Growth of Industry to Support Aging in Place

Read all about it! There is an entire industry that has sprung up to help people age in place. And the recession is having an impact on the trend. The New York Times business section has a great article on this topic.

Older folks don't want to move to assisted living. And anyway, assisted living can be really expensive.

But what does it take to age in place successfully, affordably and safely? This article explores the topic. Well worth reading....

http://www.nytimes.com/2009/07/18/health/18patient.html

Here is a synopsis:

Patient Money

Making Home a Safer Place, Affordably

By LESLEY ALDERMAN

Published: July 18, 2009

If older people choose to remain in houses where they are comfortable, there are many ways to shore up their homes’ safety

Help the MacLeod family turn the page - Susan Campbell | Fear, itself

This is the story of a vet helping a vet. I wrote up the story for Henry Racki so that he could help this veteran. He has sent it out to the press, and it has been picked up by a blog and sent around. Henry and his Rockfall company make modular additions for homes that enable people to age in place. It's great for disabled folks, too.

Check out the blog from the Courant.

Help the MacLeod family turn the page - Susan Campbell | Fear, itself

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More Villages Help People Stay in Their Homes

A member of our Aging in Place in Darien Board of Advisers just sent me yet another article on the spread of aging-in-place organizations. Wow. This trend is really picking up momentum. The article from Boston.com is about "villages" (based on the Beacon Hill Village model) springing up in more Boston suburbs like Newton, Sudbury and Wellesley. The recession is making the alternative of staying in your community and home even more practical, as moving to assisted living is an expensive proposition.

This may be one of the best articles I've read so far on the topic. It offers in a sidebar of resources to tap, complete with Web sites. I've put a link below and urge you to read it.

I can't wait for Aging in Place in Darien to have its own Web site and to become an independent nonprofit. We are still a pilot program, under the wing of the Community Fund of Darien. I'm getting really impatient, but I know I have to bide my time and let the process of planning for our future work out in an orderly fashion. I just hope the naysayers who want to keep the organization small and part of some other nonprofit don't win the day. I hope we can find seniors in Darien who will want to become board members and who will want to champion a village or other independent, nonprofit AIP organization in Darien. I hope we can find the impassioned ones.

To read the Boston suburb article, click here:
http://www.boston.com/yourtown/newton/articles/2009/07/09/new_programs_help_elderly_stay_in_their_own_homes/?page=1

Successful Aging and Dying

I've just read a wonderful, moving article about successful aging and dying in the New York Times. It's about a convent of sisters (nuns) in Rochester who've figured out what is important as one becomes ill and frail. They have an expert in aging who helps them not over medicate. The article is well worth reading. Jane Gross wrote the story. She's done a lot of great stories on aging, including the one about Beacon Hill Village several years ago.

http://www.nytimes.com/2009/07/09/health/09sisters.html

Synopsis:

Months to Live

Sisters Face Death With Dignity and Reverence

By JANE GROSS

Published: July 9, 2009

For end-of-life care, a group of convent sisters rely on social networks rather than aggressive medical intervention.

Dexter-Miller Community, Inc. - Ann Arbor, Michigan

In an effort to help people all over the country know about the groups that have sprung up to help people successfully stay in their homes as they age, I'm collecting information and posting descriptions of organizations dedicated to that cause.

Here is the first one:

The Dexter-Miller Community, Inc. located in Ann Arbor, Michigan, is a non-profit neighborhood services cooperative. Members are willing to exchange services with each other to simplify and enhance their quality of life. Members agree that every service exchanged in the community has equal value based solely on the time spent providing it and that everyone has something to offer. Membership will be limited to 50-100 households in Northwest Ann Arbor. When membership approaches 100 households we intend to split into two geographically more compact groups in order to keep management and contacts simple and local. There is a $15.00 initiation fee plus dues of $10.00 per year.

New members receive scrip worth 16 DEXMILS (DM). One DM is worth 15 minutes of service from another member or the loan of equipment for one hour. Each year upon renewal, members may request 8 more DM, if needed. Otherwise, DM are earned by providing services or equipment to other members. A Membership Directory lists services and equipment offered by each household. Those seeking services or equipment call or email a provider directly and arrange the exchange Professional Service contractors recommended by coop members are listed on our website with satisfaction ratings from community members. Combining work of professional contractors with other community members sometimes results in substantial discounts. More information is available at www.DEXMIL.com


Allan Feldt
alfeldt@umich.edu

Essentials of Successful Aging

The head of the Watergate Initiative has written a one-page guide to successful aging. I have permission to post it here. I found it terrific.

http://www.greatbooks.org/THE WATERGATE INITIATIVE/NETWORK

Making Your Good Life Even Better


FROM HERE TO THERE


Whether you live in a city, a suburb, or a rural area – you will benefit by having
these qualities in your life, if you want to stay in your home, and not move to an
institutional environment.

1. People: People who you are committed to help when they need it – and --
people whose help you will accept when you need it. Each of us needs to be part
of a defined group in our geographic location -- a Network builds bonds on a daily
basis, weaving an intimate thread of community.


2. Information. The world is changing quickly – we need to be informed so we
can take care of ourselves and respond to the changes. We need information on
medical services and reverse mortgages, and recommendations on everything from
plumbers to contractors. We need to know what’s happening in our neighborhoods
and our local government. We need different kinds of help -- from a drive to the
doctor to spreading the word on our yard sale. We need information on support
groups from caregivers to cancer survivors.


3. A health care team standing by to help you when you need it – for services
beyond what your own doctor provides. That team includes a Home Care
Company, a Geriatric Care Manager, and a Hospice with its Palliative Care
doctors. It certainly includes your local Hospital, with which you can work to
create new programs specific to your Network members.

Take care,


Patricia Moore

(Mrs. Arthur Cotton Moore)

Founder: The Watergate Initiative + TWI/Network

Updates on Senior Transportation - ITN

I just got the latest ITN America newsletter via email. I'm going to paste it below.

What strikes me is that any great initiative, such as improving transportation for seniors, comes from one or two driven individuals with great passion. Successful social entrepreneurship comes from people with a mission, and that mission usually comes from a personal experience or need.

Read on....

ITNAmerica E-newsletter

	Volume 5. Summer 2009

In this Issue ITNOrlando: We're Off to the Races! Sheldon Suroff: ITN Closes the Circle Volunteering Gives New Perspective on Aging Liberty Mutual Debuts "Driver Seat Game" The Older Driver Evaluation Process The Liberty Mutual and ITNAmerica Partnership. ITNAmerica is excited to announce our partnership with Liberty Mutual, one of the nation's leading auto, home and life insurers. As the National Insurance Partner to ITNAmerica and our affiliate communities, Liberty Mutual has embraced ITN's mission to support safe, senior mobility and developed resources for seniors and their families to make good, safe transportation decisions found at www.libertymutual.com/seniordriving. Donate to ITNAmerica	ITNOrlando: We're Off to the Races! By Fran Carlin-Rogers, Board Member, ITNOrlando Start Your Engines Orlando began preparations to expand senior transportation options back in the mid 90s, long before we had ever heard of the Independent Transportation Network®. A visionary leader at the Central Florida Area Agency on Aging recognized that senior transportation was a key component of each strategic plan identifying critical needs of elders. Several programs were started which set a tone of innovation around this topic. Local and statewide transportation summits focusing on the triumvirate of safe roads, safe drivers and transportation alternatives, and an informative publication, "What Do You Do When Your Car Won't Get You There," helped prepare our community to start travelling together. Read more....
	Sheldon Suroff: ITN Closes the Circle For Sheldon Suroff, ITNAmerica's newest affiliate ITNStCharles closes a circle that started in 1994 when his son was killed by a 92 year old wrong-way driver suffering from dementia. After Jason's tragic death at 21 years old, Sheldon and his wife Karen turned their grief into activism, establishing a nonprofit organization, Concerned Americans for Responsible Driving (CARD), and creating the Impaired Driver Law. Read more....
	Volunteering Gives New Perspective on Aging By Bill Clark, Volunteer Driver, ITNNorthCentralConnecticut™ Getting on in years is not easy, especially when it comes to getting from one place to another. When no family member is available to help, driving yourself to the appointment appears to be the only option. This decision can cause mixed feelings. Eyesight is not what it used to be and reaction time is slower. Guilt about driving under these conditions may arise, but what are the other choices? Aging requires visiting doctors more often, and with blood draws, x-rays, and other transportation needs, it is not unusual to have more than one appointment in a week. Read more....
	Liberty Mutual Debuts "Driver Seat Game" Liberty Mutual, ITNAmerica's national insurance partner, launched its online Driver Seat Game, a video game that allows players of all ages to experience first-hand the physical and cognitive limitations that older drivers may experience while operating a motor vehicle. The goal of the game is to make players sensitive to the physical obstacles faced by their parents at various stages of aging and inspire conversations between adult children and their senior parents. Read more....
	The Older Driver Evaluation Process Healthcare practitioners play an important role in addressing driving safety with their patients. Changes that often come with age—vision and hearing loss, slower reaction times, chronic illness and medication—can affect driving ability. The problem is that patients might not know it. Read more....
	The Road Ahead is the e-newsletter of ITNAmerica, and is generously supported by The Atlantic Philanthropies. © 2008 ITNAmerica. ITNAmerica.org. All Rights Reserved.

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