Innovation and experimentation are techniques professionals use to find new cures and procedures to alleviate pain.  As we age we are prone to injuries and even a break down of our mental capacity.  Billions of dollars and hundreds of companies around the world continually try to find ways to meet these needs.   Though one technique has started to catch on throughout the country and is being used by assisted living facilities, nursing homes, and care managers for Dementia and Alzheimer’s patients, music therapy.

Geriatric caregivers have observed for decades that Alzheimer’s patients tend to remember and even show the ability to sing songs from memory long after they’ve stopped recognizing names and faces. Many hospitals and nursing homes use music as recreation, since it brings patients pleasure and calmness. But beyond the entertainment and soothing value, there’s growing evidence that listening to music can also help stimulate seemingly lost memories and even help restore some cognitive function.

Using familiar music, which can be chosen by a senior person’s family, can potentially help seniors reconnect their memories. Doctors believe that by engaging very basic mechanisms of emotions and listening, music is able to stimulate dormant areas of the brain that haven’t been accessible due to Dementia or Alzheimer’s.

The Institute for Music and Neurologic Function, a nonprofit organization founded at Beth Abraham in 1995 studies the effects of music on people.  They are trying to promote a program to provide MP3 players loaded with specific music play lists for seniors.  They believe this helps seniors relive old experiences that, in effect, help to stimulate their mind.  A study that was funded by the New York State Department of Health, in order to determine the effect of music on people with Dementia a few years back included 45 patients with mid- to late-stage Dementia by the Institute for Music and Neurologic Function.  This study found that participants who listened to an hour of personalized music three times a week for 10 months showed an increase of 50% on average in their cognitive functions.  One patient even recognized his wife for the first time in months.

The Institute for Music and Neurologic Function recommends the use of music from the 60’s that were popular.  This includes such artists as Bob Dylan, Frankie Valli & the Four Seasons, Jay & the Americans, The Beach Boys, and The Rolling Stones.

Unfortunately, due to the lack of money and manpower music therapy isn’t used widely with Alzheimer’s and Dementia patients.  Currently in the U.S. there are only about 5,000 certified music therapists, and fewer than 20% work with geriatric patients. This is one of the main reasons assisted living facilities and nursing’s homes need to step it up and help encourage the use of music therapy in their facilities.

A senior person’s family member or caregiver can create their own play lists on an Mp3 player for their senior loved one.  If you want to create your own music play list for a senior person, researching popular songs during their youth is a good start and can be done by accessing the website www.imnf.org.  Music therapy is an inexpensive and effective way to help stimulate a senior person’s mind with Dementia or Alzheimer’s.

*reprinted with permission from American Care Managers

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Today we have more and more of our senior population using computers and cell phones.  My own parents are on Facebook *gasp*and enjoy computer games, checking email and the like.  I applaud our parents and grandparents for embracing this technology.  I know in my own family this is a primary way for all of us to keep in touch with one another.  If it weren’t for phones and computers we would rarely know what was going on since we are spread across the country.

As a nurse who cares for the needs of older Americans, I see the struggles that must go through when it comes to technology.  Even my own spouse struggles with the inability to see small print and has to chose his cellphone very carefully to insure that he can work it if the lighting is low or if he fails to have his reading glasses with him.

Luckily this population has not been forgotten.  Just this week I saw two ads directed toward our seniors.  One is a cellphone while the other is a computer system.

The Jitterbug is a cellphone that has large, colored displays and is designed to reduce background noise.  It is very simple with no camera, internet, or other susription based services.  It is a phone; pure and simple.  It does have Bluetooth and Caller ID!

First Street (also the maker of Jitterbug) has designed the GO computer.  It has a big, bright screen and even magnifies the image up to 200% with the touch of a button.  It also hosts a large over-sized keyboard with colored buttons to help with navigation.  These systems were originally targeted to retirement homes and Senior Centers, but now you can purchase them for individual use.

So Mamaw, which would you like for Christmas?

AARP has renewed its efforts to have Medicare close the gap in prescription coverage known as the “doughnut hole.” Roughly 3.4 million Medicare Part D beneficiaries fall into this gap in coverage each year. The bigger problem is that of these only 15% end up spending enough out of pocket money to hit the upper limit and receive catastrophic coverage.

This gap in coverage totals $3,454 in out-of-pocket spending. By 2016, that gap is expected to exceed $6,000. AARP is fighting this stating it is much too high. Higher costs for prescription drugs lead people into skipping doses or discontinuing their prescriptions all together. They put their health in jeopardy and drive up long-term costs due to poor health.

The “doughnut hole” gap in coverage is difficult for most people to understand. Here is a breakdown for you.

To read more about the AARP campaign, check out this article by Chris Silva of AMNews.

With the largest generation of Americans entering the latter stages of life coupled with our longer life expectancy, it is crucial that patient care is readily available. The Donald W. Reynolds Foundation has just announced that it has received grants totalling $33.4 million for the University of Arkansas for Medical Sciences’ (UAMS) Donald W. Reynolds Institute on Aging. The grants will be used to build four floors (55,000 square feet) at the facility as well as $3 million toward care giver training program that will be instituted at the regional centers in Texarkana, Pine Bluff, Jonesboro, and West Memphis.

UAMS provides several senior health services. The Donald W. Reynolds Institute on Aging has a comprehensive, multidisciplinary approach to the treatment of Arkansas seniors. The Longevity Clinic is one of the south’s largest primary care clinics specifically for seniors. U.S. News & World Report named the UAMS Department of Geriatrics to their top ten list for graduate programs for the past seven years. Other senior services include the Eye Institute, the Cancer Institute and the Myeloma Institute.

The American dream of early retirement, or any retirement is starting to fade and become a thing of the past. As the economy goes further into a recession sapping more and more senior savings the thought of quitting your job and living off your hard earned money is not a realistic idea for most seniors entering the typical age of retirement, 65.

Recently the Employee Benefit Research Institute located in Washington, DC completed a survey of 1,257 senior Americans in order to find out just how confident people nearing or in the age of retirement believe they have enough capital to retire. The results of this survey showed that people who already are or will be turning 65 this year have very low confidence in their retirement funds. Of the people surveyed only 13% were confident they would be able to retire this year which is down from 18% in 2008, and 27% in 2007. This marks a record low for this survey which has been conducted over the past 19 years.

In effect, 87% of Americans nearing or in the retirement age are not confident they can retire with their capital saved. This is very disturbing considering in two years it has dropped more than half. This means more seniors are staying in the workforce in order to sustain their standard of living. This should be and eye opener and a warning especially since 49% of seniors 55 and older have less than $50,000 in savings, forcing them to choose between healthcare and food while living at much lower standards or returning to the workforce assuming they can find a job.

The survey also showed that only 25% of today’s workforce feels confident that they will be able to cover the cost of food and owning a house which again is significantly down from 34% in 2008 and only 13% say they have enough saved to cover medical expenses which is down from 18% in 2008. In 2007 the figures were 40% and 20% which shows a huge downward spiral.

As you can ascertain from the survey results, today’s seniors are facing some of the hardest financial times in their lives. I recently provided case management services for a 75 year old female who still worked full-time at Cracker Barrel. She was forced to work because having worked as a waitress her whole life and without any investments, she simply could not afford to retire.

As a community, we serve many of the needs seniors have and we must be vigilant in ensuring they get the help they need to sustain and actually enter retirement. The so-called “Golden Years,” seniors have deservedly looked forward to enjoying have, for many, become a fight to survive.

Are you preparing for retirement? Will you have to work into your late 70′s and 80′s in order to retire? Let me know your thoughts.

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Home Sweet Home

People spend years building and spending their hard earned money and time on their homes.  But how many think about making an environment that is senior friendly?

As we age we are not able to perform the same tasks with the ease of our earlier years, creating many dangerous situations.  The current home may not be adequately prepared to provide the safety and convenience of the aging residents.

The rate of our aging seniors is beginning to influence the development of new appliances; stairs, homes, and electronics. Currently seniors, age 55 and above, make up 76 million people and spend $25 billion annually in the American consumer market.  As they age, seniors are going to be looking for ways in which to make their lives safer and more convenient.

A new senior friendly oven comes with an automatic door and features that shuts off the heat when not in use.  Other features include a glass cook top with a thermometer that will prevent boil over if a person forgets and easy to touch or program levers for cooking.  The oven also has a handle bar that will support a 350lb person.  All of these new features are being developed and marketed specifically for the geriatric age group by companies such as General Electric, Siemens, and Moen.

New washers and dryers geared toward seniors are also being developed.   Many of the new washer and dryers are being designed to reduce stooping when removing laundry.  They provide large knobs that make unique and louder than normal noises or melodies for each setting, and have automatic or easy to open doors.

Becoming senior friendly is not only restricted to the home but also needs to include the automobile.  In order to ensure new cars are senior friendly, Nissan Motor Co. has employees wear an “aging suit” that simulates stiff joints, poor balance and impaired vision while they test concept cars.  Ford Motor Co. has developed software to simulate the motions of an older person using a vehicle.

Companies are beginning to realize that one model does not fit all.  The geriatric market will force more research and development for alternatives for the aging individual. When you prepare your home as you age, consider some of these items when replacing old or outdated appliances and equipment.

The Medicare eligiblity deadline is coming up for the following year.  There is only a small period of time that seniors are given to choose the plan in which they would like to participate.  This is the time when seniors already enrolled in Medicare can add, drop or otherwise change their coverage. 

There are typically only two choices; a fee for service plan or federally subsidized advantage plan.  Most choosing the traditional Medicare program also elect to purchase a Medigap policy and separate prescription plans.

Each of the more than three dozen programs available offers a choice in premiums, fees, co-pays, and deductibles which results in increased confusion and worry about whether the right decision was made.  Here are some considerations when navigating the maze of choices:

• Traditional Medicare consists of Part A which has no charge as long as you or a spouse has paid into Medicare via a payroll deduction, for 10 or more years, that covers hospitalization 
• Traditional Medicare also has a Part B with premiums for around $96.4 a month which pays for doctor visits and other types of outpatient care
• Traditional Medicare doesn’t pick up the tab for everything; patients are required to pay a portion of some of their bills, via deductibles and other cost-sharing arrangements.
• Seniors can purchase Medigap (officially known as Medicare Supplement Insurance) which will cover the costs that Medicare will not pick up.
• Medicap options are offered by private companies and are labeled "A" through "L” offering different basic and extra benefits. The more benefits, the higher the premium.
• Medigap does not cover prescription drugs therefore you should look into purchasing Medicare Part D for additional prescription drug coverage.
• Medicare Advantage gives seniors the options of receiving Medicare Coverage through private insurers.  These plans typically cover a larger number of benefits such as prescription and dental.  Though the payments for these might be lower premiums, the company that insures them can change fees from year to year, restrict seniors to going to providers in their networks, have larger deductibles, and do not fully protect seniors from high medical bills.
• Before choosing a plan, seniors should first ensure their doctors and local hospitals are covered in the plan they are choosing. 
• HMO’s severely restrict the care seniors are able to get outside of network
• PPOs allow policyholders to more readily visit doctors and receive care outside of their network. 
• Make sure any plan a senior joins has a cap for annual expenditures.
• Pick carefully since it can take months to switch a plan during the Nov 15^th to March 31^st enrollment dates. 

When looking for prescription drug costs and Medicare Part D, consider this link from Drugs.com.