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reframing aging

My Experience at the American Society on Aging Conference

April 3, 2018 by Jan Robbins

The American Society on Aging held its annual conference in San Francisco in March. (Photo by Robin Evans)

SENIOR BEAT – I was excited. Never having been to a major conference of any kind, I felt fortunate to land a press pass to the American Society on Aging annual conference last month in San Francisco.

My first session was Monday morning at 9 a.m., so I set my iPhone alarm for 6:30. But I had never used the alarm and didn’t trust it would work –  I’m such a Luddite. I woke and 5 a.m. and dozed and woke off and on until the alarm went off – as scheduled.

The conference was held at the Hilton Union Square, which I was sure  was right on Union Square. So I got off the subway at Stockton Street and walked up the hill to discover not the Hilton but the Hyatt. The doorman pointed me toward Mason Street. Heading up Geary Street, I worried I was getting too far afield of Union Square. This time, I asked a woman on the street for directions. “I’m from out-of-town, honey, why don’t you look it up on your phone,” she said.

“Oh, sure,” I stammered, quite abashed.

Then there it was – right around the corner at 333 O’Farrell.

Frazzled but jazzed

By that time, I was frazzled, but glad I had set out early.  Monday was registration day. I envisioned long lines – and wasn’t disappointed.

The next question on my conference journey: Is there a special line for the press? The monitor I asked didn’t know, so she set out to find out. Tailing her until she found the appropriate registrar, I was elated to find myself at the front of the line. What a coup!

I loved my badge. I felt it was a symbol of belonging to this large sea of humanity: 3,000 people from each of the 50 states and the District of Columbia gathered to share information to help older Americans and their families. (Conference attendees represent a population diametrically opposite of that segment of Congress constantly beating the drum for cutting social services, including Medical and Medicare.)

Reframing aging or freeze-framing?

My first seminar was called “Disrupting Aging,” although it was really about disrupting ageism. The former seems to imply you can freeze-frame yourself at 65. The session was a collaboration of the American Association of Retired Persons of Connecticut and the nonprofit education company Borrow My Glasses. Together they created a simple interactive video and card game that flips aging on its head. Like Humpty Dumpty, you put it all together again – but with a brand-new perspective. The women presenters were passionate, up-beat, creative and gracious. I was jazzed.

After lunch, I jack-rabbited around to a couple of seminars, quickly exiting ones that were uninteresting to me. Monday afternoon’s general assembly was fun and informative, but perhaps not in the way its title implied: “How Technology is Reinventing Aging.”  It featured a discussion of developing technology in the field of aging. A woman from a health care company moderated a panel of young to middle-age tech innovators.  One of them was from Great Call, which makes Jitterbug phones but also fall-detecting wearables, such as bracelets.

And on hand to offer feedback throughout the discussion – from a generational point of view – was researcher Kate Lorig, a professor at the Stanford University School of Medicine and director of the Stanford Patient Education Research Center.

Back to the drawing board, boys

Although she found no fault with the bracelet, for other products focusing on surveillance, her comments ranged from “It makes me feel dumb; I don’t like being told what to do; It threatens my privacy;” to “The directions are incomprehensible” and “OK, boys, back to the drawing board.”

Her sentiments were underscored by a short video showing an older man outsmarting smart technology: a cane that beeped to signal time for a walk; a fork that evaluated his food intake; and a bed sensor making sure he got enough sleep. He eventually tires of the surveillance – as would I.

He finds a neighborhood kid to walk his cane. A pile of books on his bed fakes the sensor into thinking he’s turning in at the designated time. At dinner, he eats pasta with a regular fork, while stirring the smart fork in a pile of vegetables – on a separate plate. The boisterous audience response indicated most people in sync with his frustration.

Every conference has its exhibit hall. This one was no exception. There were many helpful vendors making attendees aware of products such as a tele-rehabilitation solution that suits patients who have had a stroke, and Parkinson’s and orthopedic problems; chef-designed meal-delivery services; and adaptive telephone equipment.

Along with the helpful agencies and research companies, anti-aging companies were at work marketing ways to keep skin wrinkle-free with moisturizers and electrical face-lift equipment.  One moisturizing company was selling white truffle day moisturizer. Truffles are a fungus sniffed out in nature by pigs and dogs. On the usual unpronounceable list of ingredients, white truffle came in 20th.

Identifying malnutrition

I finished the conference with two inspiring sessions, on malnutrition among older adults and stigmas still attached to mental illness.

Affecting all socio-economic classes, malnutrition is hard for medical personnel and caregivers to recognize. There are no screening tools, thus no ways to evaluate or intervene. Yet research shows 25 percent of Medicare recipients have “food insecurity,” which means they don’t have reliable access to a sufficient quantity of affordable, nutritious food.

Doctors don’t always ask patients about their food intake because they can’t offer solutions, according to Uche Akobundu, senior director of Nutrition Strategy and Impact for Meals on Wheels. Panelists representing other national agencies said their organizations are developing tools to help doctors and caregivers identify populations at risk for malnutrition, educate them and help them improve their nutrition.

Demystifying mental illness

The last session focused on the innovative ways a group of social workers from New York City incorporate mental health services into their senior centers’ Asian population. In that culture, where negative emotions have been identified with insanity, the stigma is particularly dire. In an effort to build patients’ trust, mental health workers participate in senior center activities, becoming friendly with potential clients.

My conference days came to an end. I was sad and hopeful: Sad to leave this group of people dedicated to the well-being of others, but hopeful that many good changes in the world of aging are being cultivated and put into action.

I was particularly moved by a social worker on last panel as she recited a Jewish proverb she lives by, “If you’re saved one life, you’re saved the world.”

Filed Under: SF Senior Beat Stories Tagged With: aarp, american association of retired persons, american society on aging conference, borrow my glasses, Congress, disrupting aging, food insecurity, great call, jitterbug, kate lorig, malnutrition, Meals on Wheels, Medical, Medicare, mental illness, older americans, reframing aging, reinventing aging, san francisco, senior, stanford, stanford school of medicine, stigma, Uche Akobundu

Ingleside-Excelsior Senior Spotlight: November 2017

November 1, 2017 by Judy Goddess

Reframing Aging

The Older Women’s League devoted its September meeting to discussing ageism.

“How you frame aging makes a difference. One of the first steps we can take is to acknowledge the existence of ageism. Do you see older people as sad, with no possibilities, or as bringing new opportunities for growth, contribution and self expression? When you view aging as almost wholly negative, the aging process becomes something to be resisted or battled.”

Using materials developed by the Frame-Works Institute, the facilitator, Diane Krantz, led the 60 attendees through a series of “ageism awareness exercises” to help us surface our own internal and perhaps unrealized biases, prejudices and negative ideas about aging.

Rev. Glenda Hope, chair of OWL’s board of directors, said that organization is forming a consciousness raising group to carry on this discussion.

To learn more, check the OWL website www.owlsf.org or call (415)712-1695.

What Are You Eligible For?

Jennifer Chang makes her office at the OMI Senior Center located at 65 Beverly St. Chang is one of 12 Aging and Disability Resource Center staff stationed at senior and community centers throughout the city.

Chang helps seniors apply for housing vouchers, get Clipper cards, complete applications for paratransit, apply for food and nutrition programs, find a convenient food pantry, apply for in-home care, translate from Chinese to English and vice versa, or advocate for the services you feel you’ve been unjustly denied.

You do not need to meet income guidelines or be a member of the OMI Senior Center to receive help from Chang. You can call her at (415) 334-5558 or you can just stop in any weekday between 8:30 a.m. – 3 p.m., though Chang said it’s best to call first.

Breast Cancer Luncheon

Sixty seniors attended the recent Breast Cancer Luncheon hosted by the Lutheran Church of Our Savior.

Volunteers help the hungry in the Ocean View, Merced Heights, and Ingleside neighborhoods. (Photo by Judy Goddess)

Barbara Tate, LCOS senior program director and coordinator of the Breast Cancer Support Group, explained that in addition to the annual luncheon, LCOS hosts a monthly meeting of breast cancer survivors. The group supports women who have been newly diagnosed as well as women in recovery. “We encourage women to get their mammograms. Occasionally we’ve even covered some of their expenses.”

If you are looking for support or just want more information, call Tate at (650) 738-5705.

Senior Volunteers in the Community

Shopping can be difficult for seniors and adults with disabilities.

While they may still enjoy cooking, they have problems getting to a store and carrying heavy food bags home. That’s where the San Francisco-Marin Food Bank and the OMI Neighborhood Volunteers comes in.

Every week, the Food Bank delivers pallets of fresh and dried food to I.T. Bookman Center, where the Volunteers, a project of the Community Living Campaign, sort the groceries and pack grocery bags for delivery to the 71 homebound families or their list. (Low-income is currently defined as at or below 185 percent of the Federal Poverty Line.) Though the volunteers begin work by 7:30 a.m. there’s a lot of friendly banter and spirits are high.

The 2016  nutrition needs assessment by the SF Department of Aging and Adult Services estimated that 16 percent (16,335) of SF seniors had incomes below the federal poverty. The report noted, however, that given the high cost of living in San Francisco, a more accurate estimate of persons whose incomes made it difficult to meet their needs totaled 42,038 seniors, seniors with incomes up to 200 percent of the poverty threshold.

By 9:45, the bags have been loaded in the volunteers’ cars for delivery.

On occasion, volunteers leave the bags at a senior’s front door, most often, though, they carry the bags into the senior’s kitchen. “That allows us time to check out that they’re okay. Sometimes they ask for help in finding services. If they’re not well, we call a relative or a caseworker,” said Deb Glen, program coordinator.

“I look forward to seeing everyone on my route. I’m looking out for them and they’re looking for me. They’re my seniors. It’s a treat for me to be able to give something to people,” said Saralyn Archie, who began volunteering several years ago.

If you know a senior or an adult with either a permanent or temporary disability who could benefit from this program, call the Community Living Campaign at (415) 821-1003 x104.

DAAS surveys senior adults and those with disabilities

If you are one of the 1 in 4 San Francisco residents who is a senior or an adult with disabilities, or if you’re helping care for an aging adult or someone living with a chronic illness, then you’ll want to complete this survey. www.sfdaas.org/survey

The SF Department of Aging and Adult Services (DAAS) wants to better understand and serve the needs of aging adult and adults with disabilities.

Your feedback will inform future decisions about funding priorities and program investments. The survey is available in multiple languages, and your responses are confidential. This survey should take about 15 minutes to complete.

The survey is only open until December 8, so please take it now. Also, if your friends or loved ones are aging adults, adults with a disability, or someone who helps care for those individuals, please feel free to send this survey to them! DAAS wants to hear from as many people as possible.

Senior Spotlight columnist Judy Goddess can be reached at judygoddess@gmail.com or (415) 759-1994.

Filed Under: Action & Advocacy, Aging with a Disability, SF Senior Beat Stories, Volunteering & Giving Back Tagged With: daas survey, I.T. Bookman Center, Ingleside-Excelsior, OMI Senior Center, reframing aging, Senior Spotlight, senior volunteers

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