Debra Sheets

Aging in Canada: State of the Art and Science

Canada shares many similarities with other industrialized countries around the world, including a rapidly aging population. What sets Canada uniquely apart is the collaborative approach that has been enacted in the health care system and the aging research initiatives. Canada has tremendous pride in its publicly funded health care system that guarantees universal coverage for health care services on the basis of need, rather than ability to pay. It is also distinguished as a multicultural society that is officially bilingual. Aging research has developed rapidly over the past decade. In particular, the Canadian Longitudinal Study on Aging is one of the most comprehensive research platforms of its kind and is expected to change the landscape of aging research.

The organizational culture of emergency departments and the effect on care of older adults: A modified scoping study

How does the organizational micro culture in emergency departments (EDs) impact the care of older adults presenting with a complaint or condition perceived as non-acute? This scoping study reviews the literature and maps three levels of ED culture (artifacts, values and beliefs, and assumptions). Findings on the artifact level indicate that EDs are poorly designed for the needs of older adults. Findings on the ED value and belief level indicate that EDs are for urgent cases (not geriatric care), that older adults do not receive the care and respect they should be given, that older adults require too much time, and that the basic nursing needs of older adults are not a priority for ED nurses. Finally, finding on the assumptions level underpinning ED behaviors suggest that older adults do not belong in the ED, most older adults in the ED are not critically ill and therefore can wait, and staff need to be available for acute cases at all times. A systematic review on the effect of ED micro culture on the quality of geriatric care is warranted.

Who Cares for Caregivers? Evidence-Based Approaches to Family Support

Currently, more than one in 10 Americans are caregivers, and projections suggest exponential increases in caregiving in the years ahead. Not only is the population growing older, but the spike, in particular, created by the aging of some 78 million baby boomers portends far greater demand. Families continue to represent the lion’s share of caregivers and their caregiving efforts are substantial in every sense of the word. Nationally, 15.4 million caregivers provide approximately 17.5 billion hr of unpaid care valued at more than

Transformative Theatre: The Final Act of Living Well

216 billion (Alzheimer’s Association, 2014). Estimates suggest that at least 90% of older adults who receive care obtain it from their families, either unaided or supplemented by paid care (Houser, Gibson, & Redfoot, 2010). Older adults who require caregiving receive, on average, 20 hr of assistance each week (MetLife Mature Market Institute, 2006). Traditionally, family caregiving has involved assistance with daily activities (e.g., bathing, dressing) and household activities (e.g., shopping, managing finances). In recent years, the caregiver role has expanded to include performance of increasingly complex medical/nursing tasks for care recipients who have multiple chronic physical and cognitive conditions. These tasks include managing multiple medications, handling incontinence needs, helping with the adoption of assistive devices, and more (Reinhard, Levine, & Samis, 2012). Although this shift in the type of care families provide

Aging and the Art of Living by Jan Baars (review)

“Vesta” is a one-act play about death and dying that was used as an educational tool and vehicle for engaging university students and creating public dialogue about end-of-life issues. This article discusses the pedagogical approaches (i.e., service learning, theatre of the oppressed) for the project, the creative process as a “rehearsal for reality” through experiential learning, and the transformative impact of the arts in changing perceptions of end-of-life choices. “Vesta” is about the struggles of an older woman to maintain dignity while surrendering personal autonomy, dealing with the medical establishment, and coping with a family finding it hard to let go. “Vesta” provides a unique context for intergenerational learning and public dialogue on the difficult topic of death and dying.

The Intersection of Aging, Disability, and Supportive Environments: Issues and Policy Implications

– 455 (2013) 454 Writing in 1874, the Swiss philosopher, poet, and critic Henri Amiel said, “To know how to grow old is the master work of wisdom, and one of the most diffi cult chapters in the great art of living” (Ash, 2003 , p. 78). Nearly a century and a half later, Baars takes up this challenge in his deeply philosophical refl ection on the art of living and, in doing so, adds signifi cantly to the gerontological discourse. Aging and the Art of Living revitalizes the origins of philosophy which began with the search for the good life (e.g. what, if anything, makes life meaningful). The book provides a masterful synthesis of ideas about aging that draws from classical philosophers –such as Plato, Aristotle, Socrates, and Cicero, among others – to modern-era philosophers including Michel Foucault, Martin Heidegger, Edmund Husserl, and Hannah Arendt. This well-written and clearly organized book weaves poetic insights with precise refl ections on topics that include living in time; wisdom; and the meaning of aging.