Health and Disability

Today leading mental health charity Mind has helped to redraw the boundaries in our understanding of psychiatric medication, with the launch of new book Psychiatric Drugs (1). Drawing heavily on individuals' experiences, it is the first book of its kind to explore what it is like to take antidepressants and other drugs from the viewpoint of the patient, and it contains new and provocative material about people's relationships with some of the most debated and controversial medications around……

Mind Book Throws Spotlight On Chemical Cosh

Families in Ohio and Pennsylvania who use Healthsense's state-of-the-art eNeighbor® remote monitoring to help care for elderly relatives with Alzheimer's disease or dementia say the technology has enabled them to keep their loved ones safe at home for longer and delay placing them permanently in secured memory care units. They also credit the Healthsense technology with improving their own quality of life by helping relieve the stress and strain of tending to seniors with Alzheimer's or dementia…….

Developed with grants from the National Institutes of Aging (NIA) and the Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency (DARPA), the eNeighbor system is built around a set of battery-operated Wi-Fi sensors placed in private homes or senior living residences to monitor residents' daily living activities and wellness. These sensors include pressure sensors in beds to detect when a resident gets in or out of bed; motion detectors on walls to detect movement or inactivity; toilet sensors to monitor toilet usage; contact sensors on kitchen cupboards and refrigerator doors to monitor whether the resident is eating regularly; and door sensors that alert when the resident tries to leave the residence or enter potentially hazardous areas, such as stairways. eNeighbor's "smart" operating system uses algorithms to analyze the sensor data and determine whether the resident requires assistance. The system automatically issues assistive prompts or alerts via any phone when the data indicate help is needed. Information and reports can also be accessed from a secure web portal……

Technorati Tags: dementia,emonitor

Families Say Healthsense's ENeighbor(R) Remote Monitoring System Helps Keep Relatives With Alzheimer's Safe At Home And Out Of Memory Care

Our goal is to help aging Americans and their families understand their long term care options and connect with the best resources to pay for at-home care, assisted living, Alzheimer's and nursing home care.   We provide benefits and eligibility information on many resources including federal programs such as Medicare or Medicaid and outside financial resources such as veterans’ pensions or reverse mortgages.

Many care and financial options exist, but differing eligibility requirements can make sorting through them a challenge.  To help visitors with this task, we provide two methods to access this site’s content. Use the Eldercare Resource Locator Tool to search for senior care resources based on your current situation or Browse by Resource Category & Name……

Technorati Tags: LTC,resource

Payment Options for Elder Care and Assisted Living

Back in May I wrote about Wii Fit suggesting it would be an excellent tool for older people and those suffering from Alzheimer's disease.
The game satisfies two needs: social interaction and exercise.
Recently, I am reading articles about how Wii is being adopted by Senior centers and assisted living facilities all across the country. The game of choice seems to be bowling. Wii bowling provides moderate exercise and allows groups to get together much like they would at a bowling alley……

Technorati Tags: LTC,Wii,fitness

Alzheimer's Reading Room: Wii a Useful Tool for Alzheimer's Caregivers

A paper published today on bmj.com reports that many patients with complex chronic illnesses are overwhelmed by their treatment.
The authors explain that the burden is caused by the healthcare systems themselves. In order to be effective, care must be less disturbing in the daily lives of patients……

Treatment For Chronic Illness Must Be Less Disruptive In The Daily Lives Of Patients

Why is such a simple approach so lacking in so many parts of the Medicaid LTC system?

On July 28 the U.S. House of Representatives passed what the Military Times described as “landmark legislation to train family members to provide care for severely wounded veterans — and pay them for it” (”House passes bill to train, help caregivers,” July 28).

HR 3155, the Caregiver Assistance and Resource Enhancement Act, or CARE Act, received vocal support from families of wounded war veterans after being introduced into the House in July. CNN reported that supporters and members of the Wounded Warrior Project, an advocacy group and provider of services for injured soldiers, gathered along with politicians on Capitol Hill on July 21 to urge Congress to pass the bill (”Wounded Warrior Program urges funding for war vet caregivers,” July 21)…..

Veteran, Caregiver Bill Passes House at PHInational.org

Includes Video and Report Link: 

A full implementation of the home and community-based care principles embodied in the landmark Olmstead Supreme Court decision will achieve two of the chief goals being pursued in the current push for national health reform, namely, saving money and improving health care outcomes. This is the claim advanced in “Still Waiting: The Unfulfilled Promise of Olmstead” (June 24, 2009, pdf), a recent report from the Washington, D.C.-based Bazelon Center for Mental Health Law.

Main points in the report include:…….

Report: Make Olmstead Principles Part of Health Reform at PHInational.org

Though unnerved by uncertainties about what Washington is offering, Americans are still demanding healthcare reform.
If one little-discussed element of reform is missing, however, Americans will be surprised, and even distraught, while the country will be ensnared in another kind of healthcare crisis in the near future.

Most Americans believe healthcare reform will provide coverage for a variety of long-term care services. In a survey we conducted for the American Associating of Homes and Services for the Aging, majorities expected that care for people with Alzheimer’s disease (61 percent), in assisted living (57 percent) and assistance for an older or disabled person in taking their medications (64 percent) will all be covered when healthcare reform is enacted.

If the Senate HELP Committee’s bill, or that reported out by the House’s Energy and Commerce Committee, reflect the ultimate shape of what is passed into law, voters’ expectations will be met. Those versions of healthcare reform create a voluntary insurance program where, for premium payments of just a couple of dollars a day, the elderly, the disabled or anyone who needs assistance caring for themselves will receive a benefit of up to about $37,000 a year.

Constituents are expecting reform to provide some mechanism for long-term care, and they will be sorely disappointed if healthcare reform fails to deliver in this arena. More important, the country will be far worse off for having squandered the opportunity to avert an impending crisis.

Technorati Tags: LTC,health care reform

TheHill.com - Health reform, long-term

The American Association for Homecare hosted a media conference call yesterday, unveiling a new economic study that exposes severe flaws in the Medicare competitive bidding program for durable medical equipment and services. The bidding program is set to re-start this October. The study, released today by Brian O'Roark, PhD, of Robert Morris University, found that the federal Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services drastically misread the marketplace and that the current competitive bidding program reduces overall competition and hurts the quality of patient care.
The full report and a summary of findings are available at http://www.aahomecare.org.

Study Shows That Competitive Bidding Benefits Insurance Companies And Forces Many Seniors To Use Out-of-State Providers

Since the 1970s there have been profound changes in family structure in the United States that have the potential to alter the care received by disabled elderly parents from their children, according to a new study by Barbara Steinberg Schone, Ph.D., of the Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality, and colleagues. They used data from the Asset and Health Dynamics Among the Oldest Old survey to estimate the joint probabilities that an adult child provides time and/or cash transfers to a parent.

The estimates suggest significant detrimental effects of parental divorce and step relationships on support of disabled elderly parents. For example, children were significantly less likely to provide care to their disabled parent if the parent was divorced versus widowed. Children of divorced parents were about half as likely as children of widowed parents to co-reside with a parent and their parents were more likely to live alone or in a nursing home. Children with parents who remarried were less likely to provide cash transfers and more likely to have a parent who was in a nursing home…..

Technorati Tags: family support,LTC

Research Activities, July 2009: Elderly/Long-Term Care: Dramatic changes in family structure have altered the care of disabled elderly parents