In this timely and important work, expert gerontologists review what has been learned about the aged and the process of aging and link this knowledge to interventions for improving the quality of life.

This volume highlights the development of preventive, therapeutic, and rehabilitative interventions designed to assist older people maintain their independence and quality of life. In addition to the editors, chapter authors include Robert N. Butler, Matilda White Riley, Carroll Estes, and a foreword by James O. Mason.

The ability to effectively assess cognitive and other behavioral functions is an essential skill for neurologists, psychiatrists, geriatricians, nurses, and other clinicians who perform clinic and bedside examinations. Unique in the field, The Mental Status Examination Handbook is a user-friendly, comprehensive resource that provides practical guidance on cognitive assessment, clarifies mental status testing procedures, and assists with decision making for neuropsychological referrals. This detailed manual draws from the full history of behavioral neurology testing, making the complex and challenging area of cognitive assessment accessible for both students and practitioners. Offers guidance on how to choose and perform a large number of mental status tests, with information on selected test materials and normative values. Covers the bedside evaluation of arousal, attention, memory, language, perception, executive abilities, and other cognitive and behavioral areas. Provides an authoritative assessment and compendium of commonly used mental status scales, inventories and questionnaires. Describes relevant correlations with formal neuropsychological testing, neuroimaging, and neuropsychiatric disease. Explains how to weigh, use, and understand mental status scales and neuropsychological instruments. Discusses the meaning of cognitive symptoms and signs, and their neuroanatomical and neuropathological correlations. Enhanced eBook version included with purchase. Your enhanced eBook allows you to access all of the text, figures, and references from the book on a variety of devices.

This state-of-the-art volume will focus on the evidence base, but practical nature of the optimizing physical activity and function, and the real world recommendations provided by experts in the field. In addition, the book will be written by a wide variety of national and international experts across multiple disciplines including nursing, medicine, physical therapy, and exercise physiology.

The mental health needs of older people are all too often overlooked or put down to the inevitable consequences of ageing. This textbook will make it much easier for health, social care and third sector workers to identify, treat and support the needs of this population. The book takes an interdisciplinary team approach and sets the scene by looking at different practice contexts in the United Kingdom and the increasingly important role played by social care in addressing the mental health needs of older people. A number of more clinically focused chapters then cover: mental health promotion anxiety and depression ageing and psychosis alcohol and dual diagnosis dementia later life liaison services complex and enduring mood disorders. Each clinical chapter makes use of extended and detailed case studies which illuminate the team's role in the assessment-intervention-evaluation cycle and ensure the text's application to practice. Service user and family perspectives are drawn on throughout and current practice exemplars outlined. The final chapter distils key messages from the book and sets a number of key challenges. Mental Health and Later Life highlights the rewards and complexity of working with older people with mental health needs and their families. It is invaluable reading for all those learning about, or working with, this population.

As recent articles about "the graying of America" suggest, a demographic revolution is well underway. The number of people living into extreme old age is increasing dramatically. By the year 2050 one in five of the world's population, including the developing countries, will be 65 or older, a fact which presages profound medical, biological, philosophical, and political changes in the coming century.

In Time of Our Lives, Tom Kirkwood unfolds some of the deepest mysteries of medical science while demolishing some of the most persistent misconceptions. He overturns the almost universally held belief that aging is either necessary or inevitable--it isn't--and debunks the idea that there exists a "death gene" that evolved to inhibit population growth. Instead, Kirkwood shows that we age because our genes, evolving at a time when life was "nasty, brutish, and short," placed little priority on the long-term maintenance of our bodies. With such knowledge, along with new insights from genome research, we can devise ways to target the root causes of aging and of age-related diseases such as Alzheimer's and osteoporosis. Expanding the thesis of the "disposable soma," developed over twenty years of research, Kirkwood makes sense of the evolution of aging, explains how aging occurs, and answers fundamental questions like why women live longer than men. He even considers the possibility that human beings will someday have greatly extended life spans or even be free from senescence altogether.

Beautifully written by one of the world's pioneering researchers into the science of aging, Time of Our Lives is a clear, original and, above all, inspiring investigation of a process all of us experience but few of us understand.

Age-Related Macular Degeneration: Diagnosis and Treatment is written by two leading experts from Wills Eye Hospital. Covering the latest therapies and treatments developed in the last few years, this is a concise yet highly illustrated andpractical text that guides the clinician through diagnosis and treatment of the leading cause of blindness in older Americans."

In the past decade, evidence based practice (EBP) has emerged as one of the most important movements to improve the effectiveness of clinical care. As the number of older adults continues to grow, it is essential that practitioners have knowledge of effective strategies to improve both the medical and the psychosocial aspects of older persons' lives. The purpose of this work is to present systematic reviews of research-based psychosocial interventions for older adults and their caregivers.

The interventions presented focus on a variety of critical issues facing older adults today including medical illnesses (cardiac disease, diabetes, arthritis/pain, cancer, and HIV/AIDS), mental health/cognitive disorders (depression/anxiety, dementia, substance abuse), and social functioning (developmental disabilities, end-of-life, dementia caregivers, grandparent caregivers). For each of these areas the prevalence of the problem, the demographics of those affected, and the nature and consequences of the problem are discussed. The empirical literature is then reviewed. A treatment summary highlights the type and nature of research supporting the interventions reviewed and is followed by a conclusion section that summarizes the status of intervention research for the specified issue. A Treatment Resource Appendix for each area is included. These appendices highlight manuals, books, articles and web resources that detail the treatment approaches and methodologies discussed.

This book was previously published as a special issue of the Journal of Gerontological Social Work.

This book discusses the intersections between culture, context, and aging. It adopts a socio-cultural lens and highlights emotional, social, and psychological issues of the older adults in urban India. It is set in multiple sites such as Ahmedabad, Delhi, Kolkata, and Saskatoon to indicate how different cultural practices and contextual factors play an integral role in determining the course of aging. It also focuses on different narratives such as older adults living with adult children, older adults living with spouse, and older adults living alone to demonstrate the intricate process of growing old. Drawing from various sites and living arrangements of older adults, it sheds light on cultural constructions of growing old, ideas of belonging, the inevitability of death, everyday processes of aging, perceptions associated with growing old in India, acceptance of the aging body, and intergenerational ties in later lives. Given its scope, the book is essential reading for students and researchers in the fields of sociology, demography, and social scientists studying aging.

Your indispensable guide to taking charge of the second half of your life. From Dr. Rosanne M. Leipzig, a top doctor with more than 35 years of experience caring for older people, Honest Aging is an indispensable guide to the second half of life, describing what to expect physically, psychologically, functionally, and emotionally as you age. Leipzig, an expert in evidence-based geriatrics, highlights how 80-year-olds differ from 60-year-olds and why knowing this is important for your health. With candor, humor, and empathy, this book will provide you with the knowledge and practical advice to optimize aging. The book * helps you recognize age-related changes in your body and mind and understand what's typical with aging and what's not; * offers guidance for common health concerns, including problems with memory, energy, mood, sleep, incontinence, mobility and falls, hearing and vision, aches and pains, gastrointestinal problems, weight, and sex; * shares advice on how to make decisions about health care, driving, and where to live; * includes helpful checklists and lists of medications to prepare for doctor and hospital visits; * recommends the best technology options, such as mobility devices, emergency device systems, and more; * counters common myths about aging; and * offers resources for additional information, self-help, and support. Enriched by illustrations, patient stories, and deep dives into science and the latest research, Honest Aging gives you the tools to take control of your health and well-being as you age.

Geared toward sleep specialists, neurologists, geriatricians, and psychiatrists, Geriatric Sleep Medicine presents the most current medical research for the diagnosis and management of sleep disorders in the older patient.
Focused on the prevention of chronic geriatric sleep disorders, this text examines:

• the most recent and up-to-date classification information of sleep disorders from the American Academy of Sleep Medicine
• current algorithms for the evaluation and management of sleep disorders (e.g., insomnia, sleep apnea, parasomnia, hypersomnia, restless legs syndrome) in older adults
• both pharmacological and nonpharmacological treatments

Geriatric Sleep Medicine also explores special topics of interest to clinicians, including sleep problems post-menopause, in the nursing home setting, and at the end stages of life.

This book provides concrete scientific basis that we can conceive the possibility of modifying or even completely canceling aging process, despite the fact that aging is commonly regarded as the result of the overall effects of many uncontrollable degenerative phenomena. The authors illustrate in detail the mechanisms by which cells and the whole organism age. Actions by which it is possible, or will be possible within a limited time, to operate for modifying aging are also debated. The discussion is conducted within the frame and the concepts of evolutionary medicine, which is also indispensable for distinguishing between the manifestations of aging and: (i) diseases that worsen with age, and (ii) acceleration of normal aging rates, caused by unhealthy lifestyle habits and other avoidable factors. The book also discusses the impact of aging on overall mortality and the strange situation that, according to official statistics, aging does not exist as cause of death. This book is a turning point between a gerontology and geriatrics conceived as the study and vain treatment of an incurable condition and one in which these disciplines examine the how and why of a physiological phenomenon that can be modified up to a possible total control. This means transforming the medical prevention and treatment of physiological aging from the greatest failure to the greatest success of medicine.

Psychological, social, and spiritual care is as important as physical care at the end of life. Yet caregivers often feel ill-equipped to give that nonphysical care. This book shows how to do it. The book addresses all caregivers who attend dying patients: doctors, nurses, chaplains, clergy in the pastorate, social workers, clinical psychologists, family caregivers, and others. It covers such topics as the functional and emotional trajectories of dying; the varied approaches of patients and caregivers to end-of-life decisions; culturally based beliefs about dying; the differences between depression and grief; and people's views about the right time to die, the death experience itself, and the afterlife. For each topic the book introduces core concepts and summarizes recent research about them. The book presents much of its material in readable tables for easy reference; applies the material to real-life cases; lists the main "take home" points for each chapter; and gives references for additional reading. The book helps caregivers anticipate the reactions of patients and survivors to end-of-life traumas and suggests how caregivers can respond insightfully and compassionately. At the same time the book challenges caregivers to think through their own views about death and dying. This book, therefore, is a must-read for all caregivers professional and nonprofessional alike who strive to give their patients comprehensive, high-quality end-of-life care.

This book has two main purposes: formative case analysis and self-assessment of medicine in old age. It presents clinicians with a series of cases on which to base discussion of the investigation and management of patients. It also provides the trainee, or established doctor, with a medium to help prepare for post-graduate examinations and clinical practice. The authors have chosen 109 cases, a total of 250 questions/answers, illustrated by color photographs, diagrams, and tables. The cases cover the main modes of presentation of acute illness in old age, such as fall, confusion, incontinence, weight loss and immobility, with examples from all the major systems. These illustrate the complexity of diagnosis and treatment of medical illness in frail older people and the need to think widely and laterally when caring for such patients. The questions are mostly in best-of-five format to reflect the current style of multiple choice questions used in examination, though some are open questions as the basis for tutorials. Many of the clinical stems have been expanded to improve the educational function of the book and to test more rigorously the reader's deductive thinking.

"Lifestyle Matters" is a practical resource that contains a wealth of ideas and activities for occupational therapists, support workers, students and other professionals working with older people in the community. Taking a holistic approach, the Lifestyle Matters programme challenges participants to examine their lifestyle and to make positive changes which promote good physical and emotional health. Themes include: "'The relationship between activity and health " Maintaining mental well-being'; 'Maintaining physical well-being'; Safety in the home and community'; and, Personal circumstances. Each theme is divided into a number of sessions with ideas for introductory activities, group discussion topics and group activity ideas. There are also 64 photocopiable handouts in the book and on the downloadable resources that can be used within the group sessions. The book is divided into four parts: 'The Lifestyle Matters programme and the principles behind it'; 'How to implement the programme - including who can benefit from it, how long it should last and the resources required'; 'Delivering the programme - looking at session structure, selecting a session and keeping a record of group and individual sessions'; and, 'The Lifestyle Matters manual - each section containing a combination of group sessions, individual sessions and visits or outings'. Inspired by research by Florence Clark and her colleagues at the University of Southern California, this Lifestyle Matters programme has been developed through consultation with older people at every stage, making it a welcome and invaluable resource. As one member of a group exclaimed, 'You didn't give me a new lease of life, you gave me back my life!'. "Lifestyle Matters" is now referred to in the NICE guidelines (2009) where it is identified as the intervention of choice for therapists and professionals responding to the guidance by this professional body.

An indispensable, comprehensive reference for family caregivers. Caregivers hold the key to the health, well-being, and happiness of their aging relatives, partners, or friends. The Caregiver's Encyclopedia provides you with all of the information you need to take the best care of your loved one-from making major medical decisions to making sure you don't burn out. Written by Muriel R. Gillick, MD, a geriatrician with more than 30 years' experience caring for older people, this book highlights the importance of understanding your friend's or family member's overall health. With compassion and expertise, this book will help you "think like a doctor." The content * helps you navigate the health-care system * shares important information about treating basic geriatric syndromes, including delirium, dementia, and falls * teaches you about preventive care options * enables you to manage medical decisions related to both acute and chronic conditions * discusses what Medicare covers-and what it doesn't * guides you through different approaches to care * weighs the risks and benefits of hospital vs. home, nursing home, or hospice care * provides a detailed list of medical supplies that you might want to keep on hand * offers you additional resources and emotional support Throughout, Gillick provides helpful information and concrete concepts that caregivers can put into practice today. Authoritative, comprehensive, holistic, and highly illustrated, The Caregiver's Encyclopedia will help you figure out how to be the best caregiver you can be.

Up-to-date information on pain managementincluding options to consider when conventional treatment is ineffective Providing effective treatment for pain-especially to elderly clients-can be a vexing problem for even the most knowledgeable clinician. In Clinical Management of the Elderly Patient in Pain, some of the world's leading authorities describe the unique difficulties that arise when trying to provide pain relief to elderly patients. They examine conventional treatment with opioid and non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs along with a broad range of alternatives to consider when frontline drugs fail. Non-drug options for pain relief from the fields of physical medicine and psychology are also explored. Essential topics addressed in Clinical Management of the Elderly Patient in Pain include: pain as an aspect of advancing age how pharmacology differs in elderly patients available therapeutic options, including opioids, non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs, anti-epileptic drugs, tricyclic antidepressants, membrane stabilizers, and topical agents physical medicine approaches psychological approaches to pain in the elderly Most publications on this subject focus on the use of opioids, non-steroidal drugs, and other commonly prescribed analgesics. Clinical Management of the Elderly Patient in Pain takes a different approach. Editor Gary McCleane, MD, says, Our need, with elderly patients, is to provide treatment that is both effective and easily tolerated. This is not a book devoted to opioids and non-steroidals, although they are addressed. Nor is it about those analgesics used in younger patients being used in smaller doses with the elderly. Rather, it contains practical options for treating pain when other simple remedies fail to help. At times this will involve using conventional analgesics in scaled-down doses, but at others it will involve using substances not yet fully recognized as possessing analgesic properties because they fit the bill in terms of possible analgesic actions, side-effect profiles, and lack of drug/drug interactionsand because practical experience suggests they may be useful in the scenario described. Clinical Management of the Elderly Patient in Pain is designed as a point of interface between the specialist pain practitioner and the clinician faced with all the problems of satisfactorily managing pain in elderly patients. It presents commonsense, practical, patient-oriented options that make it a useful resource for busy clinicians.

There is no group of individuals more iconic of 1960s counterculture than the hippies - the long-haired, colorfully dressed youth who rebelled against mainstream societal values, preached and practiced love and peace, and generally sought more meaningful and authentic lives. These 'flower children' are now over sixty and comprise a significant part of the older population in the United States. While some hippies rejoined mainstream American society as they grew older, others still maintain the hippie ideology and lifestyle. This book is the first to explore the aging experience of older hippies by examining aspects related to identity, generativity, daily activities, spirituality, community, end-of-life care, and wellbeing. Based on 40 in-depth interviews with lifelong, returning, and past residents of The Farm, an intentional community in Tennessee that was founded in 1971 and still exists today, insights into the subculture of aging hippies and their keys to wellbeing are shared.

This third edition of a trusted resource brings together the latest literature across multiple fields to facilitate the understanding and prevention of falls in older adults. Thoroughly revised by a multidisciplinary team of authors, it features a new three-part structure covering epidemiology and risk factors for falls, strategies for prevention and implications for practice. The book reviews and incorporates new research in an additional thirteen chapters covering the biomechanics of balance and falling, fall risk screening and assessment with new technologies, volitional and reactive step training, cognitive-motor interventions, fall injury prevention, promoting uptake and adherence to fall prevention programs and translating fall prevention research into practice. This edition is an invaluable update for clinicians, physiotherapists, occupational therapists, nurses, researchers, and all those working in community, hospital and residential or rehabilitation aged care settings.

This book critically explores the world of older prisoners to provide a more nuanced understanding of imprisonment at old age. Through an ethnographical study of male and female older prisoners in two Belgian prison settings, one in which older prisoners are integrated and one in which they are segregated, it informs debates and seeks to recognise ageist discourse, attitudes, practices in prison. The Older Prisoner seeks to situate the older prisoner from both a penological and gerontological perspective, organised around the following broad themes: the construction of the older prisoner, the physical prison world, the social prison world, surviving prison and giving meaning. The book allows readers to navigate between contrasting perspectives and voices rather than reinforcing traditional narratives and prevailing discourses on the older prisoner. In doing so, it hopes to open up a broader dialogue on ageing and punishment. It also offers insights into the concept of meaning in life as an analytical tool to study prisoners.

This issue of Clinics in Geriatric Medicine, guest edited by Drs. Michael Malone and Kevin Biese, is devoted to Care for the Older Adult in the Emergency Department. Articles in this outstanding issue include: Approach to the Older Patient in the Emergency Department; Ten Best Practices for Older Adults in the Emergency Department; Delirium and Dementia; Falls and Geriatric Trauma; Older Adults in the Emergency Department with Frailty; Communication Strategies to Better Care for Older Individuals in the Emergency Department; Systems-based Practice to Improve Care Within and Beyond the Emergency Department; Common Medication Management Approaches for Older Adults in the Emergency Department; Elder Abuse and Neglect; Care of those with end-of-life needs / Advanced illnesses in the Emergency Department; Behavioral Health Needs of Older Adults in the Emergency Department; and Pain Management Strategies for Older Adults.