Chicago's Geriatric Care Manager Center of Excellence – Since 1991 | Chicago's Geriatric Care Manager Center of Excellence

Negative Thinking Causes What?
What could be worse than a COVID pandemic? How about the uptick in depression and anxiety that mental health...
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July 7, 2020
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While Quarantining, Prevent Alzheimer’s
We’ve heard Doctor Fauci say it many times…that we have to deal with this pandemic on the virus’ terms,...
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June 30, 2020
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Abuse Thrives in Pandemic
Guest post author Gregory Peebles is a team member at CCM whose work focuses on helping aging adults and...
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June 16, 2020
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Dementia: We’re Not Post-COVID Yet
If you have a family member or loved one with dementia, this pandemic and its restrictions have been exponentially...
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May 26, 2020
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Distance Caregiving Through a Wall
I’ve written numerous times about distance caregiving, and one of the observations I have offered is that distance is...
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May 19, 2020
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Caregiving During COVID: Four Tips for Reengagement
You may recall that I have recommended limiting your news consumption, because it really does add to our stressed...
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May 12, 2020
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COVID 19 and Stress
I heard a reporter talk about cases of post-traumatic stress disorder growing during this pandemic and quarantine. I admit...
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May 5, 2020
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Listen to an Astronaut about COVID-19
A small percentage of us may be coping with symptoms of COVID-19 or we know someone who is, but...
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March 24, 2020
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Trusted Voices on COVID-19
The news cycle calls the COVID-19 crisis a rapidly developing story. It unfortunately also has been one with a...
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March 17, 2020
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One is Number One Threat to Seniors
We’ve all had times when we desperately need our own space…time to ourselves, just ourselves. And it’s good to...
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March 10, 2020
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In the Caregiver's Words

Recent Client Praise

I have not taken a real opinion poll, but from feedback I get as a geriatric care manager from my clients what scares them most is not the prospect of dying. It is the prospect of losing their mental abilities. Alzheimer’s disease is high on the list of “feared medical conditions" even though it is down at number seven on the list of overall causes of death among Americans. With “National Memory Screening Day” coming up on November 16, I thought it would be a good time to share a few perspectives on Alzheimer’s and related cognitive conditions.

Alzheimer’s is just one of the three major types of dementia that health care experts talk about. Dementia is any disease that can cause progressive loss of memory or function. Alzheimer’s has a lot of “name recognition,” but there also is vascular dementia. Vascular dementia is a result of the arteries that bring blood to the brain hardening. Just like the kind of hardening of arteries that starves the heart over time, vascular dementia starves the brain. Finally, there is a third category that covers a number of conditions like Lewy Body, frontotemporal dementia and even Mad Cow disease, but these are quite uncommon.

There also are “dementias” that are reversible. Depression can be confused with other dementias, and it is very common among older adults. Other medical conditions like hypothyroidism, Lupus, vasculitis, some venereal disease or B12 deficiency can cause reversible dementia. Substance abuse – common among older adults – is a source of reversible dementia. And other prescription medications can impair recall and cognitive function.

Some of the classic signs of the onset of Alzheimer’s disease you can look for include when the individual:
- Tells the same stories
- Asks the same questions
- Has difficulty with numbers
- No longer does the things they commonly have done (cooking, sewing)
- Gets lost in unfamiliar places (restaurants)
- Neglects their own self-care
- Defers to a caregiver (“Ask my spouse”).
A person can do a small self-check as well. I suggest to my clients that each evening they write down a short list of notable events from that day. The next morning they should review what they wrote the night before to determine if they can remember them. It gives them peace of mind, because we tend to forget that everyone forgets some things along the way.

There is a lot more ground to cover on this, and I will get to more in later postings. For more answers or resources, go to the web site of the Alzheimer’s Foundation of America. I also would like to address your concerns or questions in future postings, so please e-mail me at Charlotte Bishop.

Charlotte Bishop is a Geriatric Care Manager and founder of Creative Case Management, certified professionals who are geriatric advocates, resources, counselors and friends to older adults and their families throughout metropolitan Chicago. Please email your questions to Charlotte Bishop.,geriatric care manager Chicago,geriatric care Chicago.
The number one cause of stroke is unavoidable, but the next eight are not. Number one is birthdays, and the older one is the greater the chance for a blockage of some part of our arterial system which can result in an ischemic or arterial stroke. So, we cannot avoid getting older, but here are eight tips on what we can do to prevent strokes:
1. Right Sleep – Too little sleep can as much as quadruple the risk of stroke, even among middle-aged people. But so can too much sleep…the happy medium is about seven to eight hours of sleep.
2. Oral Hygiene – The dentist will tell you that brushing twice daily along with flossing is great at preventing tooth decay. It also clears oral bacteria that can cause blood vessel inflammation. One study found oral bacteria in nearly four of every five blood clots of stroke patients.
3. Missing a Beat – Irregular heart rhythm, or atrial fibrillation, is a warning sign for stroke. People with AFib have a 500 percent greater chance of stroke than those without the flutter.
4. Binge Bad – Hangovers are not just a sign that one has had too much to drink, but it also triples the chance of stroke…even if it is only once in a year. It is recommended that women have only one drink a day and men only two.
5. Fighting Bacteria – Antibiotics are great at getting rid of harmful bacterial infections in our systems, but we can get too much of a good thing. Antibiotics also clear our gut of helpful bacteria, so limit use and eat yogurt or probiotics.
6. More than Flu – Having the flu feels lousy, but it also leads to systemic inflammation. Having the flu or flu-like symptoms can increase the likelihood of stroke in the next two weeks by 40 percent.
7. Don’t Sit – You may have heard talk about how sitting is the new smoking. Even if a person runs distance every day, too much sitting the rest of the day encourages a stroke. Sit less than five hours a day.
8. Red Meat – Just say no. For every 100 grams of red or processed meat consumed daily, heart disease risk jumps nearly 20 percent. You don’t have to go vegan, but work at substituting plant proteins for meat regularly.
Don’t think of this list as a mountain too high to climb. Think of it as a step at a time for your older loved one…and for you. Charlotte Bishop is an Aging Life Care Advisor, Geriatric Care Manager and founder of Creative Care Management, certified professionals who are geriatric advocates, resources, counselors and friends to older adults and their families in metropolitan Chicago. She also is the co-author of How Do I Know You? A Caregiver’s Lifesaver for Dealing with Dementia.
For this week’s post, Charlotte asked Rebecca Bloomfield, partner at Jerry S. Pearlstein Insurance, to speak to caregivers about long term care insurance. She and Jerry head up a unique agency of trusted advisors, helping individuals and families to take control of their personal financial planning … and more. Please describe the concept of long term care insurance. “Long Term Care Insurance (LTCI) pays for services when more than 90 days of continuous care are required. It’s contingent upon an individual’s inability to do at least two of the six activities of daily living: bathing, continence, dressing, eating, toileting, transferring.” How early should a person look for coverage? “Most people come to us when it is too late. The lowest premiums are when one is youngest. You can start early with a progressive sequence of plans with upgrades along the way, many times without medical exams required. Most people look at life insurance when they start a family, and that is also a good time to look at the long term picture.” Sounds like it is for caregivers… What is the right level of plan a caregiver may need? “Traditional LTC insurance has been based on a person being in a nursing home. You anticipated how long you would anticipate be in a facility and how much that might cost. Today, 80% of people want to stay at home when they cannot do two of the ADLs. They want to stay in community. So, there are now plans that cover the cost to do that by paying caregivers, or adult day care centers, or drivers…and you stay out of a facility.” Can my older parents get covered? “Once you are over 70, it is tremendously expensive. …and then there are pre-existing conditions. When you are young and healthy is when to start. Care receivers cannot get new insurance…but it is the right time for the kids who are the caregivers to get their plan.” Anything else caregivers should know? “The biggest misconception of people who come to us is that Medicare will cover long term care. It is not designed to cover sustained care over 90 days. Medicare is diagnosis-based and is built on a plan of care for a person to get better. Long Term Care Insurance should be seen as a way to assure the ability to live a long and happy life without being a burden to the children. …and to preserve your choices.” Charlotte Bishop is a Geriatric Care Manager and founder of Creative Care Management, certified professionals who are geriatric advocates, resources, counselors and friends to older adults and their families in metropolitan Chicago. Please email your questions to info@creativecaremanagement.com.
In the meantime, we invite you to download the below featured FREE white paper - offering both personal and professional advice for those who care for the elderly or people with special needs. Make sure to come back and visit us for more great FREE resources.

Caregiver Counsel on Taking the Old Out of AgingNo one argues that loss, isolation, or medical ailments may represent genuine setbacks as a person ages, but depression is a significant step beyond just feeling down or blue. Learn how to recognize symptoms of depression and how to be happy even at 100 years old.Download
Deciding on whether to move and then deciding which senior residential option is best can be stressful for a senior and a caregiver, and then comes the move. It is not as easy as packing a son or daughter off to college, because relocating an older adult is really about packing up the possessions of a lifetime. Moving day and its run-up can be challenging with all there is to organize and coordinate, but fortunately there actually are experts trained in helping to make the move smoother and less stressful. These professionals know that the move and its associated packing is more than just moving furniture.

As a geriatric care manager I am not only called on to help facilitate good choices of a facility, but also to lend a hand or an ear in my role as resource, counselor, advocate, and local friend throughout a move. There also is the National Association of Senior Move Managers (NASMM); check out their web site. NASMM (pronounced NAS-em) is – in their words - a not-for-profit, professional association of organizations dedicated to assisting older adults and families with the physical and emotional demands of later life living including downsizing, relocating, or modifying their homes.

They offer some helpful advice to elders considering a move along with their caregivers. For instance, they suggest considering an option that focuses on the older adult simply “aging in place” rather than moving to a new physical environment. In either case, a change to a downsized living environment can be in order, and they assist in developing a space design.

When you as a caregiver alone or with the assistance of a senior mover help an elder in this transition think about what you will do or contract for:
- Arranging for the profitable disposal of unwanted items through auction, estate sale, buy-out, consignment, donation, or a combination of the these
- Interviewing, scheduling and overseeing movers
- Arranging shipments and storage
- Supervising and overseeing of professional packing
- Unpacking and setting up the new home
- Coordinating cleaning, waste removal, shopping, senior escort
- Assisting with selection of a realtor and helping prepare the home to be sold.
As you look to possible help from the outside or what you will do as a caregiver, it is important to remember that it is not just about moving things - it is about relocating memories. One caregiver I know recounts the story of helping his mother transition to an independent living community and the entire day it took to empty and organize just one closet. The explanation was simple. Every file and every box had a story, and having someone available to share the stories, putting some to rest and packing others carefully for the move required time.

So, while some may think of moving day as a lot of heavy lifting, it really is more about helping to preserve a biography and to share a history of place and life. Make sure you plan enough time for transitioning all the memories.

Charlotte Bishop is a Geriatric Care Manager and founder of Creative Case Management, certified professionals who are geriatric advocates, resources, counselors and friends to older adults and their families throughout metropolitan Chicago. Please email your questions to Charlotte Bishop.

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I have talked in the past about making home safer for seniors as well as geriatric care management services for those considering a move to residential communities. But the financial and practical fact of the matter is that owning the family home may prove to be less affordable as well as less livable for adults in retirement. Never mind that classic picture of older adults whose kids have graduated college. They have burned the paper of a paid-off mortgage and can now live for free! Well, a lot of seniors were hit by the Great Recession just like other homeowners, and the house is not really free and clear. For virtually everyone, the cost of the house still includes real estate taxes which continue to rise even though housing values have declined in most markets. And the costs to maintain a house tend to come in big chucks like the cost to replace roofing or a new furnace or a hot water heater and more. Some older adults never got to the point where they could buy their own home in the first place. A study issued by the Joint Center for Housing Studies of Harvard University found that older adults make up about 13 percent of the rental market in the U.S. That is precisely the share of the U.S. population that is 65 years of age or older, and the percentage is expected to grow with the baby boomers adding to the number of renters. Finances and age are just a part of the decision to rent or buy; also important are health and lifestyle. Regarding health issues, if you are a caregiver to an older adult you may find that they can maintain their independence longer in a rental property that in a conventional home. Rental properties typically can offer a residence all on a single floor for any older adult with difficulty getting around. More current housing also will offer elevators to make getting from the ground floor to their apartment unit easier. And don't overlook the convenience of having a landlord taking care of the heating and cooling systems, the laundry machines and the roof. They also will maintain the lawns and walks. Regarding lifestyle issues, older parents may wish to have the added security of being able to be away from home for extended trips without the worry about safety of their homes. The added safeguard of two front locking doors and nearby neighbors can make it easier to take a vacation or a trip to visit the kids and grandkids in another part of the country. And don't forget that lifestyle also can include the freedom that may come from not having the added weekend duties of a lawn and grounds. That extra time back in the week can be a real bonus for an older adult who really does have something better to do. Charlotte Bishop is a Geriatric Care Manager and founder of Creative Case Management, certified professionals who are geriatric advocates, resources, counselors and friends who provide geriatric care management services to older adults and their families in metropolitan Chicago. Please email your questions to ccbishop@creativecasemanagement.com.