Posts Tagged ‘dementia’
Social Vulnerability in Elderly People
Recent work at the Geriatric Medicine Research Unit has shed light on the link between social vulnerability and mortality. 
Dr. Melissa Andrew, a geriatrician working at the research unit, describes social vulnerability as a variety of factors that make people susceptible to illness, disease, decline in their ability to do things for themselves, or even death. The factors can include low education, low income, lack of family supports, social isolation, not being able to participate in community activities, living in a community with high unemployment and having few opportunities for socializing.
This work on social vulnerability is of vital importance as it has shown that for each additional social vulnerability factor a person had, the likelihood of death increased 5-8%. Working with data from 7000+ Canadian over the age of 65, she has also shown that the older a person is, the higher their level of social vulnerability. Click here to read the work of Dr. Andrew and her colleagues at the open journal PLoS ONE.
The research unit has invested in a series of videos to explain the importance and impact of their work in areas such as social vulnerability, dementia, and frailty. You can see all the videos here.
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Free Public Lecture – What Should We Expect of Long Term Care for People with Dementia?
This November 25th, Dr. Kenneth Rockwood, a world leader in dementia and frailty research, will give a free public lecture:
“What Should We Expect of Long Term Care for People with Dementia?”
Dr. Rockwood is a professor of medicine (geriatric medicine and neurology) and the Kathryn Allen Weldon Chair in Alzheimer Research at Dalhousie University here in Halifax, as well as the head of the Geriatric Medicine Research Unit. Dr. Rockwood has published six books and more than 250 peer-reviewed scientific publications and is currently co-editor of the 7th edition of the Brocklehurst’s Textbook of Geriatric Medicine & Gerontology. He is the principal investigator of the Canadian Dementia Knowledge Translation Network, a national, multi-centre project that aims to provide better care for people with dementia by working to put research into practice and policy.
On top of that, he’s known to always give a very engaging talk!
Date: November 25, 2009
Place: Heritage Hall, Pier 21, 1055 Marginal Road, Halifax NS
Pre-reception: 6:30pm
Talk: 7:00pm
The lecture is open to the public and all are welcome.
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Seniors and Driving – a complex issue.
An article from earlier this year in the Globe and Mail highlights that quality of life for many seniors is linked to their continued ability to drive. Many boomers are growing old in suburban communities, where access to amenities often requires a car. This means that hanging on to your drivers license at all costs has become a priority in the face of what we can now see was a failure to plan around the aging population. 
“As baby boomers enter a critical new stage, a powerful new constituency is about to arise, demanding solutions to problems caused inadvertently by planners and others who have helped make automobiles so central to our lives. After all, this generation of Canadians has higher expectations for mobility than any that preceded it: We grew up with easy access to the car, and we will do what ever it takes to hang on to this privilege — which some already view as a basic right. But as many seniors are already finding out to their discomfort, suburbia is no place to grow old, testing the common assumption that we all gracefully “age in place.”
Studies show that our identity and determination of self-worth is often inextricably tied to our cars. So how will seniors get around single-use, car-dependent communities when they can no longer drive? Can places where shops and other essential services are beyond walking distance be successfully retrofitted to accommodate changing needs? What systems need to be put in place to reduce the burden on physicians, who currently bear much of the responsibility for determining whether elderly patients are fit to drive? If government fails to act, will policy be shaped by insurance companies seeking to reduce their exposure? Who will bear the costs of providing seniors with alternatives to the private car?”
Read the full article here.
Locally, the Geriatric Medicine Research Unit in Halifax has been carrying out work on a particularly pernicious issue: dementia and driving. Their focus has been largely on those who continue to drive and the caregivers who act as co-pilots. You can read more about their ongoing work here.