Seniors and Wellness Checkups

If you are a senior citizen, you may or may not know that there is a “Welcome to Medicare” physical exam for which Medicare pays 80 percent of the cost. The reason I said you may or may not know about it is because in 2010, less than 10 percent of senior citizens took advantage of this exam. However, starting in 2011, Medicare is going to make a stab at getting seniors in for wellness checkups with a new preventative health exam. This new exam, which offers many preventative screenings and services for free, gets the patients together with their … Continue reading →

President Obama’s Town Hall Meeting with Seniors

President Obama has met a lot of opposition to his new health-care law, but today, he tried to win over senior citizens as many watched his live broadcast about changes in Medicare. Senior citizens may be one of the most concerned groups about health care. After all, as many people age, their health starts to fail or at least become more fragile. And most senior citizens are on a limited budget. With medical care and prescriptions rising, the cause for alarm is understandable. Under the new health-care law, seniors on Medicare will begin receiving $250 drug rebate checks in the … Continue reading →

Dementia and the Flu

Seems like an odd combination, no? Dementia and the flu. Researchers from the Tufts University School of Medicine found that there may indeed be a connection between dementia and the flu… and it’s not a good one. Seniors with dementia seem to be diagnosed with the flu less often. They have shorter hospital stays if they are diagnosed with the flu, and are more likely to die from the flu or complications of the flu than seniors without dementia. The research team looked at five years of data from the U.S. Centers for Medicaid and Medicare Services. That data included … Continue reading →

Age and Muscle Loss (and How You Can Prevent It)

Isn’t getting older fun? Among other delights to look forward to is age-related muscle loss. As we age, our muscles shrink — especially after the age of sixty-five. Previous research has noted that the bodies of older people build muscle less efficiently than the bodies of younger people. That’s only half the bad news. (Or maybe a third. Losing muscle increases a person’s chance of serious injury from a fall — and that’s very bad.) New research from the University of Nottingham in England has found that the bodies of older people are also not as good at preventing muscle … Continue reading →

Sixteen Helpful Home Modifications for Seniors

Home modifications are one way to help a senior stay in his or her home safely — rather than have to relocate with family or to an assisted living facility. Modifications can help a person adapt to changes in ability and health, prevent falls, and more. In the bathroom: Replace the toilet with a higher (taller) model or one with a longer seat to make it easier to get up and down. This is especially useful for people in wheelchairs or with hip issues. Install grab bars around the bathtub and toilet to make getting up and down easier and … Continue reading →

Age and Wisdom

There’s tons of research out there about how the ability to learn and remember declines as we age. Researchers are now starting to look at what our brains gain as we age: wisdom. Wisdom is the ability to make sense of information and experiences. It’s not so much learning new things as making connections between old ones. Knowledge is important to wisdom, but it isn’t the only thing involved; other important factors include good judgment, insight, diverse life experiences, and empathy. Take a person who knows a lot, has seen a lot, and has done a lot… and you’ve probably … Continue reading →

Relieving Depression in Seniors

If an older person in your care is diagnosed with depression, you may find it difficult to treat. Many seniors are resistant to the idea of being labeled as “mentally ill” and may refuse to participate in treatment. Antidepressant medications tend to work well in senior citizens, but they’re only part of the treatment. As my own doctor has told me, medication gets you to a stable place where therapy can actually help (and help keep you stable). One drawback of using antidepressants is the side effects. Dizziness can lead to falls — a leading cause of death for seniors. … Continue reading →

Warning Signs for Depression in Seniors

The signs of depression in senior citizens can be subtle — especially if the person does not want to acknowledge that they have a problem. For today’s older adults, an admission of a mental problem like depression often meant a trip to an institution for care. That would make me reluctant to speak up, for sure. Knowing the warning signs of depression in seniors can help. Depression that comes late in life may not look like the depression seen in younger people. Watch for mood changes — especially in the wake of a major life change like moving, losing a … Continue reading →

Depression in Seniors

Would your parent or grandparent tell you if they were depressed? According to statistics from the American Psychological Association’s Society of Clinical Geropsychology, most of today’s generation of seniors wouldn’t. Although many older people are quite free with talking about aches and pains, the idea of mental illness (like depression) is embarrassing. As many as seven million Americans over the age of sixty-five may be suffering from depression. Here’s some more bad news about older adults and depression: As much as ninety percent of the older Americans suffering from depression aren’t getting any help for it. The suicide rate for … Continue reading →

Falls and Brain Injury

Breaking a hip isn’t the only thing to fear when an older adult has an unintentional fall. Brain injury can cause long-term problems, affect how a person functions, and even impact emotional well-being! Some unpleasant statistics from a U.S. Centers for Disease Control study: Traumatic brain injuries (TBI) from a fall resulted in nearly 8,000 deaths in seniors and more than 50,000 hospitalizations in 2005. The death and hospitalization rates for TBI increase as age increases. The average hospital stay for an older adult with a fall-related TBI is four days. The average cost of a hospital stay for an … Continue reading →