EU: Social Networking Cares for Seniors (July
30, 2012)
(Article in Spanish)
European Union is working on a project to
connect “fall alarms” with social
networks. These alarms will be important
for the care of older adults over long
distances. According to a study, the
market for the alarms will multiply by 10 in six
years.
Spain:
Seniors Grade Quality of Life as a 6.6,
According to a Study (June, 19, 2012) (Article in
Spanish)
According to a study by the Biomechanical
Institute (Instituto de Biomecánica),
older adults are the population’s most
discontent group with their quality of
life. They value their quality of life as
a 6.6 out of 10 while the general population
measures it as a 7. The percentage of
seniors who indicate that their quality of life
is “good or very good” diminishes as they grow
older. The study suggests that stress
negatively impacts quality of life.
Russian Chess
Federation, charity fund “Ladoga” and the
project “Age of happiness”conducted a panel
discussion “Intellectual abilities of elderly
people”where both biological and social
aspects of the issue were discussed.
United
Kingdom: Doctors Face Ban on Denying Treatment
to Elderly (June 11, 2012)
Beginning in October, healthcare practitioners
in the UK will not be permitted legally to deny
an individual treatment due to his age. In
a 2011 report, the National Health Service
failed to meet basic standards of care for
individuals over 65 years of age, according to
the Health Service Ombudsman. For
instance, many older persons were denied food or
drink. Some older adults were not washed
or died alone because their next of kin had not
been notified of their illness. This research
indicates that older individuals are less likely
to receive treatment than young people,
sometimes resulting in their death.
Many
pensioners from Nikolaev city and nearby
villages enjoyed dancing in a sports complex
called “Nadezhda, ” twice weekly where
they paid 3 hryvnas for this
pleasure. But in March, the
city government closed the place
claiming that taxes for renting the
complex had increased. Participants protested
to the government but it didn’t produce any
results. No more dances for the old
people.
Spain:
The First Edition of the “Manual of the
Geriatric Medical Resident” Was Announced
(June 7, 2012) (Article in
Spanish)
The 54th Congress of the Spanish Society of
Geriatrics and Gerontology (54 Congreso de la
Sociedad Española de Geriatría y
Gerontología) and the 24th Congress of
the Galician Society of Gerontology and
Geriatrics (24 Congreso da Sociedade Galega de
Xerontología y Xeriatría)
announced the manual. It begins with
three principal sections: a section that
explores the value of geriatrics as a field of
study, a section revising the levels of
healthcare provided, and a section about key
syndromes.
Spain:
Elder Diabetics Suffer 23 Times More
Amputations (June 1, 2012) (Article in
Spanish)
Diabetics 65 years and over are 23 times more
likely than those not afflicted to need their
extremities amputated. Often times, this is
the result of neuropathy or trauma due to
rubbing of their footwear and overpressure
zones in the foot. Rocio Merino, a coordinator
for the Spanish Society of Angiology and
Vascular Surgery, said that 25% of diabetic
patients are admitted to hospitals for
infections occurring in their lower
extremities.
Spain:
New Cellphone System Detects Elder Fragility
(May 30, 2012) (Article in
Spanish)
A Doctoral student at the University of
Castilla-La Mancha's School of Informatics
created a device designed to detect the state
of frailty in elders by using the cellphone.
The new system allows doctors to obtain a more
accurate diagnosis through an older device
worn on the waist which detects the patient's
fragility indicators.
Spain:
More Than A Third of Elders 75 and Over
Suffer From Type 2 Diabetes (May 25, 2012) (Article in
Spanish)
A study conducted by Diabetes.es found that
30.7 percent of males and 33.4 percent of
women in Spain suffer from Type 2
Diabetes. Because these is little scientific
evidence to support the best approach to
Diabetes in the elderly, the disease
represents a major challenge to health care
professionals and patients. Dr. Carlos
Miranda, President of the Spanish Society of
General Practitioners and Family (SEMG),
advocates for comprehensive assessments and
individualized approaches to patients' quality
of life goals in determining Diabetes
treatments for older persons.
Spain:
Detectors of Solitude (May 20, 2012) (Article in
Spanish)
Over 87,000 people 65 years and over live
alone in Barcelona -- equivalent to about 20
percent of the population. Some 68,000 of
those lonely seniors are women. In an effort
to help them fight feelings of loneliness,
over 200 volunteers have formed a group called
"Friends of Senior Citizens." Members of the
association call, visit, accompany elders on
hospital visits and make it their priority to
find and assist those lonely seniors paralyzed
by isolation.
Spain:
Up to 50% of Seniors Suffer From Undiagnosed
Anxiety Attacks (May 10, 2012)
(Article in Spanish) Experts in the Catalonian Hospital Cor
Sagrat Martorell recently stated that anxiety
disorders affect up to 50 percent of seniors
who don't meet the diagnostic criteria of the
disorder. Anxiety significantly affects the
life of seniors by exacerbating other mental
disorders and limiting functions. Since
anxiety has not been as commonly studied as
other conditions, an underestimated group of
seniors are suffering from subsyndromal
anxiety.
France:
Aging: Hollande's Team Promises "Frame Law"
(April 25, 2012) (Article in
French)
The Socialist candidate for the presidential
election Francois Hollande said that the
reform of dependency will be a priority for
him if he is elected. He said that he would
take steps in the summer 2012 in order to
adapt society to the aging of the population.
He promised 220 million euros a year for
dependents over 60 years and the construction
of 80,000 houses, costing 140 million per
year.
France:
Too Many Drugs Prescribed to Seniors (April
23, 2012) (Article in
French)
Taking too many drugs can have serious
consequences for the elderly. This phenomenon
results in 15 to 20% of hospitalizations of
people aged 75 years and older, yet doctors
continue to prescribe more and more treatments
to seniors. If overmedication can cause falls,
GI bleeding or kidney failure, side effects
can also come from the drug itself, its
combination with another substance, it being
incompatible with the patient or the patient
himself taking a wrong dose. Does the
desire for attracting drug profits for the
manufacturers fuel this situation?
Spain:
No Age Limit for Exercise (April 23, 2012) (Article in
Spanish)
Leocadio Rodriguez Mañas, Chief of
Geriatric Services in Madrid's University
Hospital of Getafe, is an advocate for more
exercise amongst the elderly. He insists that
even when elders are fragile, they must
exercise, as that may prevent more serious
future disabilities. By exercising, elders
lessen the likelihood of cognitive
deterioration, depression, fractures, and
diabetes, among other illnesses. In an
effort to prove the benefits of exercise and
reduce cases of severely impaired elders by as
much as 700,000, the European Union awarded
Mañas six million euros to finance a
study in which 125 identical exercise
facilities will be made available to seniors
throughout Europe and data on their improved
health will be collected.
France:
Parkinson's
Disease Major Public Health Issue (April 10,
2012) (Article in
French)
In France, 14,000 people are diagnosed each
year with Parkinson's disease, more than two
per hour. In total, 150,000 people are
suffering from this neurodegenerative disease,
the second cause of motor disability in
adults. World Parkinson's Day is the occasion
to remember that there is still no cure for
the patients and that the funds allocated to
it are far too low: 3.1 million euros, 10
euros per patient and caregiver. Parkinson's
disease is now a national priority and a major
public health issue until 2014.
France:
Old
Age
Beyond the Clichés of Another Age
(April 10, 2012) (Article in
French)
To erase the stereotypes regarding old age, a
jury held discussions over six months on the
topic of the elderly and is finally publishing
its findings. There are almost 9 million
French people over age 75. The series of
meetings entitled "Which medicine for what
age?” brought together various experts and
seniors, and highlighted the prejudices faced
by elders. For economist Jean de
Kervasdoué, health costs induced by
aging are, for example, not as important as
the public thinks, especially thanks to acts
of solidarity that nobody talks about.
France:
Incredible
Veterans (April 9, 2012) (Article in
French)
Joseph Le Louarn, 80 years old, is not just
any grandfather. For the seventh time, he took
part in the Marathon des Sables, a 246 km race
run over the course of six days in southern
Morocco. He is not an exception, since ten
septuagenarians were also present. Seniors are
more likely to engage in a sport today,
despite the obstacles. Joseph is advocating
for the Athletics Federation to establish a
new age category for athletes aged 80 and
older.
Seventy-five percent of
persons 65 and older living in Spain are
“very and pretty satisfied” with the
country’s available emergency health
services and 95 percent are “highly and very
highly satisfied” with primary care
services, says a “Quality of Life and Aging”
study conducted by the multinational Spanish
banking group BBVA (Banco Bilbao Vizcaya
Argentaria). Findings also indicate that 95
percent of elders still live in their own
homes. By 2060, Spain will be home to an
estimated 16 million elder persons and the
greatest number of persons 80 and over in
Europe, according to Eurostat.
Belgium:
Nutrition
in the Elderly: Three Questions to Avoid the
Worst (April 3, 2012) (Article in
French)
Malnutrition is defined as a deficiency in
nutrients and insufficient energy intake. In
Belgium, this phenomenon concerns two elderly
out of three. In 2007, 34 percent of people
aged over 75 years came to the hospital in
poor nutritional state. Find tips to detect a
case of malnutrition in the elderly in this
article.
(Article in
Spanish)
More than 300,000 elderly persons could be
affected in a recent scandal uncovered by the
University of Bremen in Germany. It was
discovered that a high percentage of psychiatric
and elderly patients in nursing homes were
unnecessarily being administered tranquilizers
to save money by reducing personnel. The
Ministry of Health in Germany has declared that
they have nothing to do with such decisions, but
the opposition says that they have already
requested that an investigative commission be
launched.
(Article in
French)
Forty-six percent of elderly Belgians report
feeling alone, according to a study
commissioned by the King Baudouin Foundation
and conducted by IPSOS, a leading market
research company. People living in retirement
homes are the ones who say they feel the most
isolated, 8 percent of them having no contact
with family members for weeks. The study also
shows that the ones most affected by
loneliness are those aged over 85, women,
widows and widowers, the sick and those on low
incomes.
UK: Cameron
Set to Tackle Stigma of Dementia As He Puts
Crisis on Scale of HIV (March 25, 2012)
Prime Minister David Cameron has announced
fighting dementia his personal priority. The
cost of dementia to society, at £23
billion, is already higher than that of
cancer, heart disease, or stroke and it is
expected to increase. Cameron described
dementia as a ‘national crisis’ similar to HIV
in the ‘80s. Britain has to fight the stigma,
focus on diagnosis, and fund research.
(Article in
French)
The National Institute for Health and Medical
Research (INSERM) has launched a new initiative
to help patients while at the same time keeping
former employees busy. Called ScienSAs (for
Senior Scientists and patients' associations),
the network allows patient associations seeking
knowledge and experience while having limited
means to get in touch with INSERM via a
dedicated website.
(Article in
French)
The Montessori method, named after an
Italian psychiatrist, arrived in France
after being developed in the United States.
Developed to enable handicapped children to
learn, it is now used to allow people with
Alzheimer's disease to regain their
autonomy, self-esteem and ability to
communicate. The Manor Retirement Home in
Montgeron is the first to apply this method
in France. Their approach is to involve the
whole nursing home staff to teach patients
to do things they have forgotten, rather
than do it for them or assist them.
France: Dentures: Users Isolated, Change
Diets (March 12, 2012) (Article in
French)
In France, ten million people are equipped
with dentures, including 6.7 percent of
people aged 65 and older. A study
interviewing 4,000 people highlighted the
concerns of denture wearers: dentures
prevent them from leading a rich and
fulfilling social life, give patients the
feeling of being old, and force them to
compromise the diversity of their diets.
Half of those involved say they have lost
their appetite and a third must select and
avoid certain foods. These hazards have
consequences on the physical and
psychological health of denture wearers.
Russia:
Is 70 New 25? (March 8, 2012) (Article in
Russian)
In the senior center “Dolgoletie,” many
elderly people see themselves as only 25
years old, even though the majority are in
their 70s. What is their secret? They
explain: Not thinking about their age, never
complaining about aches and difficulties of
everyday life, always being cheerful and
grateful for every day. With this attitude,
they are sure they will never grow old,
staying closer to 25 in spirit.
Poland:
Seniors
Help
Other Seniors (March 8, 2012) (Article in
French)
Created in France in 1946, the association
known as Little Brothers of the Poor helps
the elderly in precarious situations. The
association has opened branches in Germany,
Spain, Ireland, Switzerland, the U.S.,
Canada, and now in Poland. Every Monday,
Ludwika Kochman, 66 years old and a
volunteer at the association, offers a gym
lesson for a dozen seniors. Proud of her
three hours of daily training, she believes
it’s not just a way for her to keep
participants in good shape; it also helps to
fight against social exclusion of older
people by offering them pleasant moments for
listening and exchange.
Spain:
The Mancha Centro Take Care of Immobilized
Patients (March 5, 2012) (Article in
Spanish)
Mancha Centra Hospital helps older people
avoid disability resulting from long bed
stay. Cardiovascular, respiratory,
digestive, metabolic and urinary problems
occur at patients who have to stay in bed
for a long period of time.
By giving birth to two boys at the age of
66, a Swiss woman became the oldest woman to
give birth in her country. The retired
pastor who underwent in vitro fertilization
in Ukraine launched a controversy in the
country, her act being considered shameful
and selfish. Ukrainian clinics, where there
is no age limit for "maternity substituting"
with eggs fertilized by donor sperm, offer
these services on the internet, but many
doctors call for caution, pointing out that
late pregnancy involves many risks.
Nathalie Thiriet is a nurse in Sceaux, near
Paris. From 7.30 a.m. to 8 p.m. every day of
the week, she visits her patients at home,
in nursing homes, and at her office. In this
article, she tells the story of her typical
day and exposes the challenges she faces
daily, such as the inability to forge a link
or help her patients when the average
duration of her visits is seven minutes.
Aging is often accompanied by a loss of
vision, which itself has implications for
the health of the elderly. A study by the
British Journal of Ophthalmology showed that
with age, the lens yellows, reducing the
absorption of blue light and affecting not
only the overall vision but also the sleep
cycle. Older people can often lose their
bearings, become disoriented and lose
interest in social life.
Spain:
Thirty-eight
Percent of the Diagnostics of Alzheimer
are Confused with Dementia (March 1, 2012) (Article in
Spain)
The psychologist Amparo Rodriguez said that
38 percent of the people diagnosed with
Alzheimer’s actually suffer from dementia
which is a perfectly curable disease. In the
conference entitled “The Stimulation of
Memory Doesn’t Have Age”, Rodriguez stated
that people should exercise to stimulate
their memory. She also pointed out
that memory loss is not a natural
consequence of aging; it can happen at any
age.
After the scandal of PIP breast implants from
which silicone was leaking, the suspicion now
falls on the hip prosthesis, especially worn
by the elderly. A survey by the British
Medical Journal and the BBC showed significant
levels of toxic metals in the products of the
brand DePuy Orthopaedics, a subsidiary of
Johnson & Johnson, a U.S. company.
Although they were removed from the Australian
and U.S. markets in 2009 and the French market
in July 2010, hundreds of thousands of people
around the world still wear them and are
therefore potentially at risk.
The
Formindep, an association that promotes the
independence of medical information, in March
2009 identified anomalies in the 2008
Recommendation of Good Practice on the
diagnosis and treatment of Alzheimer's
disease, published by the French High Health
Authority. In April 2011, the State Council
ordered repeal of the recommendation on Type 2
diabetes; the one on Alzheimer's was also
removed. Published the same year, the new
expertise is now criticized as well, according
to the Formindep, notably because of a lack of
transparency and independence.
Parkinson's
disease is a major neurodegenerative disease.
Researchers at Kyoto University in Japan have
managed to reduce symptoms such as tremors and
generalized weakness in monkeys with similar
characteristics. Indeed, three months after
having stem cells implanted in their brains,
their state of health improved. Better, after
six months, they could walk again. The
researchers plan to conduct this experiment on
humans in 2015.
The recent
report of the French National Observatory on
the end of life highlights the need for
palliative care in France for the first time.
Some 322,000 people benefit from such care
every year, representing two thirds of deaths,
of which half are suffering from cancer.
However, half of those dying in hospitals does
not have access to such care. In the emergency
room, 64% of those who die need palliative
care and only 7.5% actually access such
programs. The Leonetti law that gives doctors
the opportunity to "let die" is not well known
and little implemented. Since 2005, only 10%
of nurses working in hospitals were trained
for such care. Only 2.3% among general
practitioners have received such training. The
French need to reform the system to assure
support for the growing numbers of persons who
want to die at home.
In 2005, the
French Court of Auditors highlighted flaws in
the care of the elderly. At the time, it was
estimated that half their needs were not
addressed. In its new report, dated February
2012, the Court draws attention to the fact
that reforms are slow. It recognizes that
progress has been made, but that physician
training and testing of drugs are still
insufficient. The report also highlighted the
issues of older people being sent to the
emergency room much too often.
People aged 50
and above love to buy on the Internet. They
now represent 30 percent of "cybershoppers," a
relatively new phenomenon. The proportion of
this category of the population exceeds those
aged 16 to 24 years when it comes to buying
online. Two-thirds of 65-year-olds and over
are also familiar with this exercise, but in
general, older people buy mostly from major
retailers such as Fnac, Darty, or SNCF. Very
few of them dare to buy abroad. Their favorite
activity: getting the best deals possible by
using online price comparison websites.
Insurer AG2R
La Mondiale has recognized the gap in
insurance products for those who provide
dependent. To resolve the problem, it
announced the launch of “Help to Family
Caregivers,” intended to ensure continuity of
care in case of incapacity of the caregiver
for more than 24 hours or immobilization of
more than five days. The average age of the
caregiver is increasing and health problems do
not always allow the person to fulfill their
commitments to their dependents. New
arrangements must be adopted quickly to meet
the needs of persons requiring care.
With the
reversal of the demographic pyramid, people
over the age of 75 will represent more than 13
percent of the population by 2015. Coupled
with the increase of life expectancy, and
despite advances in medicine, this phenomenon
leads to a strong demand for labor in the
caregiving sector. Over 400,000 jobs will be
created by 2015 to meet the demand after the
retirement of caregivers and the creation of
new positions. A plan for dependency has been
established and the National Solidarity Fund
for Autonomy has already announced it would
fund the cost up to 200 million euros.
(Article in
French)
A study by the Confederation of Consumption,
Housing and Living Environment shows that the
quality of meals offered to residents of
nursing homes is poor. Eighty percent of them
complain about the lack of diversity in menus
that are rarely changed, and regret not having
a way to warm up the food. They have
difficulty eating certain foods such as meat,
often too hard and cooked in sauce. Nutrition
for the elderly still needs to be addressed as
part of the National Health and Nutrition
Plan.
France:
Sarkozy
Doesn’t
Forget Alzheimer’s Plan (February 1, 2012) (Article in
French)
A plan for dealing with Alzheimer’s disease is
very dear to President Nicolas Sarkozy, who
made this project one of the highlights of the
last presidential campaign. He praised the
results, saying it has "become a model for
other countries" and regularly advertises it
as a success. For the medical profession, the
results are mixed: On the one hand, the plan
has helped make this little-known disease more
visible and the care it requires more
accessible. In addition, medical research has
evolved on this point thanks to a budget of
140 million euros. However, doctors lament
late screening and administrative inertia.
While the overall record is positive, the next
president must place the plan high on the
government’s agenda.
France:
Tanakan
Will
Not Be Reimbursed (January 30, 2012) (Article in
French)
The French government announced that Social
Security will no longer reimburse Tanakan, a
drug prescribed mainly for the elderly to
fight against memory problems and dizziness,
as soon as May 1, 2012. Available since 1975,
the drug was judged ineffective by the French
High Authority of Health for the third time
since it was released on the market. This
follows a decrease of the reimbursement rate
from 35 to 15 percent, which was decided in
2010.
Europe:
Number
of
Europeans Over 65 to Double Between 2010 and
2050 (January 23, 2012) (Article in
French)
The World Health Organization (WHO) said on
the occasion of the 2012 European Year of
Active Ageing and Intergenerational Solidarity
that those aged over 65 will be twice as many
in 2050 than in 2010. Europeans already have
the highest average age in the world due to
the increase in life expectancy and aging of
the population. However, there are wide
disparities between countries and regions as
medical and financial resources are unevenly
distributed within the continent.
Germans who
were hippies in the 1960s don’t seem to have
changed their habits of drug use. Fifty years
later, they are now retired and at the center
of many drug cases, as dealers as well as
consumers, and are clogging the courtrooms.
With 400,000 Germans over 60 years of age
suffer from alcoholism and 14 percent of them
are officially addicted to certain drugs. The
German government has made this population
group the prime target of its new national
strategy against drugs.
France:
Retirement Homes in Distress (January 16,
2012) (Article in
French)
Residential facilities for dependent elderly
people bear the brunt of the economic crisis.
Because of a lack of funds and as part of
austerity measures aimed at limiting public
spending, there will be no money allocated to
the construction of new homes in the next five
years. Opposition to this measure is already
strengthening. The Elderly and Solidarity
Service of the General Council of
Haute-Garonne reaffirmed the ever- increasing
cost of dependency: the departmental budget,
for example, has already had to be increased
by 4 percent in 2012.
France: Old at 64, Young til 42 (January 13,
2012) (Article in
French)
The Eurobarometer conducted a survey among
26,000 people to determine at what age
Europeans see themselves as being old. This
study is part of the European Year of Active
Ageing and Intergenerational Solidarity. For
European women, the onset of old age is 65
years, 62.7 for men. The French, placing the
end of youth at the age of 42 and the
beginning of old age at 66, are within the
European average. However, there are large
differences within the EU, as with the Dutch
who believe that one starts being old at 70,
and the Slovaks at 58.
Catherine
Sarrazin-Moyne's 2011 book entitled "You'll see,
you'll be fine," reveals how one day she had to
decide to place her mother, who became a widowed
and dependent after being involved in a serious
car accident, in a nursing home. For many years,
she felt guilty about this difficult decision.
She offers valuable advice to prepare children
and parents who face such events and their
consequences. Many people will recognize their
own situations in her testimony.
(Article in
Russian)
Well-balanced nutrition is extremely important
in any age, and elderly citizens are no
exception. Proper nutrition for older people
must take into account certain factors: The
elderly have a reduced intensity of metabolic
processes, slower oxidation-reduction reactions,
as well as slower nutrient uptake. As a result,
the body uses less energy and the extra calories
gained from eating and physical inactivity lead
to excess weight, which in turn leads to a
number of chronic health problems such as
diabetes, atherosclerosis, pathological changes
in the limbs and spinal joints.
France:
Dependency: Bachelot Said no Further Action
(January 7, 2012) (Article in
French)
French Solidarity Minister Roselyne Bachelot
announced that the changes in the management of
old age dependency introduced by Sarkozy in
2007, was anticipated, especially at a time of
rising costs due to dependency. For Prime
Minister Francois Fillon, it would be
"irresponsible" to address this issue in a hurry
during time of economic downturn.
Russia:
Two of Oldest Saratov Citizens Marry
(December 30, 2011) (Article in
Russian)
Six years ago, Anatoly Tokar was brought to a
nursing home in very poor condition. His wife
has just died, he had no children, and
loneliness was taking its toll on him.
Loneliness and a sense of despair are stronger
than any disease, so the doctors’ prognosis
was not good. However, everything changed when
he met Zoe Sergeeva. She refused to believe
that there is no hope, and she began to visit
Tokar daily, engaging him in deep and
meaningful conversations, and it was not long
before the 86-year-old had not only regained
his will to live; he asked Sergeeva to marry
him.
