isolation and elders Archives ⋆ Cathy Cress

Solo Agers Are Vulnerable to Social isolation

March 5, 2023

Solo agers are vulnerable to social isolation and mental health problems, particularly if they lack close family or friendship ties.

Also, known as Elder Orphans, Solo Agers represent about 22% of older adults in the United States. Solo agers are vulnerable to social isolation or are at risk of doing so in the future, according to a 2016 study. “This is an often overlooked, poorly understood group that needs more attention from the medical community,” said Maria Torroella Carney, the study’s lead author, and chief of geriatric and palliative medicine at Northwell Health in New York. Solo agers are vulnerable to social isolation, according to a recently released survey of 500 people who belong to the Elder Orphan Facebook Group, with 8,500 members. Seniors living alone, being unmarried, and not having family or friends nearby are more often lonely and more likely to be depressed and have a poor quality of life. In the study understanding older adults who are aging alone 45% reported being sad and 52% reported being lonely.

Because adults with children may effectively be solo if their adult children live far away or they have a child with a disability who can’t care for them, or they are estranged, more aging adults are looking elsewhere for support to increase their quality of life.

Solo agers are vulnerable to social isolation although loneliness is a serious concern as all ages are found out during COVID. During the epidemic loneliness, isolation, and depression were experienced by everyone including kids who could not go to school. Seniors experience this all the time. Social isolation is associated with a multitude of problems, such as high blood pressure, insomnia, depression, and cognitive decline. If you lose the ability to drive, develop mobility issues, or live far from friends and family, Solo Agers may have very limited social interaction while aging in place. this a poor quality of life

Geriatric Care Managers can bring socialization, increase quality of life and so much more to Solo Agers.

Increasing Quality of Life socialization and networks of friends can help solo agers who are lonely. They can also help Solo Agers who are planning their aging plan to increase socialization to avoid pitfalls that so many seniors face in retirement- loneliness, isolation, and depression. The great thing about Solo Agers is that they are planning their aging, are highly educated and have the income for care managers, and can afford private care aging without Medicare covering long-term care

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How an Art Museum is Combating Senior Loneliness in California?

March 22, 2019

Santa Cruz County, California is combating senior loneliness and isolation, through community organization and art. Following a similar exhibition on foster children MAH (Museum of Art and History), launched the Loneliness exhibition this year. MAH’s former director Nina Simon, who is internationally known, conceived the idea of community organization through museums ( Museum of Art and History) at MAH and is moving that brilliant concept globally.

Over the course of seven months, a group of Santa Cruz seniors, advocates, and artists , cascaded their ideas, art, hopes, and stories on senior loneliness and isolation in the Santa Cruz community together to create this inspiring exhibition. They created personal artwork about loneliness, brainstormed solutions to build connection and offered their words of wisdom for future generations.

Alongside incredible artworks, on loneliness by local seniors, this exhibit created 45 action cards to offer solutions to this growing problem. Examples are Drive a senior to the grocery store. Card ideas also included “Translate written materials into Spanish for a monolingual elder” or “Donate an iPod for entertainment “. If the visitor to the exhibit has a special skill, they are asked to volunteer to help a senior experience that -like get a manicure. Exhibit visitors take home the action card/s that inspires them the most and to help impact change in seniors experiencing social isolation in Santa Cruz County.

The exhibition will travel and be replicated in four other California counties, to give more lonely California seniors a chance to organize and create services for loneliness in other areas, through other museums that use art to create community.

Loneliness and isolation in older adults But what has been found is building social connections through the community as MAH has done is what combats this isolation in seniors, in our society. Loneliness puts seniors at risk for depression, cardiovascular failure, insomnia. It can, according to NY Times aging columnist Jane Brody raise levels of stress hormones and inflammation, which in turn can increase the risk of heart disease, arthritis, Type 2 diabetes, dementia, faster and result in cognitive decline and even suicide attempts. It also is a factor in unnecessary placement in nursing homes

Increasing the quality of life is one major answer to loneliness. The primary way to bring more joy into a senior’s life is regaining a foothold in town or village, something that this type of community art exhibit and geriatric care managers both have made a major platform in their work. Nina Herndon a pioneer in quality of life in geriatric care management’s chapter in Handbook of Geriatric Care management where she outlines how care managers can deliver this service to conquer loneliness in seniors

Boredom is Older People- How Do You Get Rid of It?

May 14, 2013

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Fighting boredom is important for seniors. Interest, joy, engagement and enthusiasm- enhance everyone’s quality of life. But many older people are bored, joyless, and disconnected. Often seniors spend hours and hours alone, are not surrounded by family plus their chronic care needs prevent them from getting out easily. How does a geriatric care manager or aging professional enhance an older person’s joy and connection?

What can help you return that joy and wipe out boredom?

It’s discovering what an elder loved to do in the past and now -can do again – with your help. Examples are bringing nature back into their life, even with chronic illness, arranging ways that they might access spiritual comfort, playing bridge even when they have a hard time ambulating, telling their stories- life history- or- just imagine- (if that gives them joy) going out and eating a Big Mac once a week.

Help fill an older person’s life with greater joy and engagement by getting them active and banishing boredom through – a quality of life assessment. It will allow you to find the joy and create a care plan to infuse it back in an older person’s life.

Build Emotional Quality of Life Through Technology?

April 7, 2013

If you are a geriatric care manager or aging professional wishing to enhance an older person’s emotional quality of life, one of the focal point is getting rid of social isolation. This can include engaging with family and friends, or connecting with programs that enhance inter-generational relationships. Elders can be great storytellers or family historians to grandchildren and grandparents can certainly read those childhood books grandchildren and great grandchildren- helping parents who work or are very busy.

Grown grandchildren can Skype with grandparents, write card and letters, visit occasionally. They can even set up the Skype or face time programs for grandparent’s social opportunities. If the family lives locally, it could be as simple as a grandchild working to arrange a regular schedule for visits for other grandchildren or using Google calendar or a great family caregiving calendaring program like Lots of helping Hands . This allows grandchildren who are always super tech savvy to coordinate social interaction with grandparents. You can even do old school and just coordinate call and visits on a paper. Calendar visits or have grandchildren and adult children sign a guest book when they arrive so the client knows when to expect company and can look forward to these interactions instead of not knowing when or if someone is going to arrive. This you are building intergenerational relationships, reducing isolation and boredom and improving emotional quality of life of an older person.

Boredom is Older People- How Do You Get Rid of It?

Build Emotional Quality of Life Through Technology?

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