Traxx Mobility Systems

University of Arizona researchers examine the relationship between loneliness and being alone

Thu, 02 Nov 2023 19:51:24 GMT

A new study finds that solitary time does not closely correlate with feelings of loneliness – unless a person spends 75% of their time alone.

By Niranjana Rajalakshmi

In a world filled with endless connections and constant communication, the relationship between loneliness and aloneness is not always clear. Now, University of Arizona researchers have analyzed that relationship – and found that they are two different things that are not closely correlated.

People don't feel lonely until they spend three-quarters of their time alone, the study found. However, when their alone time goes beyond 75%, it becomes difficult for them to avoid feelings of loneliness.

Published in the Journal of Research in Personality in September, the study also concludes that among older adults, there is a particularly strong association between time spent alone and feeling lonely. The study was led by Alex Danvers, a former postdoctoral associate at University of Arizona, and Liliane Efinger, a former visiting graduate student.

The social network of people gets smaller as they get older, and the ability to spend time with others diminishes for many older adults, said David Sbarra , a University of Arizona professor of psychology and a senior author on the paper.

"Among adults 68 years and older, we found that loneliness is strongly connected with being socially isolated," Sbarra said.

Mentioning the 2023 U.S. Surgeon General's advisory about the pattern of increase in loneliness, Sbarra said attention increasingly has focused on loneliness as a health determinant.

"We are learning more and more about the importance of social connections for human health, and it appears that loneliness and isolation are related but distinct concepts," he said.

"We needed a good measure of how much time people spend alone, and that's why we started this research," said Matthias Mehl , a University of Arizona psychology professor, also a senior author of the study.

Over the course of his career, Mehl has developed a method for studying social activity in everyday life. The Electronically Activated Recorder, or EAR, is a smartphone app that records with participants' permission the sounds they make for 30 seconds every 12 minutes.

EAR is a useful tool for observing daily social behaviors, Sbarra said. In this study, the researchers used EAR to characterize time spent alone.

"Feeling lonely is different from being alone, and EAR is an exciting new method for assessing time spent alone," Sbarra said.

Overall, the study participants spent 66% of their time alone, and those who were alone for more than 75% of their time were the ones who felt the most lonely. On analyzing the result from the entire participant pool, there was only a 3% overlap between aloneness and loneliness.

In younger people, aloneness and loneliness are just two different things, Mehl said. They may feel lonely in a crowd, or they may not feel lonely when they are by themselves.

The case is different with older adults, Mehl said. In older people, since feeling lonely and being alone are tightly linked, being with others and socializing is the way to combat feelings of loneliness, according to Mehl. The strong relationship between the two was found in adults older than 67, and there was an overlap of about 25% between loneliness and aloneness in older people, he said.

The study involved over 400 participants with archival data collected in a series of studies completed over the last 20 years.

"For instance, we know if the person is on the phone, if they are driving, watching television or if they are interacting with a partner or a stranger," Mehl said.

Although EAR has many benefits, it is a time-consuming method for researchers to quantify the metrics of social behavior. To avoid hours of coding sound files and to more efficiently measure aloneness, Mehl is now working with a team to develop SocialBit, an app that runs on a smartwatch, analogous to commercially available fitness trackers.

Much as fitness trackers measure physical activity by counting steps per day, SocialBit will measure social activity by measuring minutes of conversations per day, Mehl said.

The device is expected to be rolled out in the next couple of years. The researchers are developing it for stroke patients during recovery, given that social isolation after stroke is significant, Mehl said.

"In order to facilitate more social connection, we first need to be able to measure it well," Mehl said. "Methods like SocialBit can tell people, 'You’ve been solitary for too long. It’s time to try to have a conversation.'"

This article originally appeared here: https://news.arizona.edu/story/uarizona-researchers-examine-relationship-between-loneliness-and-being-alone

New Test Could Help Doctors Diagnose Early Alzheimer's

Mon, 16 Oct 2023 19:17:27 GMT

Cerebrospinal Fluid Tests for Alzheimer's Disease

New tests that measure beta-amyloid and tau proteins in cerebrospinal fluid - which surrounds the brain and spinal cord - could help doctors diagnose early Alzheimer's so people with the disease can take new and emerging medications that may slow progression. One test, cleared by the FDA in 2022, compares levels of two beta-amyloids that build up in the brain with Alzheimer's. Other test for Alzheimer's biomarkers have also received FDA clearance in the past two years. In studies, results of the tests were comparable to PET brain scans used to detect Alzheimer's brain changes.

7 Things You Should Know About Your Elderly Parents

colson@traxxms.com (Chris Olson) — Mon, 25 Sep 2023 16:52:11 GMT

It’s never too early to begin understanding and preparing for the senior years.

You discover that your widowed mother has no will or plans for her estate or health care. Or perhaps both your parents are in their late 80s and still living in the home you were raised in—but their mobility has decreased. Getting old looks different for everyone, but at the same time, most older people have a lot in common, including those two scenarios. Another thing they have in common is that they put off planning for the future. The aging process can be overwhelming, but the journey could be easier if families started to plan for it earlier.

Navigating the Path Ahead

Our culture’s focus on youth might prevent more open discussions about planning for our later years. Perhaps we put off the subject because it is so overwhelming. Or, maybe it is just denial. Whatever the reason, there are things all adults should know about getting old—both so they can prepare themselves, and so they can better help their parents.

Here are seven things you might wish you’d known sooner about your parents:

They may not tell you about their cognitive changes. Not everyone will experience significant cognitive decline or dementia, but memory issues can be common. Many people don’t want to admit they’re having a problem, because that may lead to a diagnosis or a change in their lifestyle. It’s important to know the signs of potential cognitive decline.
Their health care needs are changing. The elderly often have increased health care needs, including more medications, doctor appointments, and procedures. Be aware of your parents’ health concerns and help when you can. Educate yourself about overmedication (also called polypharmacy).
They’re at risk for loneliness and depression. Aging can bring feelings of loneliness, isolation, and even depression. Physical changes or chronic illness may add to the sadness. Encourage your parents to stay socially engaged. It can be vital for their emotional and even cognitive well-being.
They probably haven’t done any end-of-life planning. Do they have a will? Have they named their health care proxy—someone who can express their wishes if they are unable to? Difficult as it may be, it’s essential to discuss these topics with your parents. If they become disabled or die without important documents in place, managing their care and their estate, selling their home, or settling their bills becomes even more complex.
They don’t want to move. Most seniors want to stay in their homes as long as possible (called “aging in place”). Whether that is safe or feasible can be a different story. You may be surprised at how resistant your parents are to any talk of moving—even if it’s for their own safety. Learn about the ways homes can be adapted to improve safety for seniors.
Transportation may be a problem. As people age, their ability to drive can become compromised. If your parents decide on their own to limit their driving, how will they get to their stores, doctors and social activities? Help them look into the options.
Routines may be more significant than before. Having a routine can provide comfort and structure, especially for those with cognitive impairments. It helps to maintain a sense of normality and purpose.

It’s never too early to begin understanding and preparing for the senior years. While these points might provide a starting place, each person’s journey is unique. If you plan to discuss your concerns with your parents, remember that they have long been in charge of their own lives, their homes and their families. Approach the subject with compassion and understanding.

This article originally appeared on rightathome.net .

Disaster Relief Often Leaves Disabled People Behind.

Thu, 07 Sep 2023 17:58:55 GMT

Disabled First Responders Are Changing That.

Disability inclusion in emergency preparedness and response doesn’t just mean supporting disabled victims of extreme weather. It also means including disabled communities in disaster relief strategy.

STORY BY Bianca Gonzalez

PUBLISHED ON

Sep 6, 2023

This article originally appeared on Next City

https://nextcity.org/features/disaster-relief-leaves-disabled-people-disabled-first-responders-hurricane?utm_medium=social&utm_source=twitter_snd

Next City and Prism ’s series “Disability Justice For All,” covers how people of color are leading a disability justice movement in American cities, making strides toward equity in housing, mobility, labor, health care and beyond.

When disaster strikes, disabled people and low-income communities are hit the hardest and face higher mortality rates. They also take longer to recover.

Germán Parodi and Shaylin Sluzalis were protesting in Washington, D.C., for disability rights as they found out Hurricane Maria was on its way to Puerto Rico in 2017. Now the co-directors of The Partnership for Inclusive Disaster Strategies , they were deployed as part of a disabled first responder team. Parodi, who was born and raised on the island, lives with a mobility disability, while Sluzalis lives with an invisible disability.

“Being culturally aware of the dynamics of the island … and knowing how to interact with people with different types of disabilities opened doors that we were being told wouldn’t open in some neighborhoods,” says Parodi.

The Partnership connected with MAVI , an independent living center for those with disabilities and the aging population in Puerto Rico, along with CEPVI , the island’s Ponce-based Center for Independent Living. By coordinating efforts with disability-led organizations and FEMA, The Partnership was able to support more than 100 families in the mountainous areas of the island over the three weeks that followed.

Supporting disabled Puerto Ricans through Hurricane Maria

“The first step is always connecting with disability-led organizations in the area and letting them take the lead and figure out how we can best support them,” says disability rights advocate Priya Penner, currently an executive assistant for The Partnership.

The Partnership works to include disabled people in all phases of natural disasters. “We do everything from technical assistance with state [and] local governments to partnerships with FEMA, to our disability and disaster hotline, to training and community-specific organizations in a one-on-one type of work services,” explains Penner. The Philadelphia-based organization is the only U.S. organization led by disabled individuals that focuses on equity for disability in all parts of disaster strategy.

Inclusive responses to Hurricane Ian

When Hurricane Ian made landfall as a Category 4 storm on Sept. 28, 2022, nearly 3 million of Florida’s 4.6 million disabled people lived in counties decimated by the storm.

Just 10 days prior, all of Puerto Rico had been hit by Hurricane Fiona, a Category 1 storm. Thousands on the island were still without power when Hurricane Ian hit. The need for an inclusive disaster strategy in the region was high and immediate.

In the days leading up to the storm, The Partnership for Inclusive Disaster Strategies began connecting with local organizations in Florida and the Carolinas—where Ian later traveled—to support those with disabilities in getting to safety and accessing essential services and supplies they immediately needed.

As Ian struck, The Partnership maintained support for MAVI in Puerto Rico, which they had already connected to in response to Hurricane Fiona. Their U.S. Disability and Disaster Hotline , established in 2017, enabled them to coordinate with local organizations to connect disabled people to the resources they needed.

After a natural disaster, disabled people have additional barriers to accessing medical care and maintaining medical equipment. By partnering with Florida Center for Independent Living Network , the disabled first responder team was able to get those who would have otherwise been institutionalized in nursing homes.

“They were being wrongly discharged,” explains Parodi. “A week or two later they would need to be hospitalized again because they acquired injuries during the storm and were getting surgeries for what they were being discharged from.” In a matter of hours, they were able to get those individuals into hotel rooms with attendant care services.

From the Gulf Coast to the Atlantic Coast, these disaster-relief organizations worked to reach disabled people when they needed it most. One woman had to sit and sleep in her wheelchair for 10 nights straight and began developing edema in her legs. The Partnership assisted the American Red Cross in delivering an appropriate bed for her.

In Fort Myers, Florida, The Partnership worked with the Florida Center for Independent Living Network when a woman in her 60s who uses a walker was discharged from the hospital after storm-related injuries, only to find that she couldn’t navigate the debris in her house or get to a bathroom.

A volunteer with The Resilience Resource contacted the hotline and helped her relocate to a hotel near the hospital where her husband was still staying.

According to an AccuWeather report, one delivery driver who went back to work a week after the hurricane noticed that a man’s home wasn’t getting necessary repairs. “His house wasn’t getting cleaned up, the grass was knee high, his roof was damaged, there was no tarp on it yet,” Kimberly Breen, the delivery driver, said in the report. After finding out the man was hearing impaired, she called in to the hotline , and The Partnership connected him with the center. “A few days later … there’s a tarp on his roof, and his lawn is mowed.”

Addressing the impact of storms on recovering communities

Disabled people are more likely to be forced to leave their home and never return as a result of storms. From recent census data, 46% of deaf and hard-of-hearing evacuees reported that they never returned home after a disaster, compared to 30% of people without hearing problems. More than 74% of evacuees who are unable to walk faced a food shortage one month after a disaster, compared to 52% of people who can walk.

People of color who live with disabilities face additional barriers after a disaster. Black and Latinx populations are more likely to experience trauma and hardship during and after a disaster such as personal loss, property damage, and a delay in the restoration of basic resources like electricity.

Puerto Rico was so heavily impacted by Hurricane Fiona, which made landfall as a Category 1 storm, because of the damage Hurricane Maria did to the island’s electric grid. A full 36 days after Maria made landfall, 75% of the island’s 3.4 million residents remained without electricity, making it the biggest blackout in American history. As many as 200,000 people left the island after Hurricane Maria, with some sharing they were without power nine months into recovery.

Six years after Maria struck, blackouts are still occurring on an almost weekly basis, affecting anywhere from 250 to 1,000 people at a time, says Parodi, who argues the electric grid has become “the primary problem of recovering Puerto Rico.”

“We are not recognizing the trauma that this is developing in communities. It can become overbearing over constant disasters,” he says. An entire generation of children on the island is “growing up with a different concept of what reality is. We are sure that the power will come on every time we flick the switch, and that is not a certitude that they’re growing up with.”

It’s common for disabled people to rely on electricity-dependent equipment. More than 3 million Medicare recipients in the U.S., including some 44,000 based in Puerto Rico, rely on electricity-dependent equipment such as wheelchairs, tracheostomy suctioning machines, and hospital beds at home. Those who are on fixed incomes will not be able to afford or maintain an emergency generator.

“Those are compounding problems,” says Parodi, who saw more engagement with the disability community as Puerto Rico responded to the earthquakes of January 2020, largely as a result of increased collaboration between organizations.

While these relationships were effective in responding to that natural disaster, they were never formally developed and implemented as a plan. “Many local organizations just don’t have relationships with local emergency management that would fund or flow the funds to local organizations,” he says.

Worsening climate change increases need for inclusive disaster relief

With climate-related crises growing worse, a comprehensive disability-led approach to disaster relief is more important than ever. Flooding is expected to get worse as sea levels rise, rain rates and wind intensities increase, and the number of Category 4 and 5 hurricanes also likely goes up .

Climate change also causes a disproportionate impact of extreme heat on areas. A 2021 study on urban heat in the Southwest found that the poorest 10% of neighborhoods in a given city were on average 2.2 degrees C (4 degrees F) than the wealthiest 10% of neighborhoods on both extreme heat days and average summer days.

As other disasters and extreme weather events worsen, systemic barriers continue to perpetuate unequal access to important resources such as cooling centers, or air-conditioned buildings that are designated as safe places during extreme heat. “They’re not necessarily close or nearby. If you don’t have access to a vehicle or public transit isn’t available or consistent, you’re not going to get to those cooling centers,” says demographer Noli Brazil, an assistant professor in the Department of Human Ecology at the University of California, Davis.

While disabled people and people of color are more vulnerable to extreme heat, they also face heightened barriers in escaping this heat. That’s due to both their greater likelihood of living in hotter, lower-income areas and being surrounded by poor public transportation infrastructure. A 2021 study of 25 U.S. cities found that only 10% of people were within “walking distance” or a half mile of a cooling center.

Climate change is already causing an increase in wildfire seasons’ length, frequency, and burned area by creating longer dry seasons, coupled with drier soils and vegetation. Fires are becoming more severe and frequent as a result of increased temperatures and drought.

Supporting legislation to include disabled people’s needs

To address barriers and lack of preparedness for assisting disabled Americans during extreme weather and other crises, The Partnership works to advocate for policy change at a federal level.

The Partnership was one of the main disability organizations involved in crafting the original language of the Real Emergency Access for Aging and Disability Inclusion (REAADI) for Disasters Act, which was reintroduced at the end of March this year.

“From the beginning, we had a strong interest in ensuring that it was done right and the language was as clear and as helpful as possible for the community,” said Penner.

First introduced in 2018, the REAADI for Disasters Act would establish a National Commission on Disability Rights and Disasters to include those with disabilities in all parts of disaster preparedness, as well as create a network of centers that would offer training, research, and assistance to support those with disabilities before and after disasters. It would also create a number of funding and grant opportunities.

“We must ensure that seniors and people with disabilities are active participants in developing emergency preparedness plans that will keep them safe and ensure that their needs are met before, during, and after a disaster strikes,” said Sen. Bob Casey when he announced the reintroduction of the bill in 2021.

The Partnership also had a hand in developing the Disaster Relief Medicaid Act, which was introduced in 2021 but has not yet been introduced into the 118th Congress. This bill would ensure that those who are eligible for Medicaid would continue receiving benefits even if they must relocate across state lines due to the impact of a disaster.

Bianca Gonzalez (she/they) is a writer intent on using words as a tool for social change. She is a solutions journalist for Next City, a case study writer for Community Solutions , and a daily news writer for Biometric Update . As a queer, Latina brain cancer survivor, she believes that justice is fundamentally intersectional.

Care Tactics: Hacking An Ableist World

Wed, 26 Oct 2022 19:03:03 GMT

HERE IS WHAT DOESN’T GO VIRAL:

By Laura Mauldin

Picture © Facultative Works

As part of a project funded by the Social Science Research Council , virtual interviews and home visits were conducted with forty-four caregivers, and their partners when possible, across twenty-two states to ask them about their caregiving experiences. Participants also provided photos of their homes and hacks. In compliance with research ethics, all names are pseudonyms.

For an archive of detailed examples of disability hacks sourced from the spousal caregivers and disabled folks who participated in this research, you can visit www.disabilityathome.org .

Ángel worked as a housepainter for decades but had a stroke three years ago that paralyzed the left side of his body. Now, his favorite spot is the recliner in his living room. From his perch, he can reach some essential items that he stores on a table to his right: a power screwdriver, painter’s tape, and a clipboard with paper and pen.

“I’d like to mount this new striker plate on the front door,” Ángel says. He transfers himself from the recliner to his wheelchair and leans over to pick up a small metal striker plate along with the roll of tape from the table. Using his right foot, he turns around and propels his wheelchair toward the front door. Then, he props the roll of tape between his knees in order to pull off a section. He sets the striker plate on the tape, pulls a little more while bracing it with his knees, and tears it off. Ángel wheels in closer to the frame and lifts the tape and striker plate onto the inside of the door jamb, pressing it into place. It stays there, mounted to the spot where he needs it. “Now, I just need to screw it on.” He wheels over, gets a screw from the table, and passes it through the hole in the striker plate so that it sits just inside the hole already drilled into the door jamb. “See?” Now, he’s set up to use the screwdriver with his “good hand.”

Here is what does go viral: braille decoder rings, sign-language-translating gloves, “haptic footwear” for blind folks, stair-climbing wheelchairs. In other words, a preponderance of innovations, unveiled to great fanfare, that purport to solve disability-related problems. While the press applauds the tech sector’s forward-thinking and sensitivity to the needs of underserved populations, the concerns of disabled people—voiced again and again and again—are disregarded. So much uncritical attention gets lavished on these seductive yet generally silly objects that the disabled design critic Liz Jackson aptly named them “ disability dongles ” in 2019. This concept was recently taken up again in a piece for Platypus coauthored by Jackson, along with Alex Haagaard and Rua Williams. In it, they argue that disability dongles generate feel-good content for brands that may be “promising in concept, but in actuality unattainable.” Indeed, they’re often just prototypes that designers have no intention of ever manufacturing.

In this way, disability is rarely meaningfully engaged, and efforts to build a more accessible world are abandoned in favor of high-tech Band-Aids designed to “fix” an individual person’s interactions with it. Meanwhile, disabled people develop and share hacks—which often don’t require high-tech anything—to MacGyver their way through daily life. I’m talking about ingenious practices that I’ve noted elsewhere , such as using a mortar and pestle to crush pills for a feeding tube that a plastic pill grinder couldn’t handle, or cutting a ring out of the opening of a sock and sliding it up to just below a knee to prevent skin irritation from a leg brace. In contrast to what gets churned out in glossy promotional materials for corporations and tech start-ups, disabled people find creative ways to make their worlds accessible every day.

Read the entire article here: https://thebaffler.com/salvos/care-tactics-mauldin?fbclid=IwAR1nL1DRDN8aW9r_q8HMlpF_1CHehhz-g699guF87F9i2n0ogLDEAluST-c

Reimbursing Family Caregivers

Tue, 31 May 2022 18:09:02 GMT

Credit for Caring Act of 2021, HR 3321/S 1670

by Kristin Easterling

This article originally appeared in Home Care Magazine

Family caregivers are a crucial and often overlooked component when it comes to providing care in the home. The work they do helps keep their loved ones out of the hospital and other institutional settings.

But family caregivers often forego the opportunity to fully participate in the workforce, resulting in decreased income, retirement savings and career opportunities. Family caregivers also frequently spend their own money to ensure that their loved ones receive care. Each year, family caregivers spend an average of $7,242 of their own money to pay for expenses related to caregiving. All of this adds up to approximately $470 billion in unpaid care each year, according to data from the National Association for Home Care & Hospice.

The Credit for Caring Act would help offset these expenses by providing a tax credit of 30% of qualified expenses over $2,000 and up to $5,000. Qualified expenses include respite care, home modifications and hiring homecare aides and other caregiving professionals to provide care and services, as well as needed home medical equipment.

The text of the bill defines an "eligible caregiver" as someone who incurs qualified expenses while caring for a loved one and who has an earned income in excess of $7,500 for the taxable year. Parents of young children with long-term care needs are also eligible for the tax credit after taking other tax benefits and credits into account, including the child tax credit. Individuals earning more that $75,000 per year or couples filing jointly and earning more that $150,000 per year are eligible for the tax credit but may see a reduction of $100 for each $1,000 over these thresholds.

Companion bills were introduced in the House and Senate in May 2021. The House bill currently has 66 cosponsors, and the Senate version has 20 cosponsors. It is currently in committee.

Advancing Healthy Nutrition and Aging with New Resources for Federal Advocacy

Tue, 15 Feb 2022 17:28:52 GMT

This is a subtitle for your new post

BY MEREDITH PONDER WHITMIRE AND LAURA BORTH

This article originally appeared on American Society on Aging, Generations.

Advocacy is a powerful and important catalyst for the change we want to see. In a healthcare environment focused on healthy aging and patient-centeredness, older adult malnutrition is a growing crisis, with up to half of older adults being at risk of malnutrition or malnourished. Malnutrition incidence is highest in Black, older adult and low-income communities and yet many people go undiagnosed. Recent reports during COVID-19 emphasize the need for federal relief funding and other pandemic nutrition benefits to continue.

Toolkit Goals

To support advocacy for funding and benefits, Defeat Malnutrition Today and Women in Government released a new Federal Advocacy Toolkit for Nutrition Care and Healthy Aging . It provides information on the issue of older adult malnutrition and how to communicate its impact to federal policymakers. The toolkit outlines strategies for working malnutrition policy proposals into upcoming legislative and public health policy to help ensure quality malnutrition care.

As older adults become a larger proportion of the U.S. population, it is important to promote public health policies that help keep them healthy and active. This begins by establishing malnutrition public health goals and quality measures that will evaluate the effectiveness of programs providing nutrition and healthcare.

For example, in many healthcare settings, adapting institutional trainings to emphasize malnutrition screening and assessment could reduce the incidence of untreated malnutrition. Such trainings and screenings can be strengthened by adopting best practices and quality standards across the spectrum of care.

The causes of malnutrition are multiple and complex, and the solutions require collaboration among many groups. The toolkit organizes the many recommendations for improving malnutrition care into four goals:

Improve quality of malnutrition care practices: this starts at the top, including recognition of the need for quality malnutrition care in national population health and chronic disease reports and action plans.
Improve access to high-quality malnutrition care and nutrition services: the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services’ adoption of a global malnutrition composite score measure in the hospital would help accelerate this. In addition, passing the Medical Nutrition Therapy Act could help improve access.
Generate clinical research on malnutrition quality of care: increasing research on older adult nutrition needs and the impact of malnutrition on health outcomes and equity provides better data to improve programs.
Advance public health efforts to improve malnutrition quality of care: currently, there are no federal public health goals, such as Healthy People 2030, that address malnutrition. Malnutrition screening and monitoring questions could be added to national surveys of older adults and reported as a key health indicator for older adults.

Malnutrition is pervasive and costly, causing patient harm and slow recovery, but it has not yet been addressed by a systematic, consistent approach throughout the healthcare system.

Advocacy Tips

Here are a few tips from the Academy of Nutrition and Dietetics to advocate effectively. First, know the goals of your advocacy. Advocating for malnutrition in older adults is important to increase awareness and inform federal legislators of the issue. Second, create a plan on how to accomplish your goals. Such a plan can involve educating your community and federal policymakers on the impact, prevention and treatment of malnutrition. The advocacy toolkit provides tips on communicating with federal policymakers and through social media and offers supporting information.

MALNUTRITION IS PERVASIVE AND COSTLY, BUT HAS NOT YET BEEN ADDRESSED BY A SYSTEMATIC, CONSISTENT APPROACH.

Third, find available resources to assist. Toolkits and collaborations are needed to bring these ideas to life. Fourth, consider the point of view of your audience. Are you talking to the local community or writing a formal letter to a legislator in Washington, DC? Fifth, understand whether your audience has the authority to make change. Focus advocacy efforts on people who can create change. Finally, make your case. We are united by a common purpose: serving the older adult.

The COVID-19 pandemic and the rapidly growing older adult population have increased the urgency for policy and advocacy. Defeat Malnutrition Today’s new federal toolkit outlines strategies and recommendations to support high-quality malnutrition care across the United States. Collaborations and partnerships are needed to bring these ideas to life and to secure the future of healthy aging with good nutrition and high-quality, coordinated malnutrition care. We can have far-reaching impacts by providing policymakers with the information they need to ensure that the voices of stakeholders (you, your family and your community) are heard.

Meredith Ponder Whitmire is the policy director and Laura Borth, MS, RD, CD, is the policy analyst, at Defeat Malnutrition Today in Washington, DC.

For additional malnutrition information and resources visit: https://defeatmalnutrition.today.

How to Recommend the Right Lift Device to Your Customers

Thu, 23 Sep 2021 18:45:55 GMT

Patients can regain independence with self-transfers

The liberty of getting out of bed in the morning and walking to a local coffee shop is considered an ordinary aspect of life for most. Unfortunately, more than 3 million people in the United States require assistance getting in and out of bed every single day. These individuals rely on caregivers and/or loved ones to transfer them from bed to wheelchair and vice versa. This process can be daunting, time-consuming and painful for both caregiver and patient.

Patient lifts, such as cloth slings, sit-to-stand lifts, scissor lifts and specialty “self-transfer” lifts can be effective solutions to these problems. Here are the most common situations for which the current transfer process can indicate the need for a patient lift, and some products you can recommend.

Caregiver & Patient Injuries

The main reason for a transfer system purchase is to reduce injuries for both caregivers and patients. In health care settings, the process of lifting and transferring patients is a leading cause of injury among workers. More than 52% of these individuals report chronic back pain and 10% leave their field of employment due to back injuries. These injuries tend to worsen over time, as repetition of movement—and imposing repeated stress on the body parts used for patient lifting—is one of the main causes of pain.

According to the National Institute of Occupational Safety and Health, a caregiver transferring a patient without specialized equipment should not lift more than the recommended maximum limit of 35 pounds. This number can be even lower in circumstances in which the caregiver is tired, such as at the end of the day, or when the available space to perform the transfer is restricted. In other words, if a patient has a certain amount of mobility and simply requires assistance standing up without the need of being lifted above the ground, the caregiver is likely below the maximum weight threshold. However, if the patient requires any form of lifting, the caregiver is likely taking on more than the 35-pound limit, and a patient lift would therefore be required.

Caregivers are not the only ones who suffer injuries during the transfer process; patients are also at risk. Patients can suffer from bruising, muscle strains and pinching of the skin when being manually lifted by a caregiver. Additionally, should a patient be dropped during the transfer process, injuries can be far worse, with some cases leading to fatality. If the transfer process has become cumbersome, leading to the possibility of patient injury, a lift should be acquired.

Diminishing Quality of Life

Family members and loved ones often take on the role of in-home caregivers to delay or avoid institutionalization and the costs associated with long-term care. There are currently more than 47 million Americans who provide unpaid, in-home care to adult family members or friends. These informal caregivers may experience a decline in their physical health due to the previously mentioned back injuries, and may also see a decline in their psychological health.

Informal caregivers tend to have higher levels of stress, depression and anxiety than their noncaregiving peers. These mental health symptoms are typically caused by the lack of time available in a day to properly balance work and caregiving, which can lead to exhaustion. Patient transfers take up a large amount of time and energy for caregivers. Manual transfers can take up to 30 minutes or longer if only one person is performing the transfer. The average wheelchair user transfers eight times a day; that can add up to four hours of time spent by the caregiver exerting physical force. Ask caregivers how much time they are spending on transfers. If any type of manual transfer exceeds 10 minutes, a patient lift should be recommended. Lower transfer times and less physical lifting provide caregivers with more available hours in their day and increased energy levels. It is therefore imperative to recommend a patient lift to any caregiver suffering from a decline in their health.

Patients can equally experience a decrease in their quality of life regarding their transfer process. Relying on a caregiver to be transferred multiple times a day can cause patients to lose their sense of independence and autonomy. Moreover, it can cause them to feel like a burden to their family and can create a sense of guilt, especially if their caregiver is experiencing physical and/or psychological distress stemming from the transfer process. Recommending a patient lift in this situation can help alleviate the stress and guilt experienced by the patient, while also doing the same for the caregiver.

High Costs of Homecare Services

For those who hire external caregivers from homecare businesses, costs can rapidly accumulate. According to Genworth’s 2020 Cost of Care survey, in-home health aids in the United States cost an average of $4,576 per month—that’s over $54,000 spent on homecare services in a year. Many homecare services charge by the hour. This means that if fewer hours are spent by the hired aid managing the patient transfer process, fewer costs will be incurred by the patient. As previously mentioned, a patient lift can significantly reduce transfer times, and could therefore be worthwhile in this situation.

Self-Transfer Lifts

Should the patient have use of their upper body, a self-transfer lift or slide board might be a viable and rewarding option. This could eliminate the need for a caregiver altogether, thus eliminating any costs associated with external homecare services, as well as limiting the strain on family members. Only recently has independent transfer been possible in ways that address the limitations of patient lifts. If the cost related to external in-home caregivers is of concern, acquiring a self-transfer lift could be a solution.

If a patient feels that they lack a sense of autonomy in their life, acquiring an electric self-transfer lift could help. Self-transfer lifts allow patients to transfer themselves using a remote control or buttons within the lift without the need for any caregiver assistance. This means that the need for a full-time caregiver could be eliminated, should the patient have mobility in their upper body, including hand dexterity, and be free of any cognitive impairments. No longer having to rely on a family member or loved one for the transfer process can help patients regain their sense of independence, and thus greatly improve their quality of life. In turn, it also liberates informal caregivers from many duties.

Recommending a Lift

Once the decision has been made to purchase a patient lift, it is important to select an option that will ultimately alleviate any of the problems listed above. For the home medical equipment provider, recommending the right type of lift means getting to know your client to understand their needs. Types of patient lifts include fabric slings, sit-to-stand lifts, scissor lifts and specialty lifts, such as self-transfer lifts.

Selecting the appropriate lift for both the patient and caregiver involved is key to reducing injuries, achieving a better quality of life and decreasing or eliminating external caregiver costs.

Craig Misrach is a 20-plus year executive with a decade of CEO experience. Misrach currently acts as the president and CEO for UpLyft, the first self-transfer system between bed and wheelchair for people with limited mobility. Visit myuplyft.com .

How to Be a True Friend to a Family Caregiver

Mon, 09 Aug 2021 17:44:00 GMT

By Carol Bradley Bursack, Minding Our Elders. Originally published on Agingcare.com.

Family caregivers often find that their social circles shrink over time. Casual friends are typically the first to drift away because a caregiver is too busy to get together, but close friends may disappear eventually as well. These friends are not bad people, though. More than likely, they don’t know how to help a caregiver and they find it easier to share their time with people whose lives are less complicated.

If you are just a casual friend to someone who is caring for an ill or aging loved one, then perhaps it’s best to remain that way. However, some of you want to do more for friends who have found themselves in this difficult role. You want to be there for them, but the trouble is that you don’t know where to start.

How to Support a Friend Who Is a Caregiver

The following tips may give you some insight into what you can do to help your friend as they devote a good portion of their time, energy and funds to their loved one. (Remember to take this as general advice since every caregiver and every care situation is unique.)

It’s the Thought That Counts

As with nearly everything that has to do with caregiving, there is no guarantee that you, as a friend, will always do the right thing. Don’t feel guilty if you’ve neglected your friend or done something “wrong.” Just keep trying to nurture your friendship in every practical way that you can.

The question “what do caregivers need most?” can seem intimidating—especially for those who have never walked this path before. More often than not, the answer is actually quite simple. What they need most is to know and feel that someone truly cares about them .

Establishing antibiotic potential for cannabis

Tue, 19 Jan 2021 17:41:00 GMT

Synthetic cannabidiol, better known as CBD, has been shown for the first time to kill the bacteria responsible for gonorrhoea, meningitis and legionnaires disease.

The research collaboration between IMB’s Centre for Superbug Solutions and Botanix Pharmaceuticals Limited could lead to the first new class of antibiotics for resistant bacteria in 60 years.

https://imb.uq.edu.au/article/2021/01/establishing-antibiotic-potential-cannabis

Applications now accepted for 2021 National Veterans Wheelchair Games

Sat, 16 Jan 2021 16:28:00 GMT

New York City, August 8-13

New Year, Same Scams: Tips and tricks from AARP to fight fraud in 2021

Thu, 14 Jan 2021 16:27:00 GMT

The ABC’s of Caring for Yourself

Tue, 10 Apr 2018 16:07:00 GMT

This article originally appears here: http://www.caregiversolutions.ca/caregiving/the-abcs-of-caring-for-yourself/

Providing care for a family member in need is a centuries-old act of kindness, love and loyalty. Caregivers, friends and family members can make an incredible difference in the lives of their loved ones who are diagnosed with chronic conditions.

Doing it with love
Caregivers often experience increased closeness with their loved one; they can find it meaningful to care for someone and often report having a sense of purpose. Caregiving can help clarify an individual’s beliefs and deepen their sense of their own values, compassion and patience, and improve their self-confidence and self-esteem. It can also create a positive psychological change as a result of successfully struggling with a highly challenging situation.

Caring for another person takes a lot of time, effort and work. In addition, most caregivers juggle caregiving with full-time jobs and parenting and, in the process, put their own needs aside. Caregivers often report that it is difficult to look after their own health in terms of exercise, nutrition and doctor’s visits, and can often end up feeling angry, anxious, isolated and sad.

Manage together
Deciding how to manage any kind of medical condition with your loved one is an important task. Things to consider include understanding your loved one’s goals, making sure you talk with your loved one, tag-teaming appointments with others, developing a health journal, helping to maintain a safe home environment and improving your own comfort.

Understand your loved one’s goals
Talk with your friend or loved one with chronic illness to help understand their goals. Get the conversation started by discussing events or activities they used to participate in and miss, whether that is fishing, walking the dog or playing cards, or something they would like to be a part of in the future. You can help your loved one meet their goals by discussing them with their healthcare providers, doctors or community service agencies.

Talk with, not at, someone
Your family member or friend may be put off by your advice if they think that you are speaking at them and not with them. Most people suffering from a chronic illness do not want advice; they want to talk things out so that they can come to their own decisions. At times, giving advice inhibits conversation. Put yourself in their shoes and talk in a way that encourages a positive reaction. For example: “I read that some people suffering from heart failure have trouble checking their weight every day. We could make a pact to make sure we weigh ourselves daily.”

Tag team
Attending doctor’s appointments with the “patient” can not only be comforting to them, but also provides a second pair of ears.

Hint: Take all medications (in their containers) along to doctor’s appointments. It is also helpful to write down questions ahead of time and take notes. You could also help create a personal health journal with doctors’ numbers and a record of your loved one’s weight, oxygen use and symptoms, such as increased shortness of breath or fatigue.

Make sure the home is safe
Look for things in the environment that might cause harm to your loved one, such as loose area rugs, wonky steps or missing/faulty handrails—all of which can be dangerous for someone who has trouble walking. Stairs can cause shortness of breath, so think about moving your loved one’s bedroom to the ground floor if you live in a multi-storey home. Place chairs around the house so that your loved one can sit if they need to.

How to take care of yourself
It is very important that you don’t neglect your own needs. While it may feel selfish, looking after yourself really is the best thing you can do not only for yourself but also for the person you are caring for.

Find friends and family that you can lean on for emotional support, or join a local disease-specific support group composed of other people in the same situation as you. You can also:
• Make sure you have regular check-ups and that those “little concerns” about your health are seen to.
• Keep exercising: Exercise is more important than ever as it gives you a break, combats depression and helps you maintain your health.
• Eat properly and get enough sleep.

Don’t go it alone
Find community resources and ask friends or family members to step in and give you time off. Or, if you are financially able, hire someone to assist you.

When you have a break, get your hair done or see a movie. Listen to music and exercise. In addition, meditation can be very helpful.

Excerpted with permission from Pulmonary Hypertension Association of Canada, with contributions from Maureen Tymkow, PH caregiver, and Carolyn Doyle-Cox, RN.

Visit phacanada.ca for more information.

Home Care & Safe Patient Handling

Tue, 27 Feb 2018 19:20:00 GMT

Traditional floor-based lifts typically require multiple caregivers for transfers in the home. They have a higher risk of tipping and can be difficult to move and adjust due to floor coverings or furniture within the room. Heavier and larger patients can make these types of lift even more difficult for caregivers to move and adjust.

Anyone who lifts and moves patients are at a high risk for back injury and other musculoskeletal disorders. Injuries are due in a large part to the overexertion associated with lifting, transferring and repositioning patients manually. Safe Patient Handling has been associated with fewer injuries and decreasing severity of injuries.

Patients and family caregivers may be unwilling or unable to accept changes in the home. They may fear that an assistive device will be unsafe or uncomfortable. In reality, assistive devices actually increase patient safety and comfort while enhancing the patient’s sense of dignity. Assistive devices also protect caregivers from injury while increasing their efficiency.

The Titan 500 is a freestanding overhead patient lift designed for the home and the family caregiver. It allows a single caregiver, often a family member, to safely transfer a loved one in the home without injury.

Proudly Made in the USA, the Titan 500 is a complete lift system that includes a free sling and free shipping. It does not attach to the structure of the home and can follow the patient as they move through the continuum of care. It is simple and safe to use and features a rechargeable electric lift motor.

For more information, visit our website , find us on Facebook and watch our YouTube channel.

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6 Things Can You Do to Protect Disability Rights Today

Fri, 16 Feb 2018 15:15:00 GMT

By Alice Wong

This article originally appeared in Teen Vogue. ( https://www.teenvogue.com/story/disability-rights-how-to-help )

Chip Somodevilla / Getty Images

In this op-ed, the founder and director of the Disability Visibility Project, Alice Wong, explains the danger of H.R. 620 and how you can help protect disability rights.

What does it mean to be an activist? I became an accidental activist because this world was never built for me. For me, as a disabled woman of color with a progressive neuromuscular disability, every breath is an act of resistance and activism.

I graduated from high school two years after the Americans With Disabilities Act (ADA) passed in 1990. It took me a long time understand the influence of this law on my sense of identity and pride as a disabled person. I no longer had to ask “nicely” for access or put up with discrimination. I had a law that represented my lived experience and my community. I could refer to the ADA and say that disability rights are civil and human rights.

Tomorrow, a bill will go for a vote in the House that will weaken the ADA and make it harder for disabled people to fully enjoy the world with their friends and family. The bill is called H.R. 620, the ADA Education and Reform Act of 2017 .

For more than 27 years, businesses and public entities have been required to provide reasonable accommodations for people with disabilities. The ADA changed the opportunities disabled people have in every aspect of life.

Read the rest of the article here: https://www.teenvogue.com/story/disability-rights-how-to-help

Lifting The Standard of Care: Safe In Home Transfers for Family Caregivers

Tue, 16 Jan 2018 19:00:00 GMT

The Titan 500 is a freestanding overhead patient lift designed for home care. The Titan 500 is a complete lift system and comes with the freestanding frame, 8 foot overhead beam, rechargeable electric lift motor, four-point lift bar, remote control, battery charger and a universal sling, with 4 sizes to choose from.

Titan 500 Freestanding Overhead Electric Patient Lift for Home Care & Family Caregivers

The Titan 500 ships freight and arrives in a large carton. It is partially assembled and two adults can fully assemble the lift in about 30 minutes. The Titan 500 does not attach to the structure of the home and allows a single caregiver to safely transfer a loved one without the stress and strain of a floor-based lift. The only real maintenance required is keeping the batteries charged and maintaining a straight lift belt to avoid twists and folds.

Titan 500 Overhead Patient Lift – Shipping Carton

Each piece of the system is designed to lift up to 500 pounds. We have several safety
systems built in to the lift. These include a belt travel limiter to prevent the belt from
completely unspooling, a safety stop switch to keep the belt from winding all the way up
into the motor unit and an electric emergency down system.

Titan 500 Freestanding Overhead Patient Lift

The Titan 500 is proudly U.S. made and was designed by a service-disabled veteran. We
are located in Michigan and shipping is free within the continental United States. Options for the unit include a 10 or 12 foot overhead beam and a set of locking casters for the frame. Those incur extra charges. Contact us with questions and price inquiries.

Visit our website , find us on Facebook and watch our YouTube channel for more information.

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Safe Patient Transfers In The Home

Wed, 10 Jan 2018 15:37:00 GMT

The Titan 500 is a freestanding overhead electric patient lift designed for home health care and a single family caregiver. It protects caregivers and their patients from the injuries associated with the manual lifting and transferring of patients in the home.

The freestanding system does not attach to the structure and can follow the patient throughout their continuum of care. A rechargeable electric motor gently lifts and lowers the patient while the caregiver glides them across the overhead beam and positions them for a safe and secure transfer.

For more information, visit our website , find us on Facebook and watch our YouTube channel.

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