Aging and 'The Change'

AGING AND “THE CHANGE”

Today I met with a social worker from a nationally known retirement community. The community is experiencing an increase of residents who opt out of activities; coupled with an increase of residents who appear to be suffering from mild to moderate depression; AND an uptick in reported falls incidents. As she described the emotional and physical stress on the families and the residents, one thing became clear...as a society, we still haven't provided our older adults with the right tools for aging well.

Over the years, when Grandma fell we understood that falls were to be expected in our waning years.  This expectation was then often reinforced by the family doctor, who prescribed a walker and maybe some physical therapy.  That historically uninformed approach resulted is older adults who reconciled themselves to the expectation that...in order to be safe... I need to sit more…which often translates into reduced participation in "fun" activities. 

Safety issues become a worrisome social issue for family, friends, retirement community staff,  and stressful for older adults who have experienced a fall or a near fall.  "If I fall again, will I be forced into a nursing home?"   "I don't want anyone to know that I fall sometimes."  "Ineed to just sit so I don't risk falling."

Depression, self-limiting activities of daily living (ADLs) and general physical weakness are the veil of the person who is fearful of a falls injury. The Center for Disease Control and Prevention(CDCP) states that falls injury is the number 1 cause of injury among older adults; AND the 5th leading cause of death.  So the threat is real, but our society response is not! According to a July 2001 and Dec 2010 Journal of the American Geriatrics Society study...falls among our older adult population are largely avoidable.  Further, in 2011, Medicare
announced its Annual Wellness Visit program to encourage physicians to screen
ALL older adults for falls risk, and to refer for intervention as necessary.

We must teach our seniors (and physicians, too!) that the
tools exist for diagnosing and intervening with falls risks.  We must also
shed the long held notion that falls are an inevitable part of aging. Instead
of handing out walkers and waiting for the ensuing fall…we should be educating
our seniors and their families on how falls risks can be reduced.    

For more information on falls and Medicare approved falls assessments
go to:  http://www.FallPreventionClinics.com