Literature Review

Navigating Aging: Does our society simply not care about our vulnerable older population? KFF Health News, by Judith Graham; 3/10/24 ... The pandemic made things worse. Prejudice against older adults is nothing new, but “it feels more intense, more hostile” now than previously, said Karl Pillemer, 69, a professor of psychology and gerontology at Cornell University. “I think the pandemic helped reinforce images of older people as sick, frail, and isolated — as people who aren’t like the rest of us,” he said. “And human nature being what it is, we tend to like people who are similar to us and be less well disposed to ‘the others.'" 

Seniors more likely to let conditions escalate into emergency if their only care options are digital, poll finds McKnights Senior Living, by Aaron Dorman; 3/7/24 Although residents in senior living communities and nursing homes are becoming more accepting of artificial intelligence and other tools such as remote monitoring systems, that doesn’t mean they don’t still strongly prefer human caregivers to manage their healthcare needs, a recent poll finds. ... Among older adult survey respondents who had dealt with a recent emergency, 33% said that they felt as if the incident could have been averted if they had had access to a live, in-person caregiver to manage their health concerns and needs.

The U.S. health system should focus on pre-acute care, not post-acuteForbes, by Howard Gleckman; 3/5/24The U.S. health system focuses an enormous amount of money and attention on post-acute care—the medical treatment patients receive after they have been discharged from a hospital. But it would more cost-effective, and far better for patients, to refocus on what you might call pre-acute care: what the U.S. can do to prevent those hospitalizations in the first place.

Scientists reveal that nearly all older Americans follow one of nine trajectories in their last three years of life SciTechDaily, by Rutgers University; 3/2/24A Rutgers Health analysis of millions of Medicare records has laid the groundwork for improving end-of-life care by demonstrating that nearly all older Americans follow one of nine trajectories in their last three years of life. “Identifying which paths people actually take is a necessary precursor to identifying which factors send different people down different paths and designing interventions that send more people down whatever path is right for them,” said Olga Jarrín, the Hunterdon Professor of Nursing Research at Rutgers and corresponding author of the study published in BMC Geriatrics.

Home-based palliative care shows promise in reducing ER visits, hospitalizationsHome Health Care News, by Patrick Filbin; 2/28/24Patients who receive home-based palliative care (HBPC) services experience fewer emergency department visits, fewer hospitalizations and lower costs once they start receiving services. That’s according to a recent study conducted by the West Health Research Institute of Blue Shield of California.

Chapters CEO Andrew Molosky: Building an ecosystem of care around the seriously illHospice News, by Jim Parker; 2/13/24Going forward, hospice and other post-acute providers are preparing to operate within a value-based ecosystem, and Florida-based nonprofit Chapters Health System is no exception. ... The organization has been hard at work in recent years to position itself for risk-based relationships and build out a continuum of care for chronically and terminally ill patients, while maintaining positive employee engagement.

4 recent advancements in Alzheimer's disease careBecker's Hospital Review, by Ashleigh Hollowell; 2/6/24Alzheimer's disease research in the last year has expanded, promising clinicians in the field and patients experiencing the condition more accurate detection tests, new treatment possibilities and research to fuel further advancements in care. ... For four of the most recent updates in care and detention, [click on the title's link, above].

Study highlights financial burden of dementia on older adults, familiesGeorgia State University - School of Public Health, by Sam Fahmy; 2/7/24A team of researchers from the Georgia State University School of Public Health, the University of Washington School of Pharmacy and the University of California San Francisco analyzed data from a national sample of more than 4,500 adults aged 70 and older to arrive at what are thought to be the first comparisons of out-of-pocket expenses by dementia status and care setting. The researchers found that the median adult with dementia in residential facilities such as assisted living centers spent 97% of their monthly income on long-term care. People with dementia in nursing homes spent nearly 83% of their monthly income on long-term care.

The last leaf on the vine: What is lost when a generation passes away Inside Higher Ed, by Steven Mintz; 2/6/24... For my extended family, my mother is (or was, depending on when you read this piece) the last leaf on the vine, the last surviving member of a generation born in the 1920s that personally recalls the hardships of the Great Depression and the disruptions, upheavals, sacrifices and horrors of World War II. And that leaf is poised to fall.

 Where do we end our lives? American Council on Science and Health, by Chuck Dinerstein, MD, MBA; 2/5/24The concept of an elephant's graveyard, where old elephantes supposedly go to die, is more of a myth than a scientifically supported phenomenon. Humans do not have a specific location where we gather to die, but a study looks into the matter nevertheless.

Odds for dementia nearly triple in the year after a strokeHealth Day, by Ernie Mundell; 2/1/24A person's odds for a dementia diagnosis nearly triple in the first year after a stroke, new research shows. This post-stroke spike in dementia risk does subside with time, but it never returns to pre-stroke levels, the same report found. "Our findings reinforce the importance of monitoring people with stroke for cognitive decline," said lead researcher Dr. Raed Joundi. 

Video raises concerns about a father’s final days in senior care homeThe Atlanta-Journal Constitution Online, by Allie Gross; 1/30/24A 78-year-old veteran's final days at a Georgia senior care home, Savannah Court of Lake Oconee, raise troubling questions about care at the facility and the state's oversight. The new concerns come as the facility faces possible closure with a second license revocation hearing scheduled for Jan. 30, 2024.

Alzheimer’s Association calls for federal involvement to increase dementia care workforce, training in assisted livingMcKnights Senior Living, by Lois A. Bowers; 1/29/24“Congress should consider the steps it can take at the federal level, including expanding the necessary workforce and improving dementia training standards and access,” as part of efforts to “help ensure a quality direct care workforce that can meet the unique needs of our nation’s growing number of Americans living with Alzheimer’s and other dementia” in assisted living communities and elsewhere, the Alzheimer’s Association and its advocacy affiliate, the Alzheimer’s Impact Movement, said in comments submitted to the US Senate Special Committee on Aging for the record of the hearing it held Thursday, titled “Assisted Living Facilities: Understanding Long-Term Care Options for Older Adults.”