Long-term memory endures and short-term memory becomes tenuous in old age. We are our memories. Linking an old person to their experience has been shown to reaffirm 'the self'. If this is done skillfully, sensitively and without intrusion, the benefits are twofold. First, and most important, the old person becomes less anxious, cut off and confused and , in linking to the past, is more able to participate in the present. Second, it may only be possible for those who care for confused old people to understand their worries and pre-occupations if their past lives are known and respected. These experienced authors in reminiscence work provide a detailed, practical guide that is filled with anecdotes and information. The contents cover; the definition of old age; reminiscence work using oral history and group work; communication; reminiscence work projects; building resource banks and cultural information. Reminiscence work is practised by many social and health care disciplines, for example, social workers, nurses, occupational therapists, residential care workers and volunteers. This book should be of interest to nurses working with older people; occupational therapists; social workers; and clinical psychologists.

An exploration of the emotional toll a transition into assisted living can have, as well as an offering of practical knowledge and advice on how to make wise choices during this difficult time While acknowledging the intense experience of grief and bereavement that surrounds the relinquishment of independent living, this book explores how to ensure that those going into care retain their identity and are not reduced to peripheral status as "patient" or "resident." This book is written both for those preparing to enter residential care and for those--professionals, volunteers, pastors, family members, and friends--who can offer support to ease the struggle of transition. Covering practical details from how to choose a home to what to pack when moving, it will help facilitate a smooth transition at an emotional time of upheaval.

Mary Ellen Geist decided to leave her job as a CBS Radio anchor to return home to Michigan when her father's Alzheimer's got to be too much for her mother to shoulder alone. She chose to live her life by a different set of priorities: to be guided by her heart, not by outside accomplishment and recognition.
The New York Times wrote a front page story about Mary Ellen on Thanksgiving 2005. It was one of the most e-mailed stories for the month. Mary Ellen also kept a blog of her experiences, which received an enormous response from readers on WCBS880.com. Through her own story and through interviews with doctors and other women who've followed the "Daughter Track"--leaving a job to care for an aging parent--Geist offers eye-opening advice. She shares emotional insights on how to encourage interaction with the loved one you're caring for; how to determine daily tasks that are achievable and rewarding; how the personality of the patient affects the caregiving and the progression of the disease; as well as invaluable advice about how the reader can take care of themselves while accomplishing the Herculean task of constant caregiving to others.
Geist's years in journalism allow her to report on Boomers' caretaking dilemmas with professional objectivity, and her warm voice brings compassion and insight to one of the most difficult stituations a son or daughter may face during his or her life.

This thoughtful and compassionate account addresses some of the difficult ethical and medical issues raised in the provision of health care for the dependent elderly patient. Care of the dependent elderly is subject to conflicting priorities arising from the demands of patients, their relatives, the fair allocation of medical and financial resources, and the medical ethos to prolong life. A distinguished team of contributors, selected from the fields of medicine, philosophy, ethics, and law, discuss and critically evaluate these issues. This volume will provide a focus for further debate and interest in this important subject.

Ronald Reagan's daughter writes with a moving openness about losing her father to Alzheimer's disease. The simplicity with which she reveals the intensity, the rush, the flow of her feelings encompasses all the surprises and complexities that ambush us when death gradually, unstoppably invades life.
In "The Long Goodbye, Patti Davis describes losing her father to Alzheimer's disease, saying goodbye in stages, helpless against the onslaught of a disease that steals what is most precious-a person's memory. "Alzheimer's," she writes, "snips away at the threads, a slow unraveling, a steady retreat; as a witness all you can do is watch, cry, and whisper a soft stream of goodbyes."
She writes of needing to be reunited at forty-two with her mother ("she had wept as much as I over our long, embittered war"), of regaining what they had spent decades demolishing; a truce was necessary to bring together a splintered family, a few weeks before her father released his letter telling the country and the world of his illness . . .
The author delves into her memories to touch her father again, to hear his voice, to keep alive the years she had with him.
She writes as if past and present were coming together, of her memories as a child, holding her father's hand, and as a young woman whose hand is being given away in marriage by her father . . . of her father teaching her to ride a bicycle, of the moment when he let her go and she went off on her own . . . of his teaching her the difference between a hawk and a buzzard . . . of the family summer vacations at a rented beach house-each of them tan, her father looking like the athlete he was, with a swimmer's broad shoulders and lean torso.. . . She writes of how her father never resisted solitude, in fact was born for it, of that strange reserve that made people reach for him. . . . She recalls him sitting at his desk, writing, staring out the window . . . and she writes about the toll of the disease itself, the look in her father's eyes, and her efforts to reel him back to her.
Moving . . . honest . . . an illuminating portrait of grief, of a man, a disease, and a woman and her father.

The literature on depression in old age has tended to be dominated by the medical model with its focus on symptoms and treatment. This report breaks new ground by adopting a psycho-social approach one that explores depression in the context of the everyday lives of older people. Commissioned by Help the Aged, this report: reviews the nature and scope of the evidence base around depression and older people; evaluates current policy and practice responses; and identifies gaps in the evidence base and areas for further work. Finding that older people with depressive disorders are largely invisible within health and care services and that many fail to seek or receive effective treatment, the report also: recognizes the importance of daily hassles in undermining older peoples mental well-being; highlights the importance of mental health promotion; argues for the need for an holistic approach to older peoples services which balances physical with mental needs; and prioritizes the socia

Illinois is the fifth largest state in the country with 12.4 million people in 2000; the population increased by almost 9% or about one million people in the past decade. About 12% of the state's population is age 65 and older -- 1.5 million people in 2000. By 2025 the Illinois elderly population is expected to increase by over 50% and will be 16.6% of the state's total population. Illinois is one of the few states in the country that provides older persons and younger adults, who meet the eligibility criteria, with state entitlements to home and community-based long-term care services. Both entitlements resulted from court cases that were brought to eliminate waiting lists for services. The state funds the Community Care Program for older adults and the Home Services Program for persons with physical disabilities with a combination of state general revenue funds and Medicaid Section 1915 (c) waiver funds. The Community Care Program uses contracted agencies for the provision of homemaker, adult day care services, and case management services. In contrast, the Home Services Program's relies primarily on personal assistants, whom consumers supervise, to provide services. According to state officials, in 2002 the state had about 3,000 people with developmental disabilities in state-operated development centers (SODCs), 6,500 people in private intermediate care facilities for the mentally retarded (ICFs/MR) and 8,800 people in Section 1915 (c) Medicaid home and community-based services waivers for the developmentally disabled.

Oregon is a recognized leader in home and community-based care and has more than 20 years of experience in moving long-term care clients from institutional settings to home and community-based settings. In 2002, 82 per cent of Oregon's Medicaid long-term care clients were served in the community. Additionally, Oregon was the only state in the nation whose spending for institutional care was less than half of the state's total Medicaid long-term care spending in 2000, with only 37.2 per cent spent on institutional care compared to the national average of approximately 70 per cent. Oregon officials recognize that with the aging population and increasing cost, they may need to rethink the design of their current system. They hope to incorporate a concept of 'bounded choice' where a person's wishes are considered within the boundaries of service capacity and fiscal constraints.

Working Daughter is a revelatory look at who's caring for our aging population and how these unpaid family caregivers are trying to manage caring for their parents, raising their children, and pursuing their careers. It tells the story of one woman who was enjoying a fast-paced career in marketing and raising two children, until both of her parents were diagnosed with terminal illnesses on the same day. In the challenges she faced and the choices she made, readers will learn how they can navigate their own caregiving experience and/or prepare for when they are inevitably called on to care for their parents. Working Daughter sparks the conversation we so desperately need to have about women and the workplace. With 10,000 people turning 65 every day and a shortage of caregivers predicted in the next few years, it's time we talk about how family caregivers and their employers will face the impact of a rapidly aging society. This book fills the gap in the literature on women and work; there are volumes of books about managing career and children, but little advice on how to balance career and parents. Working Daughter provides a blueprint for women and a call to action for business leaders and policy makers. This is book is for women who want straight talk and real advice about the challenges of eldercare, the choices they will need to make, the aspects of caregiving they can control, and that which they cannot. And finally, Working Daughter shows family caregivers how they can achieve, the underreported but well-documented upside to caring for an aging parent, the caregiver's gain.

Japan is aging rapidly, and its government has been groping with the implications of this profound social change. In a pioneering study of postwar Japanese social policy, John Creighton Campbell traces the growth from small beginnings to an elaborate and expensive set of pension, health care, employment, and social service programs for older people. He argues that an understanding of policy change requires a careful disentangling of social problems and how they come to be perceived, the invention (or borrowing) of policy solutions, and conflicts and coalitions among bureaucrats, politicians, interest groups, and the general public. The key to policy change has often been the strategies adopted by policy entrepreneurs to generate or channel political energy. To make sense of all these complex processes, the author employs a new theory of four "modes" of decision-making--cognitive, political, artifactual, and inertial. Campbell refutes the claim that there is a unique "Japanese-style welfare state." Despite the big differences in cultural values, social arrangements, economic priorities, and political control, government responsibility for the "aging-society problem" is broadly similar to that in advanced Western nations. However, Campbell's account of how Japan has taken on that responsibility raises new issues for our understanding of both Japanese politics and theories of the welfare state.

Originally published in 1992.

The Princeton Legacy Library uses the latest print-on-demand technology to again make available previously out-of-print books from the distinguished backlist of Princeton University Press. These paperback editions preserve the original texts of these important books while presenting them in durable paperback editions. The goal of the Princeton Legacy Library is to vastly increase access to the rich scholarly heritage found in the thousands of books published by Princeton University Press since its founding in 1905.

Healthy Ageing and Aged Care takes an inter-disciplinary approach to supporting older people within the community and in care. It represents current Australian policies and practices and takes a holistic view of the older person, and emphasises the positive aspects of the ageing process, maintaining that people age in healthy ways and continue to be an integral part of their families and communities. This is one of the rewarding aspects of working with older people-assessing accurately and collaboratively putting in place strategies that can maintain the person's quality of life. The goal is for students to be able to develop those skills by engaging with the material in this book.

This guidebook seeks to inform readers of the best approaches in dealing with nursing homes and nursing home circumstances. Five chapters trace the family through this heart rending experience.

While other retirement guides tend to concentrate on financial planning alone, Abraham Monk's authoritative reference work discusses all of the important issues and decisions that affect retirees in the 1990s. The Columbia Retirement Handbook - the first comprehensive general handbook for retirement professionals and academics, written by a multi-disciplinary team of experts - contains the most up-to-date information on the retirement process and offers nuts-and-bolts help by providing lists of relevant books, helpful organizations, and knowledgeable professionals, complete with addresses and telephone numbers. This convenient volume is the one source professionals will want handy for information on retirement and the American woman, Social Security and social insurance benefits, the job market after retirement, age discrimination, health care options for the elderly, housing options for the independent or dependent retiree, social networks and support groups, legal issues in retirement, economic challenges of retirement, and new directions in retirement. The Columbia Retirement Handbook includes an index, bibliography, charts, and pertinent statistics.

Today's world is aging at a great speed, and although increased longevity represents one of the greatest achievements of the last century, the extension of life expectancy does not necessarily correspond to an extension of healthy lives. Aging populations, particularly those with a high percentage of the oldest old, are often burdened with chronic conditions that require extended long-term care. Deciding who provides said care, and in what forms, are key problems that will soon affect a growing number of post-industrial high- and mid-income countries. iCaring for a Livingr contributes to this debate by exploring the organization of long-term care in Italy, a country already in the midst of an eldercare crisis. There, the answer to this problem has taken the shape of home eldercare assistance, an arrangement whereby long-term care services are bought in the market in the form of private and individualized assistance by families sometimes with economic support provided by the State. The providers of these services, commonly known as "badanti" (minders), are, for the most part, im/migrant women coming from different areas of the world. iCaring for a Livingr analyzes the emergence and development of this arrangement and the role that the state, Italian families, and workers themselves play in shaping and in defining it. The author provides timely insights on: the nature of long-term care and its requirements; the specific needs of families facing this issue; the changing role of the neoliberal State; and the ways in which global political and economic processes influence and shape an apparently individually based solution to long-term care. This book is ideal for graduate courses in sociology and anthropology, specifically in courses related to gender and migration, work and women, social inequality, and immigration studies.

This sensitive and compassionate book provides older people who are nearing the end of life and their loved ones, as well as the professionals who work with them, with a greater depth of understanding of spiritual issues surrounding death and dying. Illustrated with the experiences of many older people, it explores important themes such as grief and loss; fear; pain, distress and suffering; acceptance; transcendence; prayer; the healing of relationships; and intimacy, and shows that the final journey towards death can be one of the most spiritually meaningful times in the life of an older person - a time in which there is still hope, and in which the person who is dying and their loved ones can grow spiritually, strengthened by the difficult times they face together. Spiritual issues for older people with dementia who are nearing the end of life are also explored, as are ethical and moral issues in death and dying, and the ways in which bereaved partners and relatives may come to terms with the loss of a loved one. This concise and accessible book will be a valuable resource for those in the caring professions and a rich source of guidance and support for older people who are nearing the end of life and their families.

This book addresses the fact that, despite the inevitability of aging, the vast majority of us are ill-prepared for eldercare. Eldercare as Art and Ministry broadens and deepens an understanding of eldercare as an art and as a ministry. As art, eldercare requires creativity, imagination, and perseverance. Here, ministry is considered in its fullest meaning, to include guiding, administering, serving, waiting upon, or acting as a loved one's agent. Through stories, lessons, and poignant vignettes, Jackson-Brown calls each one of us-whether young or older, ordained or laity, fortunate or less fortunate, prepared or not-to serve and care for an aging loved one. For lay people and professionals, this book is a guide to navigate the challenges of eldercare and to find meaning in this important work.

For a shockingly high number of elderly people, growing older is not the media's soft-focus vision of fun times and fond grandchildren, but a journey of loss: loss of work and the opportunity to contribute, loss of health and well-being, loss of family and friends. Over two million older people are stuck in persistent poverty. The diseases and disabilities associated with growing older multiply with the dramatic ageing of the population, yet the response of communities and care systems is often inadequate and ageism still abounds. Countless seniors feel that society has left them behind and that their lives have been reduced to survival. Unequal Ageing is for all those with a serious interest in the unprecedented challenge of our ageing society. This powerful book provides strong evidence of the scale of current disadvantage in the UK and suggests actions that could begin to change the picture of unequal ageing. Written by leading experts in the field, it analyzes the vital dimensions

Positive shifts in attitudes mean that emphasis is now being placed on the person with dementia and their personal relationships, rather than the illness. There is also growing recognition of the significance of a person's spiritual life in forming an essential basis for their sense of identity, and in providing them with a resource for coping. Offering an inter-disciplinary approach to spirituality and personhood in dementia care, the contributors to this book are leading practitioners and researchers in the field. They provide both a theoretical structure and a practical understanding of the essential role that spirituality can play in the affirmation of personhood and identity, and of ways in which the spiritual well-being of people with dementia can be nurtured. This thought-provoking book includes chapters approaching the subject from Christian and Buddhist perspectives, discussion of inter-faith relations, and of what spirituality might mean for those not part of any faith tradition. This will be valuable reading for nurses, care workers, care commissioners and pastoral support professionals interested in a more holistic and contemplative approach to caring for people with dementia.

Creative activities can support people with dementia, leading to moments of reconnection and joy. This book shows how the Montessori method - with its arts-based, person-centred and positive focus - can help caregivers connect to people with dementia. Drawing on 20 years of experience, Tom and Karen Brenner explain the philosophy of the Montessori method, provide clearly-written steps to follow when applying it, and share a wealth of case studies and stories from their personal work using this method with people with dementia. This includes reading circles, art programmes, drum circles, poetry, and video diaries. Supported by research of the importance of creativity and the arts in dementia care, it is made clear throughout how every aspect of the Montessori method can help those with dementia to rediscover the world around them, maximising the opportunities they have to reconnect with their peers, family, friends, and support staff.

Can traditional arts improve an older adult's quality of life? Are arts interventions more effective when they align with an elder's cultural identity? In The Expressive Lives of Elders, Jon Kay and contributors from a diverse range of public institutions argue that such mediations work best when they are culturally, socially, and personally relevant to the participants. From quilting and canning to weaving and woodworking, this book explores the role of traditional arts and folklore in the lives of older adults in the United States, highlighting the critical importance of ethnographic studies of creative aging for both understanding the expressive lives of elders and for designing effective arts therapies and programs. Each case study in this volume demonstrates how folklore and traditional practices help elders maintain their health and wellness, providing a road map for initiatives to improve the lives and well-being of America's aging population.

Reminiscence is a vital way to stimulate communication and promote confidence and self-worth in people with dementia. This practical guide is designed to give those who care for people with dementia a clear sense of how reminiscence can be used to greatly improve their quality of life. The book explores how reminiscence can contribute to person-centred dementia care and contains detailed descriptions of activities that can be used in a group setting, for one-to-one reminiscence at home or in a variety of care settings. Based on ideas developed and tested internationally over a period of ten years, the book offers imaginative approaches to reminiscence and a wealth of resources for use in a wide range of situations. The book includes advice on organising a reminiscence project and provides a useful planning tool for group sessions. Remembering Yesterday, Caring Today highlights the value of reminiscence for those with dementia and is an essential guide to good practice for family and professional carers.

This book introduces a process-based, patient-centered approach to palliative care that substantiates an indication-oriented treatment and radical reconsideration of our transition to death. Drawing on decades of work with terminally ill cancer patients and a trove of research on near-death experiences, Monika Renz encourages practitioners to not only safeguard patients' dignity as they die but also take stock of their verbal, nonverbal, and metaphorical cues as they progress, helping to personalize treatment and realize a more peaceful death. Renz divides dying into three parts: pre-transition, transition, and post-transition. As we die, all egoism and ego-centered perception fall away, bringing us to another state of consciousness, a different register of sensitivity, and an alternative dimension of spiritual connectedness. As patients pass through these stages, they offer nonverbal signals that indicate their gradual withdrawal from everyday consciousness. This transformation explains why emotional and spiritual issues become enhanced during the dying process. Relatives and practitioners are often deeply impressed and feel a sense of awe. Fear and struggle shift to trust and peace; denial melts into acceptance. At first, family problems and the need for reconciliation are urgent, but gradually these concerns fade. By delineating these processes, Renz helps practitioners grow more cognizant of the changing emotions and symptoms of the patients under their care, enabling them to respond with the utmost respect for their patients' dignity.

This practice-focussed resource shows dementia care professionals how to harness resilience in their daily practice when working with people living with dementia. Nurturing and developing resilience can hugely improve quality of life for people living with dementia, and as such it is an important tool for practitioners to provide targeted, meaningful support that fits into the lives of people with dementia and care partners. This book guides readers through the key concepts of resilience within the context of dementia and explains the unique challenges and opportunities of developing resilience in this situation. It also provides real-world examples of resilience in dementia assessment and care and suggests clear frameworks for applying resilience in daily practice, as well as template assessment sheets. A practical and accessible resource, this book helps professionals ensure that people with dementia are treated as individuals actively engaged in their own lives and in the care which they receive.

"Alice was always beautiful-Armenian immigrant beautiful, with thick, curly black hair, olive skin, and big dark eyes," writes Dana Walrath. Alice also has Alzheimer's, and while she can remember all the songs from The Music Man, she can no longer attend to the basics of caring for herself. Alice moves to live with her daughter, Dana, in Vermont, and the story begins. Aliceheimer's is a series of illustrated vignettes, daily glimpses into their world with Alzheimer's. Walrath's time with her mother was marked by humor and clarity: "With a community of help that included pirates, good neighbors, a cast of characters from space-time travel, and my dead father hovering in the branches of the maple trees that surround our Vermont farmhouse, Aliceheimer's let us write our own story daily-a story that, in turn, helps rewrite the dominant medical narrative of aging." In drawing Alice, Walrath literally enrobes her with cut-up pages from Alice's Adventures in Wonderland. She weaves elements from Lewis Carroll's classic throughout her text, using evocative phrases from the novel to introduce the vignettes, such as "Disappearing Alice," "Missing Pieces," "Falling Slowly," "Curiouser and Curiouser," and "A Mad Tea Party." Walrath writes that creating this book allowed her not only to process her grief over her mother's dementia, but also "to remember the magic laughter of that time." Graphic medicine, she writes, "lets us better understand those who are hurting, feel their stories, and redraw and renegotiate those social boundaries. Most of all, it gives us a way to heal and to fly over the world as Alice does." In the end, Aliceheimer's is indeed strangely and utterly uplifting.