Jennifer Campbell

Substance Abuse Awareness For Seniors

Substance abuse problems often go unrecognized by seniors or their family. It is extremely important that seniors carefully monitor the use of both prescription and non-prescription medicines and strictly limit their alcohol intake. Keeping a list of all medications that includes the dosage requirements can help seniors and their physicians keep track of their medications. This list should be with you in case of an accident that may require hospitalization. Consult a physician or your pharmacist concerning potential interactions between prescription medicines and over-the-counter drugs. Be responsible for your own health and don’t be afraid to ask questions about your medications.

Ask your healthcare provider if it is safe to drink alcohol. Alcohol can interact dangerously with many prescriptions and over the counter medicines. Because metabolism changes with age, seniors are unable to process alcohol as effectively as younger people. Although alcohol on special occasions or in moderation may be fine, it is a risk for people with dementia, diabetes, liver disease, and high blood pressure or combined with certain medications. Many people use medications and alcohol to help them cope with depression. Research has shown that alcohol and medication abuse is responsible for falls, insomnia and heart problems. The U.S. Department of Health and Human Services recommends that adults 60 years and older limit their drinking to one drink per day providing your healthcare provider approves.

The Substance Abuse Awareness for Seniors (SAAS) initiative was created by the District of Columbia Department of Health, Addiction Prevention and Recovery Administration (DOH/APRA). SAAS offers education, referrals, advocacy and training for providers of elder care services on assessing and addressing chemical dependency issues with seniors.

If you or a loved one are a senior living with chemical dependency, SAAS can help you find resources to face the problem and develop a plan of action. When confronting a loved one about their problem, be sure to explain to them why you feel that they need help and let them know how much you care about them. It is important for individuals to know that alcoholism and drug addiction is a disease and that there is a wealth of community resources available to help them.

Community Resources for Seniors with Chemical Dependency:

Substance Abuse Awareness for Seniors (DOH/APRA Office of Special Population Services)
202-442-9171

National Drug and Alcohol Referral Line
1-800-821-4357

DOH/ APRA
1-888-7WE-HELP /1-888-793-4357

Important Questions You Should Ask

When selecting a nursing home, assisted living facility, or any type of elderly care, we recommended that you ask the following questions of the administrator or admissions coordinator:

  1. What levels of care do they offer?
  2. Do they accept Medicare or Medicaid?
  3. Are there any restrictions on the type of patients they admit?
  4. What is provided for in the basic daily rate?
  5. What services cost extra?
  6. Is there a volunteer program?

We also recommended that you visit the facility and observe the following:

  1. Is there adequate staff? Check on how long nurse call lights stay on.See if the patients look clean and if they are dressed in clean clothes. Observe if staff members are kind and responsive when they talk to residents.
  2. Is the food good? Ask a resident how it tastes. See if it looks good and if it is served hot. Do the patients seem to get enough to eat? Are they offered second servings, diet permitting? Does the home serve snacks? Is the dining room clean and well furnished? Are patients assisted with eating when required?
  3. Is there an activity program? Ask if a full-time activity director is employed. Is a list of activities posted? Is there something for patients to do who are confined to their rooms? Are there many patients sitting around with nothing to do? Does the facility have community TV with good reception? Is there a volunteer program?

Based on the above factors, your choice of a senior/elderly care facility should include the following:

  1. Good visible resident care.
  2. Convenient location.
  3. Friendly, competent staff.
  4. Good food, well prepared, attractively served, in adequate portions.
  5. Clean facilities, free of unpleasant odors.

Choosing an Alzheimer’s Disease/Dementia Community

Knowing what to do and where to turn for help when our loved one is diagnosed with Alzheimer’s disease (AD) or related memory impairment/dementia can be very confusing. Due to the progression of the disease and the symptoms that typically accompany it, more help may be required than can be provided at home. The physical strength of the primary caregiver, the demands of work and family, the availability of financial resources and the ability of the caregiver to provide security and stimulation to the person with Alzheimer’s are all factors that must be weighed carefully. Often the choice to place the individual in a care facility is made at the last minute in a crisis situation. But with proper planning and the use of a few guidelines, you can make the decision that will best suit you and your loved one’s needs before the situation reaches a crisis level.

Today there are a variety of programs designed specifically to meet the needs of people with Alzheimer’s disease, dementia, and related memory impairments. These include adult day care, assisted living, home health care, skilled nursing care, and special care units within nursing homes. It’s important to assess your senior loved one’s requirements prior to beginning your search, and we recommend that you visit at least three programs to determine which option is right for your particular situation. As you visit each facility, weigh the factors listed under each of the following categories.

PROGRAM PHILOSOPHY AND GOALS:

  • Encourages resident independence and functioning
  • Ensures dignity and individual expression
  • Ensures resident safety
  • Provides peace of mind
  • Reduces confusion and agitation
  • Minimizes the use of physical restraints and medications
  • Promotes family involvement

INDIVIDUAL PLAN OF CARE:

  • Comprehensive assessment addresses the resident’s current and changing needs
  • Personalizes a plan of care for each resident
  • Planning process involves resident, family, interdisciplinary care team, and physician
  • Regular reassessment of needs

STAFF:

  • Full-time program director
  • Staff well educated in Alzheimer’s disease process and care techniques
  • Ongoing specialized staff training and education
  • High staff-to-resident ratios on all three shifts
  • Consulting psychiatrist, medical director, and other specialties
  • Interdisciplinary team approach
  • Licensed nurses direct care

STRUCTURED PROGRAMMING:

  • Individually tailored activities scheduled seven days a week
  • Activities focus on resident’s strengths
  • Active and passive program from life skills to exercise, music, art, current events, and social activities
  • Short, flexible and success-oriented activities
  • Large group, small group and one-on-one activities

ENVIRONMENT

  • Self-contained, secure, cheerful yet calm atmosphere
  • Enclosed courtyard/backyard
  • Dedicated dining, activity and private areas
  • Uncomplicated floor plan and visual cues to help residents stay oriented
  • Easily accessible bathrooms in common activity area
  • Simplified, soothing and homelike atmosphere

RESIDENTS

  • Engaged in activities
  • Appear comfortable
  • Well-groomed
  • Settled, well adjusted

FAMILY SERVICES

  • Family support group meetings
  • Ongoing education, support and counseling
  • Family conferences and involvement in care planning
  • Opportunities for families to socialize

DINING AND NUTRITION

  • Individually tailored food and nutrition plans created to individual’s needs and capabilities
  • Modified menus
  • Between-meal snacks and drinks
  • Innovative food presentation techniques that ease and encourage eating
  • Family-style dining
  • Special adaptive utensils
  • Family welcome to eat with resident

For a brochure containing this information, please contact Arden Courts Alzheimer’s Assisted Living
Austin (512) 918-2800 and San Antonio (210) 408-9100.

Dementia–The Importance of an Accurate Diagnosis and the Qualified Specialists to Make It

Being able to retrieve information stored in memory becomes more difficult as we age, but recent memory loss so severe that it interferes with an individual’s daily functioning is not part of the normal aging process. It is a symptom of dementia, a gradual decline of intellectual functions such as remembering, thinking and reasoning. The most common type of dementia is Alzheimer’s disease (A.D.), a progressive, degenerative, terminal disorder that gradually damages and destroys nerve cells in the brain.

Although a definitive diagnosis of Alzheimer’s can only be made by analyzing the brain on autopsy following death, current methods of evaluation by qualified doctors specializing in the care of senior adults can make a diagnosis of Alzheimer’s 90% accurate. Other diseases that can cause similar symptoms can be ruled out in the process and treated.

What Should Be Included in an Evaluation?
It is important that the person suspected of having Alzheimer’s disease undergo a thorough physical, psychiatric, and neurological evaluation so that reversible conditions such as thyroid disease, metabolic problems, depression, adverse drug reactions, head injuries, etc. can be ruled out or treated.

There is no single diagnostic test for Alzheimer’s, but physicians specializing in the care of the geriatric/elderly patient can reliably diagnose the disease with a series of evaluations and tests:

  • Medical evaluation and family interviews—a detailed report from the patient and family member including observable changes and current symptoms.
  • Physical exam including lab tests to identify health problems such as thyroid, vitamin deficiencies and diabetes that might be responsible for symptoms.
  • Neurological exam including an EEG, an MRI and/or CT scan.
  • Neuropsychological testing and mental status examinations which assess reasoning, word-finding skills, writing ability, abstract thinking and cognitive skills.

Who Should Do the Evaluation?
Most senior adults prefer to rely on the physicians they have been seeing for their medical needs for many years. But their doctor may not have the knowledge of current advances in evaluation tools, medications, and treatments that physicians who specialize in care of the geriatric patient, and in memory problems/Alzheimer’s disease in particular, do.

Physicians who specifically work with older adults may be:

  • Family and Internal Medicine physicians with a geriatric specialty
  • Geriatric Psychiatrists
  • Neuropsychologists
  • Neurologists with a specialty in Alzheimer’s and Parkinson’s diseases

If your family physician is not familiar with specialists in your area, your local Area Agency on Aging and Alzheimer’s Association may be able to make recommendations.

Although there is no prevention or cure for Alzheimer’s, early detection can allow the family and the individual time to plan for the future and make legal and medical decisions according to the individuals’ wishes. Your loved one may have the opportunity to participate in one of the many research studies of experimental Alzheimer’s treatments. Medications prescribed in early to middle stages of the disease can help slow the deterioration process.

Provided by Arden Courts Alzheimer’s Assisted Living, 11630 Four Iron Drive, Austin, TX 78750 (512) 918-2800

Categories Uncategorized

Types of Senior Housing and Care

ACTIVE ADULT COMMUNITY Usually offer a choice of spacious homes rather than apartments, often with a clubhouse in which a variety of activities are planned for residents. Monthly fees may cover services such as housekeeping and maintenance, but meals are usually not included.
APARTMENTS Apartments for seniors who are totally independent. Meal service, activity, programs and services usually aren’t included.
CCRC Continuing Care Retirement Community. Full service communities offering a long-term contract that provides for a continuum of care, including retirement, assisted living and nursing services, all on one campus.
RETIREMENT Totally independent living with amenities such as meals, transportation and activities usually included in a monthly fee.
ASSISTED LIVING Multi-unit facilities that provide assistance with medications and daily activities such as bathing and dressing.
RESIDENTIAL Usually single family homes licensed to provide assistance with medications, bathing and dressing.
GROUP HOME Serves the Elderly and Disabled who do not require constant medical supervision but cannot live independently. These persons may be on medication but must be self compliant and ambulatory (assistance such as wheelchair or walker allowed.
ALZHEIMER’S Facilities offering specialized programs for residents suffering from Alzheimer’s Disease or other forms of memory loss. These programs can be offered by Residential, Assisted Living or Nursing facilities.
NURSING/REHAB Facilities licensed to provide skilled nursing services under the supervision of licensed nurses.
CONGREGATE CARE Usually single family homes licensed to provide assistance with medication, bathing and dressing. Also licensed to provide skilled nursing services under the supervision of licensed nurses.
SUB-ACUTE Facilities licensed to provide nursing services, but specializing in higher levels of care.
REHAB Comprehensive rehabilitation services include inpatient and outpatient treatment designed to restore and strengthen abilities.
HOME CARE Includes both companies that provide licensed health care services in the home and companies who provide non-medical assistance with such tasks as bathing, dressing, meal preparation and transportation. Medicare and Medicaid provide financial assistance in some cases.
HOSPICE Hospice care may be provided in the home or a senior care facility. Services can include pain management and a variety of emotional, spiritual and physical support issues. Medicare, and Medicaid provide financial assistance, in some cases.
DAY CARE Various programs provide a range of geriatric day services, including social, nutrition, nursing, and rehabilitation. Not all programs provide all services.
SITTER SERVICE Services of sitters, aides or private duty nurses or therapists in the home, hospital or residential facility on a private pay basis. May include personal care assistance, grooming, medication supervision, light housekeeping, transportation, nursing care or therapy.
CARE MANAGEMENT Offer advisory services addressing a wide range of senior issues, such as selecting a senior residence, choosing in-home care providers, and various financial options. Typically care managers evaluate a senior’s situation with regard to health needs, housing choices and financial needs and then provide a recommended care plan.
BEHAVIORAL HEALTH These are usually hospital-based programs that provide a range of geriatric psychiatric services in either an in-patient or outpatient basis. Medicare & Medicaid (or Medi-Cal) provide financial assistance in some cases.
PHYSICIAN CARE Medical professionals who offer health services or referrals to match the special needs of patients.

 

 
Categories Uncategorized

Selecting a Continuing Care Retirement Community

In recent years, many attractive options for seniors interested in retirement living have emerged. One popular option is the Continuing Care Retirement Community, or CCRC. This type of community is different from other housing and care options for seniors because it offers a long-term contract that provides for housing, services and nursing care, usually all in one location.

Continuing Care Retirement Communities offer some distinct advantages, including physical and financial security, independence and access to health care, companionship of friends and neighbors of similar age, and access to community facilities and privacy. The CCRC’s emphasis on the individual, coupled with a supportive environment, allows you to continue to pursue your lifelong interests.

There are many different options in the CCRC industry. For example, consider the community size when making your decision; do you prefer a large community with many options and services, or something smaller and more individualized? Would you prefer a more “formal” environment or are you a casual person at heart? There are CCRCs of all types and sizes, and you should find one where you will feel most at home. Use the list below as a starting point for asking questions when visiting or contacting these senior retirement communities.

If you have decided that a Continuing Care Retirement Community is the best option for yourself or a family member, it is best to visit a few facilities. Here is a checklist of things to keep in mind and questions to ask as you decide what facility is best for you:

  1. Find out what kinds of services the facility offers and which ones are included at no extra cost. Sometimes extra services are only available for additional fees.
  2. Inquire as to what kinds of contracts are available to you. The CCRC contract is a legal agreement between you (the consumer) and a Continuing Care Retirement Community. This agreement generally secures living accommodations and services, including health care services over the long-term. Determine what fee structure and contract option best suits your personal circumstances. The three most common types of CCRC agreements are:
    • Extensive contract: this offers unlimited long-term nursing care for little or no substantial increase in your usual monthly payments.
    • Modified contract: this includes a specified amount of long-term nursing care beyond which you are responsible for payment.
    • Fee-for-service contract: you pay full daily rates for all long-term nursing care required.
  3. Find out if the CCRC is subject to licensure. Ask to see the most recent inspection reports.
  4. Find out what the payment schedule is. Also, find out if the residents own or rent their living space.
  5. Before signing a contract, have your accountant or lawyer review the contract.