Dr. Bill Thomas

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April 2008 Archives

April 1, 2008

Aging, Caring For Aged

[Editor's Note: Dr. Thomas is traveling in the U.K. this week visiting and lecturing for the nation's largest long-term-care agency. We hope to post photos and updates from Dr. Thomas' tour soon.]

Roger Catlin, TV critic for the Hartford Courant, provides a moving review of PBS' upcoming special "Caring For Your Parents":

In a way, each of the stories in the PBS special "Caring for Your Parents" is monumental, with five families in the Providence area attempting to care for the elderly.
Some spend hundreds of thousands of dollars a year to provide care so elderly parents can stay at home at long as possible. Others juggle jobs and family to try to provide that care themselves. Some have sent parents to a nursing home or assisted care facility when it was clear there wouldn't be enough assistance at home. Still others are still trying to convince their aging parents that care is actually needed.

Read the full story here.

"Caring for Your Parents" airs Wednesday, April 2 at 9 p.m. on PBS.

Posted by Kavan Peterson on April 1, 2008 9:43 AM |Permalink |Comments (0)

April 2, 2008

Eden Takes Root in UK

[Editor's Note: Dr. Bill Thomas is traveling in the UK this week and below are photos of his trip. Thanks to June Burgess for emailing these for Bill.]

The Eden Alternative takes root in Bradford on Avon -- Take a look:
Bradford%20on%20Avon%20Town%20Bridge%202.jpg

Woolley%20Grange%201.jpg

Eden%20Associate%20Training%20Bradford%20on%20Avon%20April%202008%202.jpg

Georgian%20Tea%20Rooms%20Bradford%20on%20Avon.jpg
Thanks Bill it was great to have you with us!
-- June Burgess, Eden Alternative Regional Coordinator for the UK and Ireland

[Correction -- June Burgess was initially misidentified as the proprietor of The Georgian Tea House. Sorry about that June!]

Posted by Kavan Peterson on April 2, 2008 10:54 AM |Permalink |Comments (0)

April 3, 2008

Power Up Thursday

[Editor's Note: The following is a guest-post from regular Changing Aging contributor Al Power]

In honor of Bill Thomas' speaking tour of the UK, check out this recent report from "Good Morning America" (follow link to video "Playgrounds for the Elderly"):

Manchester, England has built a playground for seniors only. The benefits of play for seniors are well-described here; not only the physical benefits and the socialization, but the "fun factor" too. That's all very well, but this type of non-goal directed activity isn't such a remarkable stretch for elders, who have already become experts in the realm of "being".

Do you know who REALLY needs these playgrounds? Adults! Not retirees in their 80's; I'm talking about all of us 40- and 50-somethings who are obsessed with "doing", and measure each other simply by what we produce. Even our leisure activities - jogging, cycling, book clubs - have taken on a rather obsessive quality of pushing ourselves from one milestone to the next.

We've even allowed this "cult of adulthood", as Bill Thomas terms it, to affect our childrearing. Our poor kids' lives have been literally regimented into a dizzying series of programmed activities that emphasize motor and cognitive skills, while suppressing imagination and mindfulness.

It's time to re-balance our own lives. No one needs play more than you and I.

Posted by Kavan Peterson on April 3, 2008 10:25 AM |Permalink |Comments (1)

Pumping Iron the Old Fashioned Way

[Guest post from UMBC's Kavan Peterson]

Interesting story from today's New York Times featuring a local (if you live in Baltimore): 60-Plus, Ripped, and Natural Competitors

UNTIL nine years ago, Dr. Neal Grossman didn’t make a habit of parading around his bedroom in his skivvies and admiring his physique in the mirror. Nor did he ever imagine that his oldest son, then a teenager, would take one look at his father midflex and cry out, “Dad, put your clothes back on!”
But now that Dr. Grossman, a 60-year-old Baltimore dentist, is a competitive amateur bodybuilder, an extra ounce of flab makes the difference between a sizable trophy and going home empty-handed. “The minute you start winning, that’s all the validation people need to accept what you do as legitimate and something to be appreciated,” said Dr. Grossman, who is 5-foot-2 and a chiseled 121 pounds.

He is one of a small but growing number of 60- and 70-year-old bodybuilders stripping down to Speedos, slathering on bronzer, and strutting their stuff onstage in natural, or drug-free, competitions. The season for amateur and pro-level events begins this month.

Here's the best of quote of the story:

“Age is a statistic, not a burden and there is no reason a man or woman can’t get into and maintain the best shape of their lives at any age,” said Scott Hults, 64, who has competed in 26 shows since 2005 and last year won an age-group title.

The story goes on to say that the number of men and women in their 60’s and 70’s competing in bodybuilding competitions has doubled in the past five years. It also claims that "Older bodybuilders tend to be disciplined purists," who are not as likely to be seduced into taking steroids or other illegal enhancements. I hope that's true... but the story also acknowledges that increasingly popular controversial medical treatments such as human growth hormone and testosterone replacement therapy are being abused by older body builders:

Still, antidoping experts wonder just how natural “natural” bodybuilding is.
Neither the World Natural Sports Organization nor the International Natural Bodybuilding Federation perform blood tests, which is the only way to test for human growth hormone, said Dr. Gary Wadler, an internist and a member of the World Anti-Doping Agency.

[Photo courtesy of The New York Times]

Posted by Kavan Peterson on April 3, 2008 4:30 PM |Permalink |Comments (0)

April 4, 2008

Power Up Friday: Attitude Matters, Dude

There is no doubt that the Eden Alternative has been a major force in the movement to transform long-term care in our society. (That's a fact - I'm not just "kissing up" to the Blogmeister here.)

But even Bill Thomas will tell you that the Eden movement has caused a lot of people to pay too much attention to the superficial aspects of the new habitat - the dogs, cats, birds - what we call the "fur and feathers" of Eden. These are tools to help create a human habitat; but simply bringing a cat or a bird into a nursing home without embarking on deeper aspects of interpersonal and organizational transformation will yield poor results, (as many people have found when they have tried to "short-cut' the process).

Now the Green House Project (TM) has spawned a new movement to complete the physical transformation of long-term care through the construction of small homes that house only 8-10 elders. The media and society at large are paying attention. In addition to Green Houses, many other small house models are in development, and a new movement is born.

But every new trend has potential pitfalls for those who rush to adopt the concept without a deep understanding of its origins. So what do we need to watch out for next? What are the "fur and feathers" of these small house models?

Quite simply, it's the house itself. These homes are such a radical departure from any nursing home we've seen, that they cannot help but astound people who view them for the first time. What a great idea! Why haven't we thought of building these before?

There's an excellent reason why. If the building was all there was to it, we'd have built them a long time ago. However, our ATTITUDES about aged care have created the physical features of traditional nursing homes. Our society's view of aging as decline and our paternalistic approach to elder care have informed the institutions we have built over the past half century. You don't erase those biases simply by putting people in a small house.

I believe that small homes like the Green House are the future of aged care. The best ones, however, realize that the physical structure will not solve the plagues of institutionalization unless it embodies more than walls and windows. It must also reflect a new attitude toward aging and the aged, toward well-being and illness, toward risk and reward, toward autonomy, and toward collaborative approaches to care.

In short, we must build Green Houses in our minds, in our interpersonal relationships and in our operational design, before we lay that first cornerstone. Otherwise, it'll just be a 10-bed institution.

-- Al Power

Posted by Dr. Bill Thomas on April 4, 2008 10:19 AM |Permalink |Comments (0)

April 7, 2008

Change We Can Live In

If you take a look at the left-hand column on my blog you'll notice a list of books that are Changing Aging. The Erickson School this Friday is providing a rare opportunity to hear from the author of the newest and one of the most influential additions to this list -- "Old Age in a new Age: The Promise of Transformative Nursing Homes," by prominent free-lance journalist Beth Baker.

I've had the privilege of talking to Beth numerous times in the course of her compassionate and insightful reporting on the transformation of long term care in America. Do you think nursing homes have to be a place of last resort? I highly encourage you to come and meet Beth Baker and learn how nursing homes are turning into transformative homes, and how this change will benefit us all.

WHEN: 1:30 p.m., Friday, April 11, 2008
WHERE: UMBC, ITE Building, Room 102

To RSVP, or for more information, contact Kathryn Gallagher at 443-543-5645 or kathryng@umbc.edu

Posted by Dr. Bill Thomas on April 7, 2008 9:28 AM |Permalink |Comments (0)

April 8, 2008

Is Oprah Finally Getting It?

Jamie Lee Curtis definitely does. In answer to Oprah's question "How do you feel about aging?" Golden Globe winning actress Jamie Lee Curtis said, "Bring it on!" After appearing au naturel on the cover of AARP The Magazine, Curtis talked to Oprah about turning 50, going grey and aging with grace:

Jamie says she is trying to portray a truthful image of herself, both in life and on the cover of AARP The Magazine. "I believe that life is hard," she says. "That we all are going to walk through things that are hard and challenging, and yet advertising wants us to believe that it's all easy. Everything's easy—aging's easy, childrearing's easy, dressing's easy—everything's easy. And I think it's a real disservice to people because I think it feeds you something that's not true."

Posted by Dr. Bill Thomas on April 8, 2008 3:26 PM |Permalink |Comments (0)

Elderblogging on TV

Elderblogging guru Ronni Bennett from TGB on the Brian Lehrer Live television show in New York City on CUNY-TV -- Great interview Ronni!

Posted by Dr. Bill Thomas on April 8, 2008 3:47 PM |Permalink |Comments (1)

April 9, 2008

The Rest Step

I am going to be writing more about the slow life over the next couple of weeks.

Here is a a great story that ran on NPR a couple of years ago.

Phil Powers is the executive director of the American Alpine Club

I believe in the importance of pace. I grew up in a frenetic household, both parents working jobs that demanded their attention 24/7. I was little and fast and rushed around, and I still have that person inside me, always at risk of moving too quickly, missing the connection, making mistakes.

The forest behind our house offered a peaceful respite. My passion for the vertical world took me from tall trees in my backyard to climbing steep cliffs and crags. As a teen, I was moving easily over the landscapes of the American West and was drawn to higher summits. When I was 19, I learned something called the "rest step" from an old mountain climber named Paul Petzoldt...

Read the rest of the story here.

Posted by Dr. Bill Thomas on April 9, 2008 9:17 AM |Permalink |Comments (0)

Deadheads Say Wave that Flag

Millennials may be coming on strong (see post below) but the Boomers, at least the Deadhead Boomers are also waving that flag high and wide.

Posted by Dr. Bill Thomas on April 9, 2008 11:00 AM |Permalink |Comments (0)

April 10, 2008

The Obama Brand

Fast Company dives in...

"Barack Obama is three things you want in a brand," says Keith Reinhard, chairman emeritus of DDB Worldwide. "New, different, and attractive. That's as good as it gets." Obama has his greatest strength among the young, roughly 18 to 29 years old, that advertisers covet, the cohort known as millennials -- who will outnumber the baby boomers by 2010. They are black, white, yellow, and various shades of brown, but what they share -- new media, online social networks, a distaste for top-down sales pitches -- connects them more than traditional barriers, such as ethnicity, divide them.

Emaphasis added. Boomers have a hard time imagining a world where they are outnumbered by another generation.

The whole thing is pretty interesting.

Posted by Dr. Bill Thomas on April 10, 2008 6:46 AM |Permalink |Comments (0)

April 11, 2008

The History of the World

In just one minute.

Watch and learn...

Posted by Dr. Bill Thomas on April 11, 2008 6:00 AM |Permalink |Comments (0)

April 12, 2008

Unwise Use

Millions of people continue to take medications even after sophisticated published medical studies have shown that the medicines do not work as intended.

Among these millions is, apparently, John McCain, Republican candidate for President.

The New York Times reports...

Mr. McCain has undergone each year since 2000, stress tests show no evidence of heart disease, and “his doctors consider him in very good health,” his campaign staff said in a recent statement.
The campaign also said Mr. McCain regularly took Vytorin to lower his cholesterol, a baby aspirin to help prevent heart attacks, a multivitamin and, occasionally, Claritin or Flonase for allergies.

So how effective is Vytorin?

After an almost two-year delay, Merck and Schering-Plough finally released partial data from their own two-year study of Vytorin called “Enhance. This study tested their drug on 720 patients with high cholesterol. The “surprise” results revealed that Vytorin was no more effective than a high dose of one of its components, Zocor, which is available in the generic form at one-third of the cost! Vytorin’s annual sales of about $5 billion likely justified the “delay” in releasing the results of the “Enhance” study, in the minds of its makers.

Despite the companies claim of acting with “integrity and good faith” law suits are piling up in several states over allegations they misled consumers into thinking the drugs were more effective than generics.

Article here.

It really is enough to make me wonder about the wisdom of placing the future of the American health care system into the hands of a man whose own personal physicians remain unaware of current research regarding the medicines used by their most famous patient.

The wise use of medications is not more medicine and it is not less medicine, it is the use of medicine based on evidence rather the business strategies of multi-national pharmaceutical companies.

Posted by Dr. Bill Thomas on April 12, 2008 6:17 AM |Permalink |Comments (0)

April 13, 2008

Eden and CMS

At the recent Pioneer/CMS Summit on Design and Long-Term Care, Eden Alternative Executive Director concluded her remarks with these stirring words...

The Eden Alternative is happy to have a voice in this discussion of the physical environment as it relates to home. But we also know through our work with hundreds and hundreds of organizations around the globe, who are struggling to create real home, that true home is not found in the physical environment. It is not about walls and carpet and chandeliers, any more than it is about fur and feathers. The physical environment is merely the container in which the human spirit can either grow or wither. The current physical environments are sorely pressed to support growth. They are like frozen tundra, devoid of warmth and growth. So we certainly need to address the issue. But the most important part of a true human habitat is the soil. Every gardener knows that a rich and nourishing soil is vital to the garden. The soil is the social environment that exists in out long-term care facilities.
We know through our work that there are providers who are currently creating authentic home despite the shortcomings of the physical environments they have inherited. These highly creative people are transforming what they have been given, and in the smallest of ways creating home in their physical environments, while concentrating mostly on creating a warm, caring ethos, where every person has the opportunity to give and receive care. It is in these types of environments that Elders will truly find home and a sense of belonging. We also know through our work with Eden At Home™ that even an Elder’s own personal home can become like an institution when she needs care and all the focus is on the care of the human body while her human spirit is neglected, and her rights to autonomy and choice are removed.

Some of you may be thinking, “We can’t go that far. These ideas are just too bold. We need to take our time and go slowly. The Eden Alternative would remind you that over a million and a half people live in institutional nursing homes in this country. These people are at this very moment in harm’s way. There is widespread immediate jeopardy and actual harm being caused by this pursuit of the inauthentic. There are people suffering and dying from the plagues of the human spirit. That kind of pain is far greater and much deeper than any pain of the body. We do not have the luxury of taking this slowly. We must act swiftly and we must act boldly.

This is the hour. And we are the ones our Elders have been waiting for. The Eden family is honored to be on this journey with you.

Posted by Dr. Bill Thomas on April 13, 2008 5:58 AM |Permalink |Comments (2)

April 14, 2008

The Green House

I caught this article from The Longview News-Journal online...

I think the journalist Angela Ward gets it right.

Elderly residents at the Green House are blooming along with the flowers in their courtyard.
The innovative nursing home, which opened in December, is designed to look and operate less like an institution and more like a home, said Debby Bravo, Green House guide. It is part of a spectrum of living options for elderly residents at Buckner Westminster Place, which also includes independent living, assisted living and memory care.

Farooq Bahadory, a staff member with the Green House at Buckner Westminster Place, hands out cornbread to the residents Monday at the Green House in Longview.

"We've seen a number of improvements in the residents since they moved in," Bravo said. "One woman who was strictly using a wheelchair when she came here now uses a walker most of the time, and several of them are gaining weight."

Two homes are connected by a central courtyard. Both can house 10 residents, each of whom have a private room and bathroom. The rooms open onto a central living and dining area, with offices and laundry facilities in the back of the house. One house is completely filled; the other has five residents, with five more residents scheduled to move in this month.

"The residents don't have specific times they have to wake up or go to bed, and they're encouraged to decorate their rooms to reflect their individual personalities," Bravo said. "Lunch and supper are served in a communal manner, with the staff and residents eating together."

Residents of the homes range in age from 65 to 97. All have health problems severe enough to require skilled nursing care, Bravo said.

James Smith, 88, admits his memory isn't what it used to be, and that's why he can no longer live independently.

"I like it here. It's a beautiful setup," the World War II veteran said. "I never thought I'd reach a point where I couldn't live on my own, but since that's where I'm at in life, this is preferable to a nursing home."

Posted by Dr. Bill Thomas on April 14, 2008 5:53 AM |Permalink |Comments (0)

Art Imitating Life

I was walking through Central Park after a nice meeting with Dr. Robert Butler at the International Longevity Center, (he has a new book out and I think it is going to be big -- DO NOT miss Ronni Bennett's must-read review of The Longevity Revolution) and saw this example of art imitating life. Thought some of you might find it interesting.

Posted by Dr. Bill Thomas on April 14, 2008 1:13 PM |Permalink |Comments (0)

April 16, 2008

The White Haired Women Have Spoken

That is all...

Posted by Dr. Bill Thomas on April 16, 2008 9:44 AM |Permalink |Comments (0)

Sheilah Kast Wins!

[UPDATE -- thanks to Jen Chang for supplying the original audio and to Bill Shewbridge at UMBC's New Media Studio for uploading it -- LISTEN HERE!]

A while back I sat down for a chat with WYPR's Sheilah Kast. We talked about the Erickson School masters class I co-teach with Judah Ronch. In particular, we discussed the way we use Shakespeare's "King Lear" to explore the full depth and meaning of aging and longevity.

We had a great time doing the interview together and she wound up submitting the interview for an award.

And....

Drum roll, please...

She won.

Radio Specialty Reporting

First Place:

"King Lear: A Study in Aging"

Sheilah Kast

WYPR

A fascinating look at the challenges of aging and relationships and how Shakespeare's King Lear can serve as a model for addressing various issues. Kast is an intelligent interviewer who asks the type of questions many listeners would if they had the opportunity to talk to the guest.

Way to go Sheilah!

I'll see if I can find the link to the original interview [POSTED ABOVE].

Posted by Dr. Bill Thomas on April 16, 2008 11:22 AM |Permalink |Comments (0)

Christa Monkhouse, Culture and Design

Christa Monkhouse is a leader in the Eden Alternative movement in Europe and a good friend.

Here is her reaction to the post "Eden and CMS"

In Europe many nursing home buildings are old and need to be replaced. While Nancy is making a valid point, it is not the environment alone, which makes home, belonging, peace of mind and growth. This is in line with what Al Power has said about attitude, a few posts ago. However, if institutions need to be replaced, newly built, extended or renovated, why not use all the creativity, knowledge and experience of the same people, who use these talents to adjust to the built dismal environments (frozen tundra), to create new, diverse and integrating homes for our Elders. And let's be bold, let's forget about buildings or attitudes, the starting points are relationships and services. With this understanding, Architects will unleash their creativity and produce diverse ideas, not cookie-cutter models. After all, it is the blend of people, program (attitude, philosophie) and building what makes the place (experience), not only for the old, for all of us.

Posted by Dr. Bill Thomas on April 16, 2008 11:32 AM |Permalink |Comments (0)

April 17, 2008

Geriatric Care Is Facing Crisis

This is conventional wisdom inside the field of aging but it is nice to see that it is getting attention from the Wall Street Journal. See article below with my comments bold...

Surge in Training
Called for to Meet
Exploding Demand
By THEO FRANCIS and VANESSA FUHRMANS

Health-care institutions must rapidly increase training in geriatric care to ward off an "impending crisis" as 78 million baby boomers head toward old age, according to a report by the federal Institute of Medicine.

Calling the U.S. health-care work force "too small and woefully unprepared" for the growing elderly population, the 242-page report lays out a stark picture of increased demand for health-care workers -- unmet by a stagnant or even dwindling supply of those trained to treat the elderly.

This is a case of market failure. There is a large lead time in recruiting and training people who can work in this field. The need is great but current market incentives are pulling people into fields other than aging. Without action, the age boom will really hit and it will be impossible to meet the needs.

"This could be seen as evidence that our society places little value on the expertise needed to care for vulnerable, frail older Americans," said John W. Rowe, chairman of the committee that wrote the report and former chairman and chief executive of health-insurance giant Aetna Inc.
In addition to training specialists, the report recommends weaving more geriatrics training into general medical education for doctors, nurses and others. "We're not saying every [old] person needs a geriatrician any more than every person who has a heart needs a cardiologist, but we need to enhance the care they do receive," Dr. Rowe said.

I agree with Dr. Rowe's view on this...

Some nursing homes and other institutions are already pairing with medical, dental and nursing schools to provide hands-on geriatric training. Hebrew SeniorLife, a nonprofit nursing-home and senior-housing group in Boston, helps train about 750 medical, dental, nursing and other students from more than a half-dozen local schools; second-year Harvard Medical School students spend two weeks treating its elderly residents. Next month, Brandeis University plans to announce a program with Hebrew SeniorLife to train health-care administrators interested in focusing on the elderly.
But such efforts are rare, due to the time and expense of implementing them. Another Hebrew SeniorLife program -- giving nurse aides a day off a week to work toward becoming a licensed practical nurse -- costs some $450,000 a year, funded by a state grant and donations.

"The first thing you need are patients, and the second thing you need are health-care professionals who have a spare moment to be providing high-quality teaching," said Len Fishman, the nonprofit group's chief executive and a former New Jersey Commissioner of Health and Senior Services. "Most long-term-care facilities are small; they don't have medical staffs."

The other big problem is that pushing "new recruits" into training programs which are nursing home-centric winds up giving people a false impression of the field. It is like scooping water with a sieve.

Monday's report also recommends training for those taking care of elderly people, noting that 90% of those receiving care at home get help from family and friends, and 80% rely solely on them.

This is what Eden at Home is all about...

By 2030, one American in five will be over 65, and in coming years more than half of all medical care in the U.S. will go to that group, the report notes. Those over 65 currently make up about 12% of the population and account for a quarter of doctors' office visits and at least a third of hospital stays, prescriptions and ambulance trips. Patients over 75 average three chronic conditions and may take four or more medications.
Currently, just one doctor specializes in geriatrics for every 2,500 Americans over age 65, and similar shortfalls exist among other geriatric specialists, including psychiatrists and social workers, the report said. Between 2000 and 2006, the number of certified geriatricians actually fell, by 22% -- and to maintain existing ratios of medical professionals, the U.S. would need to increase its health-care work force by 35%, or 3.5 million people, the report said.

The report blamed misplaced financial incentives for much of the shortfall. Doctors specializing in geriatrics averaged income of $163,000 a year in 2005, compared with internists who earned $175,000 with no specialty training. Other specialists, from surgeons to radiologists and dermatologists, can earn more than twice as much.

Not mentioned is the relatively low professional status NOT enjoyed by the field of geriatrics. This needs to change as well.

Meanwhile, half of those workers caring directly for the elderly -- helping them dress, bathe and eat, for example -- are paid less than $9.56 an hour, the report notes.

Posted by Dr. Bill Thomas on April 17, 2008 5:41 AM |Permalink |Comments (2)

April 18, 2008

Learning Circles

Meagan Hannan and LaVrene Norton are two of the leaders in the national effort to change the culture of long-term care. This not from LaVrene popped into my inbox and I thought that people might find it interesting. Note the Baltimore connection as well.

The goal of the learning circle is to give everyone a voice, be it in making decisions or sharing in community. Action Pact consultant, Megan Hannan was part of a learning circle at Jewish Convalescent Home in Baltimore, MD wherein the depth of sharing was extraordinary. She shares the story here:

"It was during a PersonFirst ™ learning session facilitated by members of the in-house PersonFirst™ team. One of the team members opened the circle by asking participants to share any experience they had encountered with homelessness. As we went around the circle it was revealed that several folks participating had themselves been homeless. One woman, a nurse from Africa, told about her parents who had been moved out of their town, and didn't know where they were going to live for a couple of days. When she heard about the incident, it affected her deeply to know that her mother and father were homeless even for a couple of days. She and her siblings have promised to never let it happen again.

One of the men in the circle shared that he had had a couple of bad years and did end up homeless. It was not a good time in his life. He talked about being lonely and how easy it was to become homeless, and that he never wants that to happen again. Another woman had a powerful story of being ejected from her home country because she was Jewish. As a little girl with her family, not only did they not have a home, they had no country. Those feelings stay with you all the time she said.

I have never been is such a profound circle in all my 11 years of participating in circles. I don't think this team member had any idea going in how many people had directly experienced homelessness. Wow. This group is well able to connect with the experiences and feeling of the elders they serve. They also have a common bond among themselves after this experience. I applauded the facilitator - he took a risk he maybe didn't even realize he was taking - but as one of the PersonFirst™ values states: Risk is a normal part of life. As trainers, we explain that by reminding everyone how we often grow when we take a risk. We come out stronger, more knowledgeable, more empathetic, a better person."

Posted by Dr. Bill Thomas on April 18, 2008 6:11 AM |Permalink |Comments (0)

Top Comment

DeanOR gets it right with reference to the workforce issue. This is why addressing the meaning, worth and value of ELDERHOOD is key to solving these other problems...

I think those who serve the elderly, like those who serve the poor, have low status (which also determines their income and the attractiveness of the professions to potential recruits) because the group they serve has low status. That in turn seems to stem from our society viewing the worth of every person in terms of their economic value. Even those who serve children, despite the children having economic value in the future, have lower status because economic value is judged more in terms of immediate profit-making than in terms of potential contributions. Those of us who are younger or wealthier keep this system going through psychological denial, imagining that we will never be old and needy, or that if we are we will have all our needs met through our money, and by keeping groups such as the elderly and the poor out of sight and out of mind. We also tend to turn lower status professions over to women, who in turn have lower status. Lower economic status also means less influence over the politicians who could help solve the problems.
I don't usually rely this much on the concepts of sociology or political theory in analyzing problems, but this is how it looks to me. That does not mean that problems are insurmountable. Raising awareness, through activities such as this blog is one way to promote change. Raising hell helps too.

Posted by Dr. Bill Thomas on April 18, 2008 10:20 PM |Permalink |Comments (0)

April 21, 2008

Closing the Barn Door

After the Horse Needs Health Care...

Diane from Cab Drollerly takes a hard look at "post-claim underwriting."

This reality provides a nearly perfect illustration of why our health needs to rescued from the "profits before people" mania that is damaging the lives of millions of people.

Be sure to click through for the whole exceptional post.

For the past several weeks I've been whining about the mess the governor and state legislature have made of the California budget and the resultant mess they've made of the state due to their recalcitrance and ineptness. Today, however, I've got some good news. The state stepped forward in the battle against health insurers who rescinded policies when the policy holders naively filed claims under the policy.

The Money graf...

"Post-claims underwriting" is the perfect term for this outrageous practice. Let me provide a brief reminder of how the insurance companies operated this scam. Prospective customers filled out an application for health insurance and submitted the first premium payment. They continued to pay the premiums and the insurance companies cashed their checks. Then, when the policyholder filed a claim for benefits under the policy, the insurance company went back and reviewed the applications looking for even the slightest error, and finding one, rescinded the policy without paying a nickle on the claim. One consumer advocate gave an example: a woman with breast cancer had her policy rescinded during treatment because she failed to note that she had taken an antidepressant drug in the distant past. Nice, eh?

Cab Drollery Bustin' Chops

Posted by Dr. Bill Thomas on April 21, 2008 6:40 AM |Permalink |Comments (0)

Obi Wan Kenobi...

buys a used car.

Noticed we haven't had a fun post in a little while...

Posted by Dr. Bill Thomas on April 21, 2008 10:29 AM |Permalink |Comments (1)

April 22, 2008

Political Prediction

My prediction for the popular vote in today's Pennsylvania Democratic Presidential Primary Election.

Obama 51 percent
Clinton 49 percent

I'll post the actual results as soon as I have them.

No matter which candidate you prefer, if you are a registered Democrat in Pennsylvania--- Get Out and VOTE!

Posted by Dr. Bill Thomas on April 22, 2008 6:42 AM |Permalink |Comments (0)

Penn Dem Primary

With 33 percent in Clinton is up by eight.

It's not looking too good for my earlier prediction of an Obama win by 2.

Posted by Dr. Bill Thomas on April 22, 2008 9:50 PM |Permalink |Comments (0)

Eleven At Night

Obama down by 8 with 75 percent reporting, still have Philadelphia suburbs out and that should be good for Obama.

Question: Can he trim the margin to 6?

PS: Just so you don't think that I am a total political junkie, I am up late polishing the manuscript of my latest book, it should be readable by next Monday. Miles to go before I sleep...

Posted by Dr. Bill Thomas on April 22, 2008 10:51 PM |Permalink |Comments (0)

April 23, 2008

Ten Percent

Looks like the margin is going to be 10 percent (or maybe a tiny bit less)

That's all folks...

Posted by Dr. Bill Thomas on April 23, 2008 1:09 AM |Permalink |Comments (0)

Not So Old Ladies

Your health care system is run for profit, results--- not so much. Seriously, this is not a story about how we are worse off than Britain or France or Canada or Cuba, this is a story about an absolute decline in lifespan for women in 1,000 American counties.

Something is going terribly wrong.

Longevity for women is falling in the USA.

For the first time since the Spanish influenza of 1918, life expectancy is falling for a significant number of American women.

In nearly 1,000 counties that together are home to about 12 percent of the nation's women, life expectancy is now shorter than it was in the early 1980s, according to a study published today.

The downward trend is evident in places in the Deep South, Appalachia, the lower Midwest and in one county in Maine. It is not limited to one race or ethnicity but it is more common in rural and low-income areas. The most dramatic change occurred in two areas in southwestern Virginia (Radford City and Pulaski County), where women's life expectancy has decreased by more than five years since 1983.

The trend appears to be driven by increases in death from diabetes, lung cancer, emphysema and kidney failure. It reflects the long-term consequences of smoking, a habit that women took up in large numbers decades after men did, and the slowing of the historic decline in heart disease deaths.

The WaPo has the rest here

Posted by Dr. Bill Thomas on April 23, 2008 6:48 AM |Permalink |Comments (0)

April 24, 2008

Naming the Baby Boom

David Wolfe covers some interesting ground...

Surely the boomer generation, if not the greatest generation, is the most mythologized generation in history.
Interestingly the boomer generation was not named until former People magazine editor Landon Jones did so in his 1981 book Great Expectations: America and the Baby Boom Generation. By then, the oldest boomer was 35-years-old – well past his or her hell-raising years of youthhood.

The term “boomer” has been a buzzword bigtime in marketing circles since the first boomers turned 60 in January of 2006. It seems that almost everyone in business is trying to figure out how to make oodles of money in boomer markets as its constituents head into their sunset years.

Excellent Post

Posted by Dr. Bill Thomas on April 24, 2008 5:46 AM |Permalink |Comments (0)

Now and Then

Okay, this is cool.

Here is a website where people post on picture of themselves as children paired with a second picture of them as adults--- recreating the earlier photo.

There is something strangely fascinating about this.

Thinking it over, I would like to see some paired photos of Elders recreating photos of their adulthood. That would, I think, take the concept one step further over the edge--- that is a good thing.

Take a look and tell me what you think.

For example...

Now

Then

Posted by Dr. Bill Thomas on April 24, 2008 2:04 PM |Permalink |Comments (0)

Landon Y. Jones

A little more information on the man who named the "baby boom."

Landon Jones has had a thirty-seven year career as a magazine editor. He served as managing editor of People magazine for eight years and wrote and edited for Time, Life, and Money.

His first book, Great Expectations: America and the Baby Boom Generation, analyzes the epoch of the mid-century Americans after World War II.

His second book, The Essential Lewis and Clark, reflects an interest in the primary documents of a different era, which also engaged his tenure upon the National Council of the Lewis and Clark Bicentennial. A biography of William Clark's career, William Clark and the Shaping of the West, was published in May of 2004. Jones lives in Princeton, New Jersey.

Posted by Dr. Bill Thomas on April 24, 2008 5:30 PM |Permalink |Comments (0)

You Can't Hear This...

But you used to.

Posted by Dr. Bill Thomas on April 24, 2008 9:39 PM |Permalink |Comments (0)

April 25, 2008

How to Live Longer

The New York Times and Dr. Robert Kane explain how it is done.

Posted by Dr. Bill Thomas on April 25, 2008 5:29 AM |Permalink |Comments (1)

Power-Up Friday: Antipsychotic Restraints

The latest issue of the Journal of the American Geriatrics Society adds another nail to the coffin of antipsychotic drugs in older adults. In a Dutch study of nearly 23,000 people on these drugs, there was a 60% increase in pneumonia, compared with those not taking the medications.

Add this to the growing list of concerning reports about this class of drugs in recent years - they make Vioxx look good.

In nursing homes around the industrialized world, about 40% of people with dementia are taking antipsychotic drugs for behavioral symptoms of dementia. Looking at all of the published studies of drug effectiveness, even if you take the results at face value, fewer than one in five people show a clinical benefit.

If these were heart medications or antibiotics, we would have abandoned them long ago. We cling to them because of our narrow view of what elders with dementia need.

Antipsychotic use for dementia is dead – we just don’t know it yet! These drugs are the “physical restraints” of the 21st century. Thirty years ago, we couldn’t conceive of a safe way to untie people without causing greater harm, until some intrepid pioneers showed us the way. We were locked in the wrong paradigm.

And so it is with dementia. The problem lies in our approach to care. We create an institutional environment that favors tasks and interventions over relationships. We remove all aspects of autonomy and control. We try to force people with dementia to try and reorient their minds and bodies to the patterns of “normal” adults. Then we medicate the predictable result. (This happens in the community as well as the nursing home.)

Can we un-medicate people with dementia and have them live fuller, healthier lives? Absolutely! People are doing it as we speak, though their voices are still mostly out at “the fringe”. I’ll tell you how next Friday…

-- Al Power

Posted by Kavan Peterson on April 25, 2008 7:11 AM |Permalink |Comments (0)

April 28, 2008

Generational Politics

This blog post from DailyKos deals, by neccessity with generalizations but offers a fascinating take on the coming realignment of American Politics.

America stands on the verge of a new political realignment. The baby boomers who used the overwhelming numbers of what been until now the largest American generation in history, ushered in the previous Idealist Realignment that flipped the Dixiecrat, racist southern white vote toward the Republicans, while making the Democratic Party the bastion of civil rights, equality and personal freedoms. This Idealist boomer generation, like Idealist generations before it that engaged in the Temperance and Suffragist movements, was marked by an obsession with social issues such as substance abuse, cultural issues, race, and the role of women in society. Like other Idealist generations, it was also marked by a distrust of government, a pattern of decreasing voter turnout, a marked preference for divided government, and rising numbers of Independents and split-ticket voters.

Boomers beware, the picture painted of our generation will surprise you.

Read it here.

Posted by Dr. Bill Thomas on April 28, 2008 6:07 AM |Permalink |Comments (0)

Monkhouse Monday

[Editor's Note: Dr. Thomas has invited Eden Alternative's Europe Coordinator Christa Monkhouse to guest-post on a weekly basis from across the Big Pond. Christa is personally responsible for introducing the Eden Alternative to Europe, first in the UK, then Denmark and soon in Sweden, Finland and other European nations. Stay-tuned for regular updates on 'Monkhouse Mondays'.]

Eden Europe has now about 1000 associates. We just started a networking platform on www.edenalt.ning.com (if you are an Eden associate you are welcome to join, posts are in English and German) and I have been busy translating posts and video messages by Dr. Thomas into German, as some of his messages and ideas are just breathtakingly new. This inspires fresh thinking on our side and I would like to share with you some of the learning which has taken place:

Bill’s term "mitigated aging“ has brought a high sensitivity to language use, after all, we act what we think. Therefore use of language is an indicator of culture change. I would like to give an example:

Paraprofessional: we all know that this term describes "untrained“ or little trained care workers (para means "beside, alongside, assistant, subsidiary, but also 'abnormal or incorrect'“ (source: http://www.thefreedictionary.com)

This is how we call the most important carers, even scholarly papers do so. In an Eden pilot home we have trained "Life Assistants“, similar to the Shabaz in the Green-House. These are multitaskers and truly complementary to nurses, therapists and physicians. They are the "worldmakers“ (B. Thomas), there to "protect, sustain and nurture“. Why not make this a new, much needed profession with deserved importance, prestige and ongoing education? The European Care License (http://www.scie.org.uk/networks/ecl.asp) is a small beginning. Our Life assistant training was based on it and trains them in all aspects of quality of life.

Two days ago, the Swiss Health Obersvatory (http://www.obsan.admin.ch) published a report, saying that care costs will increase by over 100% in the next 30 years, simply because the numbers of older persons who need care will increase. What they do not mention is that the supply of carers will decrease (future carers are already born today). High time to attract them into a profession, not a "paraprofession“.

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April 2008 Archives

April 1, 2008

Aging, Caring For Aged

Posted by Kavan Peterson on April 1, 2008 9:43 AM |Permalink |Comments (0)

April 2, 2008

Eden Takes Root in UK

Posted by Kavan Peterson on April 2, 2008 10:54 AM |Permalink |Comments (0)

April 3, 2008

Power Up Thursday

Posted by Kavan Peterson on April 3, 2008 10:25 AM |Permalink |Comments (1)

Pumping Iron the Old Fashioned Way

Posted by Kavan Peterson on April 3, 2008 4:30 PM |Permalink |Comments (0)

April 4, 2008

Power Up Friday: Attitude Matters, Dude

Posted by Dr. Bill Thomas on April 4, 2008 10:19 AM |Permalink |Comments (0)

April 7, 2008

Change We Can Live In

Posted by Dr. Bill Thomas on April 7, 2008 9:28 AM |Permalink |Comments (0)

April 8, 2008

Is Oprah Finally Getting It?

Posted by Dr. Bill Thomas on April 8, 2008 3:26 PM |Permalink |Comments (0)

Elderblogging on TV

Posted by Dr. Bill Thomas on April 8, 2008 3:47 PM |Permalink |Comments (1)

April 9, 2008

The Rest Step

Posted by Dr. Bill Thomas on April 9, 2008 9:17 AM |Permalink |Comments (0)

Deadheads Say Wave that Flag

Posted by Dr. Bill Thomas on April 9, 2008 11:00 AM |Permalink |Comments (0)

April 10, 2008

The Obama Brand

Posted by Dr. Bill Thomas on April 10, 2008 6:46 AM |Permalink |Comments (0)

April 11, 2008

The History of the World

Posted by Dr. Bill Thomas on April 11, 2008 6:00 AM |Permalink |Comments (0)

April 12, 2008

Unwise Use

Posted by Dr. Bill Thomas on April 12, 2008 6:17 AM |Permalink |Comments (0)

April 13, 2008

Eden and CMS

Posted by Dr. Bill Thomas on April 13, 2008 5:58 AM |Permalink |Comments (2)

April 14, 2008

The Green House

Posted by Dr. Bill Thomas on April 14, 2008 5:53 AM |Permalink |Comments (0)

Art Imitating Life

Posted by Dr. Bill Thomas on April 14, 2008 1:13 PM |Permalink |Comments (0)

April 16, 2008

The White Haired Women Have Spoken

Posted by Dr. Bill Thomas on April 16, 2008 9:44 AM |Permalink |Comments (0)

Sheilah Kast Wins!

Posted by Dr. Bill Thomas on April 16, 2008 11:22 AM |Permalink |Comments (0)

Christa Monkhouse, Culture and Design

Posted by Dr. Bill Thomas on April 16, 2008 11:32 AM |Permalink |Comments (0)

April 17, 2008

Geriatric Care Is Facing Crisis

Posted by Dr. Bill Thomas on April 17, 2008 5:41 AM |Permalink |Comments (2)

April 18, 2008

Learning Circles

Posted by Dr. Bill Thomas on April 18, 2008 6:11 AM |Permalink |Comments (0)

Top Comment

Posted by Dr. Bill Thomas on April 18, 2008 10:20 PM |Permalink |Comments (0)

April 21, 2008

Closing the Barn Door

Posted by Dr. Bill Thomas on April 21, 2008 6:40 AM |Permalink |Comments (0)

Obi Wan Kenobi...

Posted by Dr. Bill Thomas on April 21, 2008 10:29 AM |Permalink |Comments (1)

April 22, 2008

Political Prediction