(A special thanks to Allen Gladwell Carter, Sr., artist extraordinaire and my brother-in-law for permission to reprint the following article.  It appeared in the May 2006 issue of “DelawareToday Magazine” under Active Lifestyles section with full page photograph by Thom Thompson. Thanks to Allen for adding an “update” at the end of the article.
Be [...]

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There is a small but growing group of doctors, nurses, physician/nurse practitioners who are making house calls, something that literally disappeared back in the 1980’s.
Medicare changes now make house calls easily billable, and such visits have the potential for reducing health-care costs and enhancing quality of care for the elderly.
I recall very well our family [...]

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Why Seniors are Heading Back to Elementary School

February 28, 2010

I have always been captivated by multi-generational interaction. When I see the young and old interacting, getting to know each other, having fun, and (yes!) learning from each other, I have the desire for these informal and formal actions to spread like wildfire!
In my personal experience, I know of these interactions:

My mother’s 90 [...]

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The Male Caregiver – a Different Approach to Caregiving

February 15, 2010

I received a sad email from a close friend in North Carolina. Her elderly mother is rapidly deteriorating while her father (who was caring for her mother) is now having to set up doctor appointments of his own because they think his cancer has returned. I then happened upon a poignant article, “The New Face [...]

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Protect your Elderly Parent against Census-related Scams

February 9, 2010

The best way to protect your aging parents against Census-related scams is to educate them about the census.  Also, encourage them to complete and return the 10 question form as soon as they receive it in the mail, certainly no later than April 1st.  The homes that have not returned the form by April 1st [...]

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How to Deal with a Difficult Sibling in Decision-making for an Aging Parent

February 2, 2010

It seems that every day I have a similar conversation with friends and colleagues.  “I can’t get our family on the same page about our elderly parent.  It’s like my brother came in from another planet.”  I laughed the first time I heard that statement but realize that’s exactly how I felt about my brother!
Why [...]

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Top Ten List to Help an Elderly Parent Before Crisis

January 27, 2010

If you missed my BlogTalkRadio show yesterday, you missed an information-packed session with a wonderful lady, Julie Hall (”The Estate Lady”).  As an estate expert and certified personal property appraiser, Julie has spent her life helping families deal with their “parents’ lifetime accumulation of stuff”.    At the end of this post are links to [...]

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Dementia – Poem by a Grandson

January 21, 2010

Thanks to Alzheimer’s Reading Room for sharing the following poem by Max Wallack whose great-grandmother suffered with Alzheimer’s.  Max went on to found the non-profit, Puzzles to Remember, providing puzzles to care facilities with dementia and Alzheimer’s patients.  (Links are at the end of this post)
Turning true-blue loyal friends into treacherous strangers…..

Dementia
by Max Wallack
It [...]

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How to Help when Both Elderly Parents are Ill and Declining

January 18, 2010

Paul Moseley joins me on my BlogtalkRadio show, Tuesday, January 19th, 11 am Eastern time.
Paul will share his personal story, challenges and rewards as he cared for two aging and ill parents at the same time.  His parents spent the last 4 years of their lives in separate facilities.
For many of us, caring [...]

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Preventing Polypharmacy Problems in your Elderly Parent

January 12, 2010

This week’s blog is based an on excellent article from MDSCentral (and an excerpt from HCPro’s book, The Long-Term Care Nursing Desk Reference.) While the book was written for nurses working in a long-term care setting, this information is valuable to family caregivers, as well.
What is polypharmacy? Quite simply, it is the use of multiple [...]

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