built With the Elderly in Mind (Alyson Martin and Nushin Rashidian, The New Old Age blog, NY Times, 3-14-11). These are motivated in part by hospitals' desire to find an edge in the increasingly competitive health care marketplace.
Gadgets for Growing Old at Home (John Leland, reporting from the International Consumer Electronics Show in Las Vegas, NY Times)
How to Choose a Nursing Home (Toby Bilanow, NY Times 3-19-10) and
Stressful but Vital: Picking a Nursing Home Walecia Konrad
How to Choose Between Home Health Care, Assisted Living, and a Nursing Home (Money and Health, Health.com)
In a Charmed Life, A Road Less Traveled (Layng Martine Jr, "Modern Love" column, NY Times 3-6-09), how love and the help of others help sustain this couple when a car accident makes her paraplegic)
Increase Mobility, Brighten Your Outlook with Yoga Stephanie Golden on Yoga and Arthritis, Cleveland Clinic Arthritis Advisor, March 2004)
Independent Living Centers (a directory)
Independent Living Institute (promoting disabled peoples self-determination)
International Longevity Center (navigating the age boom)
KnowItAlz (Alzheimers Caregiver Community)
Leonardos Laptop (Ben Shneiderman interview about human needs and computer design)
Lessons from the Lost. NY Times video story about law enforcement officers learning how to search for missing persons with Alzheimer's or dementia. For the first time, more missing persons are elderly, with dementia, and may not know they are lost. Missing children used to be the main target of searches.
Lo-Jack SafetyNet (Lo-Jack bracelet allows families to keep track of dementia-driven wanderers via radio signals, from the stolen-automobile recovery company)
Making Rounds with Oscar: The Extraordinary Gift of an Ordinary Cat by David Dosa (about a cat who senses death and stays to comfort the dying, but also about Alzheimer's and geriatric care and nursing homes and being there, at the end of life)
Meals on Wheels (a crucial service for the elderly and disabled who are living alone, unable to shop and cook for themselves. Many days the people delivering Meals On Wheels are the only people some elders see.)
Meals on Wheels May Be Your Best Meal Ticket (Robert Littke with Harry Margolis, podcast from ElderLaw Radio).
MedicAlert + Safe Return (Alzheimer's Association medical bracelet helps when a person wanders or is lost and provides access to vital medical info in time of need)
Medicare Compare. Sites for comparing information about physicians, hospitals, nursing homes, home health agencies, dialysis facilities--on HealthCare.gov
Medicare's Hospital Compare (search and compare hospitals)
Medicare's Nursing Home Compare (an interactive tool allows you to search and compare detailed information about every Medicare and Medicaid-certified nursing home in the country)
Medicare Guide to Choosing a Nursing Home (PDF file)
Mind Our Elders (Carol Bradley Bursack)
My Elder Advocate (the meeting place for elderly concerns)
My So-Called (Caregiver) Life
National Association of Professional Geriatric Care Managers (NAPGCM) (GCMs can help assess elders' long-term care needs, find them a place to live, and help them navigate the health-care system--for example, hiring private nurses, as needed, for fees that range from $80 to $200 an hour)
National Clearinghouse for Long-Term Care Information
*National Library Service for the Blind and Physically Handicapped (Library of Congress, free library program of braille and audio materials circulated to eligible borrowers in the United States by postage-free mail)
Network of care
Nursing home checklist (Medicare, what to look for)
Nursing Home Compare (Medicare's interactive tool allows Medicare beneficiaries and their caregivers to search and compare detailed information about every Medicare and Medicaid-certified nursing home in the country)
Ombudsmen, by state (federally funded advocates for nursing home patients, who can find latest health inspection reports for a nursing home and tell you how many complaints have been filed about it).
Ouch! It's a disability thing! (blogs, message boards, podcasts by Mat Fraser and Liz Carr, videos with subtitles, funny computer wallpaper, news reflecting the wider view of life for disabled people)
OurAlzheimers.com
Program of All-Inclusive Care for the Elderly (PACE), an optional benefit under Medicare and Medicaid that helps older people frail enough to meet state standards for nursing home care stay in their home.PACE offers and manages all the medical, social and rehabilitative services enrollees need to preserve or restore their independence, stay in their homes and communities, and maintain their quality of life. Listen to this
interview on Kansas Public Radio about PACE. There is evidence that this new model of care is effective, but it is not yet widely available. Here is a current
list of PACE-provider organizations
Overprescribing the Healthy Elderly: Why Funding Research and Drug Safety Is Paramount (Laura Newman, Scientific American guest blog, 6-30-11)
Remedies for Nail Fungus (Anahad O'Connor, Ask Well, NY Times, 4-8-13). Is there any cure for toenail fungus that doesnt involve a risky drug? Yes. Don't spend $1000 for laser treatment, as I did (and it was administered by a young woman, not the doctor).
SafetyBunns (comfortable non-restrictive pants for people who use wheelchairs, to keep them from slipping and falling from the chair. Story here from Shadra Bruce, MomsGetReal:
Safety Bunns Helps You Keep Your Seat in a Wheelchair .
SeniorHomes.com
SeniorNe provides nonprofit computer and Internet education for older adults and seniors -- a site for content and community
Sensecam: A Little Black Box to Jog Failing Memory (Yudhijit Bhattacharjee, NYTimes, 3-8-10, on a gadget that may be useful for Alzheimer's patients)
Silent killer on the rise: Kidney disease is now more common than diabetes. (Consumer Reports 3-08), and
How to Read Your Urine (Consumer Reports)
Small Mercies (Canada's Veterans Independence Program successfully provides assistance with home care instead of facility care)
SmartPack Sac (a carryall for people with special needs--for example, using power and manual wheelchairs, scooters and walkers, or carrying special equipment like a Diavox or medical supplies-- a way to stow all their gear in style)
SteriShoe shoe sanitizer . Using ultraviolet light (UVC), the SteriShoe shoe sanitizer (which you insert inside shoes) kills the organisms that cause toenail fungus, athlete's foot, and smelly shoes. $130
Talking Book Program (Library of Congress, answers to frequently asked questions)
10 Things to Know About Assisted Living (Jane Gross, NY Times)
The Way We Age Now (Atul Gawande, The New Yorker, 4-30-07)
3GenFamily blog (caring for parents, raising teens, and staying sane)
Time Goes By (what its really like to get older)
Tips on Caring for Aging Parents (Elizabeth Alterman, CNBC.com, 6-19-12)
Universal home design (AARP)
Vocational rehabilitation (fact sheet - pdf format)
Well Spouses Association. Support and support groups for spousal caregivers. Read
Alix Kates Shulman's story about the importance of a caregivers support group.
What I Wish I'd Done Differently (Jane Gross, on the four biggest mistakes she made while caring for her mother)
What to Know If You Are The Boss of a Caregiver (Victoria E. Knight, Wall Street Journal, 3-19-09)
When You Get Old and Lose Your Car (What happens when elderly parents can no longer drive) PDF or more, from Alphadaughters.com, UK and marketing based but may suggest ideas of how to cope!--scroll down to find link)
Who Cares? (Federal Trade Commission on sources of information about health care products and services)
Who Takes Care of Mom? by Francine Russo (Time, 2-1-2010), author of
They're Your Parents, Too!: How Siblings Can Survive Their Parents' Aging Without Driving Each Other Crazy
When Is the Worst Time to Go to the Hospital? (Pauline W. Chen, MD, NY Times 3-18-10)
Why Hire a Geriatric Care Manager? (by Jane Gross, The New Old Age, New York Times blog)
The Wrong Care for Dementia Patients (Tara Parker-Pope, Well blog, NY Times)
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Books about Caregiving for Elders and Patients with Alzheimer's
Caring for Your Parents: The Complete AARP Guide by Hugh Delehanty, Elinor Ginzler, with a foreword by Mary Pipher
The Caregiver's Compass: How to Navigate with Balance & Effectiveness Using Mindful Caregiving by Holly Whittelsey Whiteside (how to apply life coaching principles to stay balanced during the difficult moments of caregiving, based on her own experiences with her mother and as a life coach). And check out her blog:
Transforming Caregiving (mindful caregiving)
The Complete Eldercare Planner: Where to Start, Which Questions to Ask, and How to Find Help, revised ed., by Joy Loverde. Considered a "must read" if you need help coping with practical and emotional issues, such as helping elders find the right place to live and face (emotionally) needing to leave there.
Coping With Your Difficult Older Parent : A Guide for Stressed-Out Children by Grace Lebow, Barbara Kane, and Irwin Lebow (learning what they need and how to tell them they need to adjust--friends have well-thumbed copies)
The Elder Law Handbook: A Legal and Financial Survival Guide for Caregivers and Seniors
Elder Care: What to Look For, What to Look Out For!, by Thomas M. Cassidy (which includes, among other things, useful checklists)
Eldercare 911: The Caregiver's Complete Handbook for Making Decisions by Susan Beerman, Judith Rappaport-Musson
Eldercare for Dummies by Dr. Rachelle Zukerman
The Eldercare Handbook: Difficult Choices, Compassionate Solutions by Stella Henry and Ann Convery. "Henry helps readers navigate the daunting logistics and powerful emotions of making care decisions for an elderly parent or loved one. Drawing from her 36 years as a registered nurse and a nursing home administrator, as well as her experience caring for both her parents (both of whom suffered the ravages of Alzheimer's disease), Henry tackles all the tough issues: spotting the warning signs of dementia, redefining sibling roles, doing a walk-through at an assisted living facility or nursing home, making the move, and coping with 'take me home!' demands.She also explains the medical, legal, and insurance maze."
Elder Care: What to Look For, What to Look Out For! (3rd edition) by Thomas M. Cassidy). Addresses such topics as fraud, maltreatment, long-term care insurance, assisted-living facilities, nursing homes, hospice.
Elder Rage, or Take My Father... Please!: How to Survive Caring for Aging Parents by Jacqueline Marcell (practical answers to problems like getting obstinate elders to accept cleaning and caregiving help, see a different doctor, give up driving, attend adult day care, eat, sleep and bathe properly, move to a new residence, etc. Highly recommended by friends with fully marked-up copies of a book that clearly helped them -- "good for dealing with personal dynamics."
The Fearless Caregiver: How to Get the Best Care for Your Loved One and Still Have a Life of Your Own by Gary Barg
Finding Life in the Land of Alzheimer's: One Daughter's Hopeful Story by Lauren Kessler (weighed down by guilt from her response to her mother's Alzheimer's 8 years earlier, Kessler takes a minimum-wage job as a resident assistant in a facility for Alzheimer's patients--and comes to see the positive side of life for those patients). See also her earlier book
Dancing with Rose: Finding Life in the Land of Alzheimer's
Full Catastrophe Living: Using the Wisdom of Your Body and Mind to Face Stress, Pain, and Illness by Jon Kabat-Zinn
Learning to Speak Alzheimer's: A Groundbreaking Approach for Everyone Dealing with the Disease by Joanne Koenig Coste
My Mother, Your Mother: Embracing "Slow Medicine," the Compassionate Approach to Caring for Your Aging Loved Ones by Dennis McCullough
Unheard Voice of the Aging Parent, The: Conflicts and Ambivalence in Intergenerational relationships by counselor Carol Teplin and clinical psychologist Barbara Kaplan,
(What to Look for In a Long-Term Care Insurance Policy, When Should You Purchase Long-Term Care Insurance?, How Much Insurance Should You Purchase?, Which Spouse Should Get Coverage?,Long-Term Care Insurance and Medicaid Planning,
Partnership Policies, The Tax Deductibility of Long-Term Care Insurance Premiums, The Taxation of Benefits, Consult With a Qualified Agent, Books on Long-Term Care Insurance)
U.S. Dept of Health & Human Services
