Design is intelligence made visible.

- Alina Wheeler

Each year I attend the ASA conference on Aging and reoccurring themes begin to emerge and persist throughout the week; this session remained true to form. One mantra I picked up early; “Design is for all.”

Design on the Brain

Each of us has a brain equipped with a tightly bundled grouping of nerve cells about the size of an apple wedge located from the top of the spinal cord into the middle of the brain. This part of our brain contains about 70% of its estimated 200 billion nerve cells; or a total of 140 billion cells—and is called the Reticular Activating System (RAS).

Your RAS is a hockey goalie to consciousness—the gatekeeper screening the type of information allowed through and filters everything else that you don’t pay attention to. And it also hones in on what’s important to you. Buy a 1966 Mustang or the new Adison leather large Marielle drawstring shoulder bag, and you begin to magically see them everywhere. Why? Your RAS has now alerted your brain to bring them to your attention.

My RAS for the conference was programmed to “DESIGN” and I was rewarded; because design matters to an aging population.

Democratization of design 

Much of the discussion focused around “Inclusive Design” or “Universal Design” that will accommodate all users regardless of age or level of physical functioning. More than once I heard speakers say: “It’s not just design for the elderly, good design helps everyone.”

Not a new idea, in fact, the barrier-free movement in the 1950s began a process of change in public policies and design practices in response to veterans returning from service with disabilities. The movement has evolved as the democratization of design for all; both in structure and beautiful aesthetics.

Michael Graves, FAIA, famed designer and professor at Princeton University, became a reluctant expert in medical equipment design when an acute neurological disease left him unable to walk or do self-care. Graves turned this into a best-worst experience for design that functioned better (structure) and delighted the senses (beautiful aesthetics).

Graves was noted to have said while lying on a gurney in the hospital in the throws of his acute illness:  “I can’t die here, it’s too ugly.”

His point speaks directly to the heart and soul of the barriers to adoption of countless potentially life-enhancing tools. Gerontophobia (fear of aging) limits my own mother from using a walker which would make possible ambulation to strengthen her muscles, stimulate her brain with exercise, and facilitate balance—and what’s most personal is most universal, she is not alone in her desire to not look old. The sad irony is that this kind of stigma which leads to adoption-failure, actually is a “secondary ager” which speeds up the aging process (atrophy). 

Design Matters: OMHU

Design matters with caregivers and patient outcomes; this has been well established in the literature on environment and health effects. And with the proliferation of new technologies for aging in place, the same barriers in design concerning both structure and aesthetics apply.

One company, OMHU (means “with great care”) exhibited an empathetic understanding and nonpatronizing approach to mobility aids. They’ve successfully combined materials from the world of performance; bicycles, hockey sticks, skateboard, and high performance athletic shoes—and from these made a cane which delights the senses.

Emphasis is on performance; not disability and yet OMHU is not denying the need—after all it’s a cane. They get it, and the underlying philosophy which infuses this product is clever and evokes the will to live…and aren’t we all in this for a better experience of aging?

Robert L. Peters said: Design creates culture. Culture shapes values. Values determine the future. This is important because the demographic transition means a future filled with more and more old people. We live in a world that will never be young again—each generation will grow older than the one before. And I for one would like to see more emphasis on matters of design, not as a nicety, but as a guiding principle of gerontology; our future depends on it.  

See

Democratic Design

Adaptability: Universal Design Michael Graves 

Michael Graves on Medical Devices 

Michael Graves Design Group   

IDeA: Center for Inclusive Design and Environmental Access

Free Subscription to HealthCare Design

Universal Design:

Video #1

Video#2

Video#3 

Video#4 

Video#5

(photo senzumbrellas.com)

“Marriage is a wonderful institution…but who wants to live in an institution?”

-Groucho Marx

Valentine’s Day

Valentine’s Day traces its origins to an annual Roman pagan celebration, called Lupercalia, which was held yearly on February 15. Seems the lovers’ holiday has its roots in raucous annual Roman festivals where men stripped naked, grabbed goat- or dog-skin whips, and spanked young maidens in hopes of increasing their fertility, says classics professor Noel Lenski of the University of Colorado at Boulder.

The Celebration was disapproved of by the Roman Catholic Church and thus linked the festival to the legend of St. Valentine. Even so, the Holiday’s popularity persisted into the fifth century A.D; at least 150 years after Constantine made Christianity the official religion of the Roman Empire.

In the third century A.D., Roman Emperor Claudius II, seeking to bolster his army, forbade young men to marry. Valentine, according to legend, defied the ban and performed clandestine marriages. Valentine was executed in A.D. 270 – on February 14.

The first known Valentine’s Day card was sent in 1415 from France’s Duke of Orleans to his wife when he was a prisoner in the Tower of London following the Battle of Agincourt.

The tradition of hand-written Valentines gained popularity in the U.S. during the Revolutionary War. Mass production soon began in the early 1900s; and Hallmark started selling the cards 1913.

Attention Men

The Holiday gears much of its commercial focus on men: In the U.S. males will spend nearly twice as much on the holiday as U.S. females. In 2010, the average man spent $135.35 on Valentine’s Day gifts, while a typical woman spent $72.28.

How sweet it is; about 47 percent of U.S. consumers will exchange Valentine’s Day candy, at a cost of about $1 billion. Nearly 75 percent of that billion comes from sales of chocolate (chocolate has been linked to romance at least since Mexico’s 15th- and 16th-century Aztec Empire).

This year is expected to generate $14.1 billion in retail sales in the United States. Given these billions of dollars and all the effort and energy expended to say “I love you,” is there something we as boomer men can do that is more lasting than say a box of (high calorie) chocolates?

Aging in Place is a Women’s Issue

Women in most developed countries still outlive men by 5 to 9 years; although men do get old—women get older. For that reason aging in place is an important issue to the women in our lives.

Fact: Widowhood is more common among older women than older men. In the United States, about 700,000 to a million women are widowed each year. Approximately 75 percent of widows are 55 or older; and widows account for 53 percent of women 75 to 84, according to U.S. Census data.

Women tend to spend their savings on their husbands’ care, and then live alone for 15 to 20 years with far fewer resources. Medicare pays only about half of older people’s health costs; the term for this is “spend down.” The time to give the gift of aging in place independence is before this happens—while you’re both home to enjoy the benefits of being home by choice—together.

A Valentine’s Legacy of Independence

It may not seem romantic but loving your spouse means being there for her now and in the future by leaving a legacy of independence. The thought of her loosing the safety and comfort of home is unpleasant at best…This year skip the chocolates and flowers; instead make an appointment with a CAPS trained remodeler for a home assessment.

Then make dinner for her and after take her by the hand look lovingly into her eyes tell her your expression of love this year will be different—lasting…Turn down the lights (using the rocker switches you just installed), light the candles and describe your future together in an accessible home with beautiful Universal Design features. After all, as Groucho says: “Marriage is a wonderful institution…but who wants to live in an institution?”

She’ll love you for it…

See

And I Love Her (1964)

The First Time Ever I Saw Your Face

Aging in Place Easy Use HGTV

Make Dinner for Her

Spend Down Advising the Widow

John Roach for National Geographic News: Valentine’s Day Facts and Figures

http://www.aginginplace.com

(photo ecovelo.info)

Accessible design is good design.
-Steve Ballmer

For most boomers our first encounter with Universal Design came in the form of either cut-curbs or automatic doors. I can recall as a young man the fascination I had with the first “automatic door” at the Richie’s market up the street. Stepping on the heavy black floor mat and watching the thick cord pull the door open was like opening a portal to the future…look mom no hands!

Universal Design

Universal design is the creation of environments and products which are meant to usable by all people to the greatest extent possible, without the need for adaptation or specialization. The intent of universal design is to enhance the quality of life for all of us, regardless of age or ability.

The elegance of Universal design is that it’s now invisible and non-stigmatizing (that wasn’t always the case). The design is so intuitive the experience is often effortless. Next time you walk through an automatic door think “the universal design effect.”

Much of the built environment is created with challenges to users regardless of ability—the “handicap” often comes from dealing with it.

“Universal Design is the design of products and environments to be usable by all people to the greatest extent possible, without the need for adaptations or special design.”

-Ron Mace

  7 Principles of Universal Design

1. Equitable Use - The design does not disadvantage or stigmatize any group of users and is marketable to people with diverse abilities.
2. Flexibility in Use - The design accommodates a wide range of individual preferences (i.e., L/R handed) and abilities; provides choice in methods of use.
3. Simple and Intuitive Use - Use of the design is easy to understand, regardless of the user’s experience, knowledge, language skills, or current concentration level; eliminates unnecessary complexity.
4. Perceptible Information – The design communicates necessary information effectively to the user, regardless of ambient conditions or the user’s sensory abilities; uses pictures, audible, or tactical methods.
5. Tolerance for Error – The design minimizes hazards and the adverse consequences of accidental or unintended fatigue; elements most used should be most accessible, or fail-safe features included.
6. Low Physical Effort – The design can be used efficiently and comfortably and with a minimum of fatigue.
7. Appropriate Size and Space - The appropriate size and space is provided for approach, reach, manipulation, and use, regardless of the user’s body size, posture, or mobility.

 Aging in Place with UD

Aging in place and Universal Design are two concepts often linked together. A home with Universal Design features is set up for life-span living; an environment which will accommodate all stages of life.

5 TIPS FOR A UNIVERSAL DESIGN HOME

1. Adapt main floor of the home for one level living: No-step entry, bathroom and bedroom / Kitchen and laundry on main floor
2. Widen doorways to 36″ w/ offset hinges on doors: Doorways are often too narrow for walkers and wheelchairs (or someone carrying packages) so widening them is a plus for all
3. Install hand-held shower heads and grab bars: Hand-held shower heads and grab bars are some of the least expensive changes you can make and are a great help to those with balance problems
4. Use lever handles on doors and plumbing fixtures: Hand strength can be an issue with all ages–using a simple lever eliminates the struggle with operating doorknobs and faucets
5. Use “comfort height” toilets: Many people suffer from osteoporosis, arthritis, or temporary injuries and find it hard to stand up from a normal height toilet–a higher toilet (or toilet chair that fits over the existing toilet) helps fix this challenge

If you love your home and community and plan on aging in place, then consider incorporating Universal Design elements into your next remodel or new construction. 

See

The Wall Street Journal: Homes that help you take aging in stride

Delta Universal Design Inspired

Universal Design Pioneer: Why Design Still Excludes Many 

The Green Mountain Ranch

FabCab

IDeA Center for Inclusive Design and Environmental Access

The RL Mace Universal Design Institute

Paralyzed Bride: Wheelchair Accessibility

Universal Design on Line

(Photo deltafaucet.com)

“Every human has four endowments- self awareness, conscience, independent will and creative imagination. These give us the ultimate human freedom… The power to choose, to respond, to change.”

-Stephen R. Covey

Stephen Covey’s seminal work on how to create a better human species titled “The 7 Habits of Highly Effective People” was first published in 1989 and has sold over 15 million copies in 38 languages since first its release.

The concepts are timeless and can be broadly applied as I have done here with aging in place. What follows is The 7 Habits of Highly Effective People Aging in Place:

• Habit 1: Be Proactive

Synopsis: Take initiative in life by realizing your decisions (and how they align with life’s principles) are the primary determining factors for effectiveness in your life. Taking responsibility for your choices and the subsequent consequences that follow.

Aging in Place: Be Proactive; day-in-and-day-out you are faced with “choice points” that will have a cumulative effect on your independence. If you choose what’s easy now (not take that walk and stay on the couch—or not install that light on the stairs and put up with the dark steps); life will be hard later.

Many people wait until a crisis to begin the aging-in-place remodeling projects; and crisis-driven interventions are seldom as effective as proactive ones.

Proactivity is being anticipatory and taking charge of situations; adaptivity is about responding to change, proactivity is about initiating change.

• Habit 2: Begin with the End in Mind

Synopsis: Self-discover and clarify your deeply important character values and life goals. Envisioning the ideal characteristics for each of your various roles and relationships in life.

Aging in Place: Begin With the End in Mind is making the future a part of your current philosophy. According to the Aging in America study of several years ago, seniors fear nursing homes over death; so for most, independence is a deeply held value and goal.

Think seriously about how much you value the rituals and natural rhythms of your simple daily living at home that you’ve cultivated over the years. Coffee in the morning and reading the paper in your favorite chair perched in the front window; after you let the cat out. Or shopping at the grocer where the clerk knows you by first name—then imagine life without them.

Look around the house and determine what is going to potentially be a challenge in the coming years. Do an aging-in-place assessment and make a priority list of action items.

Is adding a bathroom on the first floor, installing a lift on the stairs, or an access ramp, something I can do now that will keep me in my home 5-10 years from now?

Hosting family over for traditional life events; and being able to have grand kids stay whenever you choose. Does being a grandparent mean having a home where grand kids can find refuge and a place to stay?

• Habit 3: Put First Things First

Synopsis: Planning, prioritizing, and executing your week’s tasks based on importance rather than urgency. Evaluating if your efforts exemplify your desired character values, propel you towards goals, and enrich the roles and relationships elaborated in Habit 2.

Aging in Place: Prioritizing remodeling goals with budget in mind. What are the “biggest-bang-for-the-buck” aging-in-place remodeling items?

Consult a Certified Aging in Place Specialist (CAPS);  Architect specializing in Universal design; or Ocupational Therapist trained in aging-in-place design.

• Habit 4: Think Win-Win or No Deal

Synopsis: Genuinely striving for mutually beneficial solutions or agreements in your relationships. Valuing and respecting people by understanding a “win” for all is ultimately a better long-term resolution than if only one person in the situation had gotten their way.

Aging in Place: Win-win means considering the concerns of spouses as well as adult children. Staying in one’s home may not be the best solution for all parties. Sometimes aging in place is not possible.

• Habit 5: Seek First to Understand, then to be Understood

Synopsis: Using empathetic listening to be genuinely influenced by a person, which compels them to reciprocate the listening, take an open mind to being influenced by you, which creates an atmosphere of caring, respect, and positive problem solving.

Aging in Place: Listen to partner/spouse and understand their wants and needs for aging-in-place remodeling; as well as to CAPS remodeling professionals for suggestions prior to making decisions.

•  Habit 6: Synergize

Synopsis: Combining the strengths of people through positive teamwork, so as to achieve goals no one person could have done alone. How to yield the most prolific performance out of a group of people through encouraging meaningful contribution, and modeling inspirational and supportive leadership.

Aging in Place: Synergize with other family members by sharing aging-in-place goals; ask for feedback and input; form a team-work approach with CAPS professionals.

Make the community part of your aging in place team strategy; employ senior services like meals-on-wheels; the local area agency on aging; AARP chapters; churches; See Aging in Place HELP for more resources.

• Habit 7: Sharpen the Saw

Synopsis: The balancing and renewal of your resources, energy, and health to create a sustainable long-term effective lifestyle.

Aging in Place: Keep up on new technologies for aging-in-place; visit web sites for developments in universal design; and educate yourself about what’s available in the aging in place market. Aging in Place Technology Watch will Keep you up on the fast changing home telemetry sector.

Keep physically and mentally fit (your body and mind need to be available to you) for successfully aging in place.

These 7 habits applied to aging-in-place can be a guide to independence and a more rich-fuller expression of who you are in the years to come.

Now get started…

See

Stephen Covey: Do the BIG ROCKS first

World’s Leading Authority on Aging in Place

Interior Design With Your Future in Mind

Science Daily: Aging in Place = Reduced costs, improved mental and physical outomes

“Home is an invention on which no one has yet improved.”

 -Ann Douglas

My wife and I just moved across the river to a nearby city in a neighboring state. The move was done mostly by us. This meant we placed our hands on everything we own at least twice. Further, we had to notify all the entities modern humans deal with in life of our change in contact information; a time-devouring endeavor if there ever was one.

After weeks of moving stuff, Thoreau’s adage: “Simplify, simplify, simplify” was resonating; and a philosophy I was all too willing to embrace.

Environmental Mastery

After years of living at the prior address we created cognitive maps—that is, information stored in our brains as spatial networks. We developed what environmental psychologist call “environmental mastery,” or a sense of control over our environment—and control is never relinquished easily…

With the moving process generating stacks of boxes and clutter (not being able to find things) our sense of mastery was wilting like golden butter on a baked potato. That first night in the new/old home was disorienting—but not nearly as dizzying as the 4:30 AM wake up without the routine: Ever shower without curtains on the window or the shower?!

I found myself coping with the environmental stress by going back to the preferred environment—the one we just left. Visiting a store or coffee shop from the old neighborhood and having social exchanges with familiar people provided a feeling of competence; as I gathered more information on the new environment.  

Over time the new/old home will become a restorative environment, a place to recover from environmental stress—not the source of it. Establishing new routines and new meaningful experiences, as well as a sense of community, is an ongoing process.

The late Erma Bombeck once equated housework with stringing beads without a knot tied on the other end—meaning the job was never completely done; not unlike establishing a good person-environment fit which is a dynamic process that changes over the life-span.

See:

Universal Design video 1

Universal Design Video 2

Universal Design Video 3

Universal Design Video 4

Universal Design Video 5

Housing in Response to the Human Life Cycle

Universal Design Holds Universal Appeal

The Accessible Home: Updating Your Home for Changing Physical Needs (Creative Publishing International, 2003. creativepub.com)

 There’s no Place Like Home

(photo FabCab.com)

 The longer I live, the more beautiful life becomes.

-Frank Lloyd Wright

I once wrote that inspiration is like rain, it falls on everyone; some shield themselves with an umbrella, failing to take heed; still others run in doors, avoidance all together—then there are those who walk freely amongst the pour, sensing every drop and giving reverence. 

The word “inspiration” comes from the ancients who believed that a breath of divinity is received from the gods by some deserving soul. The key word here is, “deserving.”

Diane and Jay Plesset are just such deserving souls, as they were chosen by the gods one fateful day in November, 1999. On a trip from the Bay Area to Portland; to be with her mother who had undergone emergency bypass surgery, Diane came upon a small ad in an airline magazine that would change the course of their lives—and save an iconic structure for history.

Airline Magazine Ad: Gordon House For Sale 

Occupied with the thoughts of her mother, Diane picked up an in-flight magazine; perusing it she discovered an ad for the sale of the Gordon House in Oregon. A lifetime fan of Frank Lloyd Wright, Diane tore out the ad and tucked it away in her purse—at that moment, like lightening to the rod, the gods had planted the seed of desire.

Author Robert Grudin noted that to be inspired is to surrender one’s mind to a new force, heedless and powerful—abandoning oneself to an irresistible flow, like a canoeist drawn into the main channel of a rapid.

The Journey

Within several weeks Diane had made contact with officials and traveled back to see the Gordon House in Oregon. Doing their research the Plessets found the Gordon House and property had been sold to a couple who planned to tear down the iconic structure and rebuild on the property.

Over the course of the next year came an endless litany of calls to concerned parties, meeting with attorneys, county commissioner’s hearings with standing room only, petitions, and input from around the world on what the Gordon House fate should be.  

Finally, in early December of 2000, an arrangement was made with the Frank Lloyd Wright Building Conservancy to purchase the Gordon House for $1 in exchange for tax credit from the State of Oregon.

Diane and Jay were given the right of first refusal to buy because of their efforts in trying to save the house from demolition.

The Evergreen House: “Do you think it’s time for plan B?”

Passing through the front-door threshold of the Evergreen Home is literally stepping into someone else’s dream…

The Frank Lloyd Wright inspired home of the Plessets is not a dream denied—rather it is what the gods entrusted (win-win solution) and intended all along.

With deadlines approaching and impenetrable restrictions by the FLWBC, the original goal of buying the Gordon House, moving it to a purchased lot and living happily ever after became out of reach…Jay asked Diane: “Do you think it’s time for plan B?”

Diane says, “After many fortunate experiences, and numerous challenges, “Evergreen” was finally completed on a site in Oregon City, Oregon, in October, 2007, which is only 25 miles from the Gordon House, now located in the Oregon Garden, in Silverton.”  

Aging in Place: Award Winning Design

On January 31, 2009, “Evergreen” won the Home Builders Association Excellence Award for Best New Home in its Category. The home is built with aging in place/universal design, and sustainable design features; because the Plessets want this dream to last. And they know great things have no fear of time…

See 

The Gordon House

The Oregon Garden

The Evergreen Home

The Survival Guide: Home Remodeling by Diane Plesset, CMKBD, NCIDQ #13029, C.A.P.S.

1957 Interview of Frank Lloyd Wright

Silverton, Oregon

Frank Lloyd Wright designed this home for Conrad and Evelyn Gordon for their farm on the Willamette River in Wilsonville, Oregon. The ‘T’ shaped home was constructed in 1963 primarily using concrete block solid wall sections, heated and colored concrete floors, cedar and glass. The house is the only building designed by the famed architect in Oregon and is of significant importance. With the sale of the property in 2000 and the purposed demolition of the house, it became necessary to salvage and move the structure.

The project involved determining the best strategies for salvage, moving, reconstruction within a very short time line and coordinating work with an assembled group of assisting professionals. Many portions of the building were able to be preserved intact. Other elements were preserved and fitted to new construction that was built to match the original. Some updating was unobtrusively installed including floor heating, electrical, security, insulation and seismic reinforcement. The house was moved to the Oregon Garden and sited in a similar manner as the original. The house is now open to the public as a resource to be enjoyed by all.

(photo chatterbox.typepad.com)

You never know what is enough, until you know what is more than enough.

-William Blake, Proverbs of Hell

The other morning I went to the cupboard for some cereal and found two boxes, each containing less than 1/3 of the original contents; the boxes were taking up scarce shelf space.

Next, the UPS delivery guy arrived with a package large enough to house several pounds of French roast: Yet the box was feather light (?).

Opening the box I discovered two titanium “sporks” which I had ordered for backpacking; each packaged side-by-side like a “spooning” couple. They appeared hurriedly wrapped in brown paper and stuffed into a box four times the size needed.

This got me thinking about Space Utilization…

Seniors Over-Housed

Across the country seniors find themselves still living in suburbia in four-bedroom houses where they once raised families. Many of the homes have maintance issues and access to shopping, recreation, and health care centers are a challenge if they no longer drive. They may also be keeping younger people from acquiring suitable homes for raising growing families.

A past article from the Wall Street Journal describes how aging in place keep houses off the market. Real-estate broker Adrienne Chadwin in Larchmont, N.Y., north of New York City, reports in her area less than 10 homes are added to the market each week, even though the district has more than a hundred families waiting to buy. “Older people are supposed to be leaving these big houses, and one would expect that in this high-priced market, where sellers are calling the shots, they’d be doing it, but for some reason they’re not,” she says.

The article quotes a Mr. Veneziano (baby boomer) as an example, who prefers aging in place to moving. He likes being able to walk to his son’s house, and  besides, economics argues against a move. Although he could make plenty of money selling his house — he bought it for a price “in the low” $20,000s and now it is appraised at about $350,000 — home values have soared so much he feels it would be hard to find anything comparable for a decent price. Considering the advantages of staying put, he asks, “Where am I going to move to?”

FabCab = Fabulous Cabin

Award winning architect Emory Baldwin may have an answer for Mr. Veneziano (and others like him) which he would have never even considered—and it might be more than enough for his needs.

FabCabs are pre-fabricated environmentally-friendly accessory dwelling units (granny-flats) made for aging in place. These small homes are beautiful, low maintance, energy efficient and universally designed to respond to people’s changing needs. The FabCab is the kind of innovative design which opens up all kinds of solutions in response to the question:

“Where am I going to move to?”

Think of the possibilities…

See

FabCab

Seniors Sell Large Home and Gain New Life Style  

Top 10 Mistakes Made When Designing Small Spaces 

Downsizing and Relocating Seniors

“Just when I thought I was too old to fall in love again, I became a Grandparent.”
-Unknown

 
 
I lost my grandparents very early in life and never got the benefit of their wisdom and love as I grew up. One of the few memories I have is of my mother’s mother singing to me: You are my sunshine, my only sunshine, you make me happy when skies are gray, you’ll never know dear how much I love you—so please don’t take my sunshine away…

The song always reminds me of her gentle presence and her unconditional love.

On a trip to New York City, my wife and I visited Central Park and witnessed grandparents strolling through the park with grandkids (of all ages) engaged in conversations. I thought of how fortunate each generation was to have the other and how influential those precious stolen moments were. The life lessons, the bonds between generations, and the memories formed will have a lifetime impact.

Legacy

I began to think about legacy and what’s worth sharing with someone who has less life experience? Universally, grandparents want grandchildren to be healthy, happy, and fulfill their unique potentials.

To that end, I respectfully offer some works that I feel are important enough to share with your Grandchildren:

• A Whole New Mind by Daniel Pink
• The Art of Learning by Josh Waitzkin
• Talent is Overrated by Geoff Colvin
• The Talent Code by Daniel Coyle
• The Slight Edge by Jeff Olson
• The Velveteen Rabbit by Margery Williams
• TED for videos of the world’s best thinkers
• Learning, Doing, Being:  A New Science of Education by Adele Diamond

“Always be nice to your children because they are the ones who will choose your rest home.”
- Phyllis Diller

Often parents don’t want to “burden” adult children; and those same adult children are caught between trying to help, yet not insult parents by asking questions about how they are getting along day-to-day; it can be a touchy situation.

The “Aging in Place in America” study commissioned by Clarity® and The EAR Foundation, examined seniors’ and boomers’ attitudes on aging and independence. The findings suggest senior citizens fear moving into a nursing home and losing their independence more than death. And the children of seniors also fear for their parents, with specific concern about their emotional and physical well-being should they have to enter a nursing home.

For insight, Art Mussman, who is an advocate of aging in place, provides a lighthearted and wise approach to issues that may come up in family conversations.

“A good hockey player plays where the puck is. A great hockey player plays where the puck is going to be.” 
- Wayne Gretzky 

 
 
 
As 76 million baby boomers challenge what it means to grow older in America, technology is paving the way for prolonged independence and the ability to remain home by choice.

The perfect storm

• 76 Million-plus baby boomers soon to retire
• Need for a more cost effective “health care” delivery model
• Emphasis on providing quality care at decreased cost
• A proactive wellness focus vs. reactive “sick care” focus
• Changing locus of care from the clinical setting to the home
• Shifting some responsibility of “formal care” (medical system) to “informal care” (family network) for aging parents and ourselves

Technology to the Rescue: 3 Examples

GrandCare Systems

GrandCare Systems uses the internet and the senior’s TV to communicate, and by using wireless sensors to monitor wellness, including motion, body temperature, door position, blood pressure, weight, and other programmed, customized variables.

The breakthrough technology allows family and caregivers to connect virtually with seniors by sending pictures, videos, reminders, emails, calendar appointments, messages, news and weather updates, all directly to a private channel on the senior’s TV; creating a user friendly “Communication Station.”

In addition, various “smart home sensors” strategically placed around the home can assure family members that their loved one is safe and comfortable while enjoying independence at home.