Filed under physicians …

When Family Members Accompany an Aging Parent to the Doctor

Visiting the doctor’s office with an aging parent can be one the most puzzling situations for adult children as they provide increasing support. The dynamics of the situation can be confusing, especially in a time when family roles and responsibilities are changing. My husband visited the doctor with his 90-year-old mother on several occasions. At … Continue reading →

How Does One Decide to Stop Getting Medical Tests?

I am astonished at the number of diagnostic tests prescribed for older seniors. When my husband’s mother was 90, she had a gynecological exam — we suggested it and the doctor carried it out — and though I knew the doctor was gentle, Mother cried out because of the discomfort. Afterward we wondered why we put … Continue reading →

Senior Parent Hospitalization, Report #1: This Hospital Gets It

If you like this post, please read my Senior Parent Hospitalization posts: Report #1: This Hospital Gets It, Report #2: Peace and Quiet, Report #3: Four Ways to Reduce Stress for Patient Families, Report #4: Observations from My Dad, Report #5: The Emergency Room Worked Fast, and Report #6: Learning About Cardiac Procedures and Surgeries. I am sitting in a beautiful … Continue reading →

Aging Parents, Adult Children: Caregiving and Empathy

When you have senior parents who need increasing support, empathy is critical. You try hard, and not always with success, to understand what they are experiencing. That’s called empathy. The concept of empathy has received a bit of a bad rap the past year or two with politicians actually taking the time to deliver statements … Continue reading →

Will Concierge Medical Practices Cause Medicare Decline?

Read High-end Medical Option Prompts Medicare Worries, an article posted by the Associated Press today (April 2, 2011). The article, by health reporter Ricardo Alonzo-Zaldivar, examines the increasing number of practices that are moving toward concierge medicine (also called retainer-based physician practices). Concerns abound about how this might affect the access to care by Medicare beneficiaries. Although … Continue reading →

Green House Project Conference – Live Streaming

Information about the conference is from the Changing Aging website and more information is available there.  Because of continuing interest in the Green House Homes movement, and after posting four Green House Homes pieces, on this blog, I am planning to listen in to these presentations, and you can, too.  See the information below. Begin Section … Continue reading →

Getting Ready for the Gray Tsunami… Staggering Statistics

The American Medical News, a publication of the American Medical Association (AMA), just published an interesting opinion piece, Coping with Baby Boomers and Staggering Statistics, by Ardis Dee Hoven, M.D., a AMA board member. After the statistics, she has many ideas and recommendations for physicians, medical training, especially in relation to geriatrics information.