Wild Thing.... You make my heart sing

This class has helped me gain a better perspective on the elderly. I really enjoyed doing the Senior Consulting Project since it helped me learn more about my senior friend Linda's life. I wanted to do this blog on how elderly people learn to use leisure time pleasurably.

When I was young, my dad and I would go for bike rides sometimes stopping by at the Rehab Center he worked at. I would see the seniors out in the park/garden area reading a book or pass by some rooms playing bingo and other games. I think it was from these little visits, I formulated a preconcieved notion that the elderly are not very active people.

Reading the book for this class, browsing through news articles to find a journal topic, and doing the Senior Consulting Project, has made me realize how incredibly wrong I was. There are elderly people who led very active and healthy lifestyles! The woman I interviewed, Linda, and her husband made it one of their major goals in their retirement to be committed to going to the gym and walk daily. They have found themselves walking three miles daily and sometimes twice a day! Going on these walks have also helped them reconnect and enjoy themselves. On researching what seniors like to do for recreation, I found that exercise walking is the most popular sports activity for seniors. Followed by other activities such as exercising with equipment, net fishing, camping, golf, and swimming.

Her and her husband still host parties at their home, their two favorites are Chili and Chowder Night and Desert Competitions. She even joined a Red Hat group, making some wonderful friends. Linda's liked how she has been able to pursue new hobbies like taking a beginner's cake decorating class and having the time to sew and make outfits for her grandchildren. I've seen some of her work and also the quilts that she's made for them and let me tell you-- I wish my grandmother had done those things for me!

I've also learned that about 78% of seniors ages 65 and older own a motor vehicle. The lady I babysit for just told me that her 62 year old father recently made a motorcycle purchase. Both of her parents have jackets and bike helmets to go out riding.

One of the main reasons Linda and her husband are leading great lifestyles after their retirement is that they dedicated most of their lives to raising their children to the best of their ability and now that their kids are all grown up they're both committed to keep on enriching their lives.

Many elders are still young at heart. After taking this class, I've learned to embrace the aging process... it really is all about having a positive attitude!

Resources: http://seniorliving.about.com/od/lawpolitics/a/senior_pop_life.htm

Wild Card - Hospital Type May Play Role in Decision on Feeding Tubes

I've always heard you get wiser as you get older. Unfortunately, we are also more susceptible to age related diseases that affect our cognitive ability such as dementia. According to WebMD, dementia is "a loss of mental skills that affects your daily life." This disease progressively worsens over time and each individual's case is unique. Dementia is one of the world's fastest growing disease, here's a staggering statistic: "Worldwide, there are now an estimated 24 million people living with some form of dementia. Without a major medical breakthrough in the fight against dementia, this number could jump to as many as 84 million who have age-related memory loss by the year 2040" (disabled-world.com).

With so many people affected by dementia, I was bothered when I came across an article in the New York Times about Aging: Hospital Type May Play Role in Decision on Feeding Tubes. It talked about how a majority of hospital patients with advanced dementia are usually given feeding tubes. Although the use of feeding tubes does not increase their chances of living longer. A new study indicates the practice of feeding tubes is more prevalent at certain hospitals.

The study was in last month's issue of The Journal of the American Medical Association and it utilized data from over a quarter of a million admissions of nursing home residents to thousands of hospitals in 2000 to 2007. "Large hospitals and for-profit hospitals were more likely than others to insert the tubes, as were hospitals deemed aggressive about providing end-of-life care" (nytimes.com).

It was interesting to know that these findings suggested that decisions related to the care of dementia patients are likely to be based on hospital practices than the patient's or their families' wishes. With the increasing amount of people affected by dementia it certainly is troubling thinking about how one's wishes are not being respected in their health care. All hospitals should practice humane services. Another improvement that could be made is how the patient's family is informed on deciding for their loved ones. Actions taken should ultimately be based on the patient's previous wishes.


Resources:
http://www.nytimes.com/2010/02/16/health/16aging.html
http://www.disabled-world.com/health/aging/dementia/statistics.php
http://www.webmd.com/alzheimers/tc/dementia-topic-overview

Elderly Drivers

Studies have shown that motor vehicles are the leading cause of accidental death among elders aged 65 to 74 and the second leading cause of death for people over the age of 75 years. With those alarming findings, Florida should adopt mandatory testing of drivers over the age of 65.

Some statistics to consider:

• The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration reported in 2006 (when the last data was computed), there were about 30 million elderly drivers in America
• In 2006, nearly 6,000 elderly people were killed in road accidents
• By 2030, the elderly would make up about 25% of the total driving population and they will be involved in nearly 25% of fatal vehicular accidents

With those huge figures at a national level, Florida should take as many preventive measures possible to decrease the likelihood of driving fatalities resulting from elders over the age of 65. I don't believe Florida's requirement for drivers 80 and older to pass a vision test is enough. The age requirement for an annual vision exam should start at 65. Florida's current requirement resulted in a 7% loss of a license for elderly drivers seeking renewal. While about 20% of those over 80 years old gave up driving because they did not think they could pass the vision test.

When I was a teen driver, my parents limited my driving to certain places because I did not have the experience and maturity of adult drivers. It's ironic how elder drivers have experienced so much from years behind the wheel but due to the aging process their abilities have greatly declined. Diminishing visual acuity, reflexes, and memory are just a few examples of what make driving harder for elders.

If Florida adopts mandatory testing for drivers over 65, our roads will be safer and we will be more prepared to handle the baby boomer generation when all of them are at least 65 years old in 2030. Prevention is key and it should not take a horrific accident for state legislatures to put something into action.

Resources:
http://www.babyboomercaretaker.com/Law?Elderly-Driving-Statistics.html
http://www.usatoday.com/news/nation/2007-05-02-older-drivers-usa1a_N.htm

Aging Stereotypes

Stereotypes exist for all age groups. The elderly in particular seem to have more negative than positive stereotypes associated with them. Although I try not to, I can plead guilty for negatively stereotyping elders. Ultimately, they deserve a special place in society where they are truly appreciated and respected for their age acquired wisdom and experiences. The media and society in general has heavily influenced our views in the aging process.

Many movies portray older people either as mean, smelly, grouches like in Dennis the Menace or excessively fat such as Big Momma's House and Mrs. Doubtfire. When I was younger, I believed seniors were stricter than my parents. Whenever I was in the vicinity of an elder, I made sure I was on my best behavior because I really thought they'd lose their patience and just snap at me. I remember I smiled at an old man when I was little but he just sat in his wheel chair looking grumpy. It must have been since then I've formulated various stereotypes leading to old people being mad at the world.

Stereotypes are true to an extent and are mainly just generalizations about a group. When I was younger I tried not to play with my friends loudly around seniors because I saw them as impatient people who couldn't tolerate loud noises. As we age we do lose tolerance to loud sounds but as for impatience, they have been around a lot longer and probably cannot fathom why it takes everyone else a little more time to understand.

I think they have learned what works and doesn't work for them so when something is changed they feel aggravated. My grandma is 86 years old and has been on the same meal schedule for years. Breakfast at 8am, lunch at noon, and dinner at 6pm. If any of her meal times are off schedule, she gets annoyed and it ends up throwing off her whole day!

One of the biggest stereotypes of all are the elderly being bad drivers. When I was first learning to drive and was behind someone slow, I automatically assumed it was someone old behind the wheel. Now I respect the fact that since they're older and have slower reaction times, seniors just have to drive at whatever speed they feel the most comfortable. Making the road safe for them and other drivers.

I hope we can all surpass these stereotypes and truly appreciate our elders for the wonderful people they are with all they have to offer with their knowledge and experiences.