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

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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Helping Your Older Loved One – AND You – Avoid COVID19
All of us here know how to prepare for a blizzard, people in the South know how to prepare...
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March 3, 2020
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Part 2: Five Important Tips for Caregiving and Self-Care
In my last post, I gave you some tips on distance caregiving that arguably could be called the 30,000...
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February 18, 2020
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Five Things You Need to Know about Coronavirus
Okay, there may be more than five things you want to know about the coronavirus, but these five basics...
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January 28, 2020
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Alzheimer’s: A Cure at Hand?
I have posted before that the currently approved therapies for treating patients with Alzheimer’s disease are not really very...
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January 21, 2020
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Medicare Doesn’t Cover WHAT?!
Gregory Peebles is a Certified Senior Advisor (CSA), Certified Dementia Practitioner (CDP) and trained Medicare Counselor, whose work focuses...
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June 18, 2018
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Do You Sea a Hero in Yourself?
Associate Care Manager Gregory is a Certified Senior Advisor (CSA) and Certified Dementia Practitioner (CDP) whose work focuses on...
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June 4, 2018
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What May Flowers Bring
April showers are supposed to bring May flowers, but what does May bring? It brings Mental Health Awareness Month…among...
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May 28, 2018
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Five Tips for Winter Because It’s Not Spring Yet
There is a lot of advice that goes around for older loved ones in our orbits when we see...
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January 16, 2018
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In the Caregiver's Words

Recent Client Praise

Therapy dogs work, because we all – as the saying goes – get by with a little help from our friends. It may be a cliché and it may be a good basis for a song, but it also works. Moreover, recent research shows that those who happen to have the companionship of furry friends have better medical outcomes. The research among chemotherapy patients demonstrated that patients who had the benefit of a dog with them during their treatments scored statistically higher on measures of “social well-being.” In my experience companion animals in assistive care settings make a difference for all the residents who get the benefit of a pet or a stroke of the furry worker dog. On my son’s campus, they also bring therapy dogs on the rounds during finals week. But do not just take the scientists’ word for it; dogs are mammals, and mammals emote. I know you can talk to some people who claim their pets know what they are thinking or when they are having a “bad day.” We don’t want to project too much intellectual capacity to our four-legged friends, but mammals emote. Reptiles and amphibians don’t. I understand that it has something to do with the physiology of their brains. If you have a pet these holidays – and it is well-behaved around strangers – don’t hesitate to share the warmth…even if the warmth also brings a bit of residual fur along with it. Everyone benefits when you share that love…and I believe even the dog will benefit. Speaking of which…the picture that accompanies today’s post is of a Jack Russel mix. The reason is that we have an orphan within our service community. Her name is Annabelle, and she was orphaned just this week after a number of years of faithful service to her master. She is only seven years old, and if you or someone you know could give her your love, she promises she will return the favor. She is only 15 pounds and she runs on regular fuel, so you will get lots of great miles per ounce. Please reach out to me or click on the link for info@creativecaremanagement.com . What better time of the year than now to share the love? Have a great holiday season and a very happy new year! 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.
We see a lot of therapies advertised commercially these days, and all of them talk about possible side effects – usually toward the end of the ad. My favorite is when they tell us that if we are allergic to the medication, we should not take it…if you haven’t heard this before, just listen until the very end of any of the ads on your cable network. But nobody talks about the side effect that is the sixth leading cause of mortality in the United States – behind stroke and ahead of Alzheimer’s disease - and it leads to an estimated 125,000 deaths a year. Ready for this? It is NOT taking your medication…they sometimes call it nonadherence or noncompliance, but it’s responsible for 10% of hospitalizations and costs the healthcare system an estimated $289 billion dollars a year, and yes, it kills 125,000 a year. (I know there is a difference between nonadherence and noncompliance, but we won’t get into that here.) And it’s not a really new phenomenon. Hippocrates even warned about noncompliance when he cautioned his medical students to “keep watch also on the fault of patients which makes them lie about taking things prescribed.” Sadly, some of the noncompliance among older adults comes from the financial strain of being on multiple meds that are so expensive that it forces them to choose between food and medication. But some of it also is just not fully comprehending the importance of what they take and when to take it. There are lots of technologies or gadgets that have built-in reminders for pill-taking like plastic boxes labeled for day of week, day of month or time of day. Some have beeping noises as an added reminder, and some actually will tell a potentially-forgetful patient not only when they should take a pill, but also if they already have taken their pill(s). If you are the caregiver to an older loved one, you may consider a bit of a test with your care receiver. In this test you simply ask your loved one about the medication(s) in question. Does the patient know what it is for? …what they are taking the medication to avoid? …or what sort of ill effect is a consequence of their not taking it? Many patients know only that a pill makes them dizzy or urinate more often or feel bloated or lose sleep. But they may not appreciate that the medication reduces their risk of stroke or a heart attack or improves the quality of their lives. How does one get to that point where the patient is motivated and therefore is compliant? First, it's a team effort; I like to call this “Team Mom” or Team ____ (whatever your loved one’s name is). The players on the team are you, a partner or spouse, the prescribing physician and the most important player, the patient. Help the star player, the patient, to translate the medication into something that is really valuable to them…make it personal. Then, identify any obstacles to compliance…forgetfulness, having the medication where they are at that particular time of day or night, side effects that are unacceptable, and such. And don’t forget patient educators, making generic alternatives available and making compliance count for them, the patient. And physicians suggest starting with modest first steps. Don’t take on all six medications the patient may be taking, but start with the two that are most critical to their health or start with the medication that has the most conspicuous benefit. Establish a pattern of conspicuous success…I call it catching them in the act of doing things right. Then continue by asking how many doses the patient may have missed since the last conversation…don’t ask if they are “taking their medications.” Who wouldn't just say yes to the first question? And scaring them does not work either! And I had mentioned technology. Just Google “medication reminders,” and you will see a host of options. And don’t forget that you can enlist the support of Alexa as a relatively pleasant verbal reminder for your loved one. 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.
Please download our latest white paper "Caregiver Advice about Bad Medicine" by clicking the green button below.

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In the meantime, we invite you to browse more of our FREE downloadable white paper resources - offering both personal and professional advice for those who care for the elderly or people with special needs.

Caregiver Advice on Bad MedicineMany are unaware of the massive scope of the pharmaceutical market and all the ways in which seniors are taking more and more unnecessary drugs because of it. We discuss how caregivers can look out for signs that their loved one’s medication is over prescribed and how to spot warning signs.Get This White Paper

Caregiver Counsel on First Aid for the CaregiverIt is no secret that caregiving can be an everyday challenge, especially when managing a full time job and other family responsibilities. Discover tips about how caregivers can limit stress, boost energy, and stay positive in our latest white paper.Get This White Paper

Caregiver Counsel on Caregiving & the New NormalStatistically, more and more people will become caregivers to an older adult in their lifetime. Becoming a caregiver can be sudden and overwhelming as it is. We offer senior care options for preparing and reacting to different obstacles you may encounter.Get This White Paper

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.Get This White Paper

Caregiver Counsel on Senior Living OptionsFinding the best living options for your loved one can be tough. Whether it is picking the right senior living community or making your current family home safer, we help you to prepare for a productive conversation with your loved one about these transitions.Get This White Paper

A Caregiver's Guide Toward a Healthier Senior HeartHeart complications and disease are common issues that older loved ones face. Discover easy and practical ways to give you or the senior in your orbit a healthier heart.Get This White Paper

A Caregiver's Guide for Changes & AgingCoping with change can be difficult. It often involves tough decisions and conversations with the person you care for. Discover strategies to help you and your loved one feel more comfortable with transition.Get This White Paper

A Caregiver's Guide for the HolidaysHoliday stress is tough for everyone but especially for caregivers. Find out how to care for both yourself and your loved ones while managing these hectic seasonal times with friends and family.Get This White Paper

Roadmap to Alzheimer's Learn what to expect when you're caring for someone with Alzheimer's. Inside find tips for detecting dementia, how to best communicate with a loved one with Alzheimer's, and more.Get This White Paper

Making Home Safer Make sure your loved one can navigate daily activities as safely and independently as possible. Read about how to secure the most hazardous areas of the home and what action steps you can take to ensure your loved one is living comfortably too.Get This White Paper

Caring For the Caregiver Learn how to be as good for yourself as you are for your loved one. Are you becoming impatient with your loved one? Are you missing work or finding yourself easily irritated? If so, this white paper can help.Get This White Paper
I had the good fortune recently to meet Jennifer Muskat, the Director of Client Services for San Diego Home Care Assistance. She shared some helpful perspectives on the importance of geriatric care management services for older adults who need emotional support. "The physical obstacles that your aging parent or loved one encounters in old age are often the most noticeable. While you can easily observe their struggles with walking or daily chores, it is much more difficult to recognize, understand and empathize with the emotions they experience on a day to day basis. Your elderly loved one will be forced to deal with a handful of life-changing events as they age. Retirement, forfeiting the right to drive, and the loss of a spouse, sibling or close friend are just a few examples of inevitable changes that accompany aging. Without emotional support from family members during life’s new and unfamiliar events, seniors become vulnerable to depression and often suffer from a decreased quality of life. As an adult, your sense of worth comes from your ability to provide for your family, perform your job well and most importantly, function as an independent individual. Whether from frailty or age-related illness, seniors lose these abilities, resulting in an increased dependency on their adult children. When this role reversal occurs, many seniors experience feelings of worthlessness and a lack of self esteem. Becoming dependent on their children, who once relied on them for everything, is difficult to cope with emotionally. When neglected, these negative feelings can result in depression in seniors. They feel alone and helpless and that no one understands their situation. To ensure the health and wellbeing of your loved one, it is crucial that you are aware of how your loved one may feel. If they seem withdrawn, upset or have just suffered the loss of a close friend or family member, take the time to talk with them. Listen with patience and compassion and try not to criticize their feelings. By letting your elderly loved one know you are by their side and are available to offer emotional support, you can help combat depression and enhance their overall happiness and quality of life. Also recognize that seniors become socially isolated in their later years and encourage your loved one to pursue new hobbies and stay in touch with old friends. Participation in these activities offers another channel for emotional support. We often do not look beyond the physical ailments of our aging parents and fail to provide the emotional support and encouragement they once provided us as children. However, it is never too late to help. Reach out to your elderly loved one and let them know you are there for them as they enter this new stage of life." Jennifer Muskat is the Director of Client Services for San Diego Home Care Assistance. She offers geriatric care management services as an advocate for senior health and wellness. By constantly developing new programs, she ensures Home Care Assistance caregivers can provide optimal quality of life for senior clients. 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. We provide elder care services to those in metropolitan Chicago. Please email your questions to ccbishop@creativecasemanagement.com.
It is the "crime of the century" and you have heard of it, but you may be having a rough time remembering it right now. That is, in part, because it has gone largely under-reported, and the bad guys may not have been prosecuted. If you are thinking this is the story about the financial institutions who were responsible for the crisis that fueled the "Great Recession," you are wrong, but it is a financial crisis. Those who are 65 years of age or older in this country represent only 13% of the population, but they get a disproportionately large share of the attention from scammers. And it is not just the affluent and older population; it is the relatively poor as well as the rich among those who are of an age. The National Council on Aging warns of some of the more common scams that occur. 1. Medicare/Insurance Fraud: A federal grand jury just this month indicted a Florida physician for up-charging Medicare for over $2.1 million; since Medicare is funded by you and me, all of us pay for that one. 2. Fake Drugs: Even with the provisions of the Affordable Care Act, medications can cost a lot. The internet and phone callers have been targeting older adults by selling "cheaper medicine," but the drugs are counterfeit. 3. Funeral Crashers: A scammer can follow the obit column and show up at the funeral to present the grieving family with a false debt allegedly owed by the deceased. 4. Looking Marvelous: In search of the eternal youth elixir, consumers at any age who want to look younger than their years can find a whole host of scammers with fake goods that make big promises and cost big dollars. 5. Phone Fakes: It is not bad enough that an older person can be duped by a fake telemarketer, but it often happens that an accomplice of the first scammer will call later to secure even more dollars offering to help reclaim the first loss. 6. Going Phishing: Older web surfers may not recognize the difference between a legitimate request for updated personal information and one that is stealing their identity and their dollars. 7. Too Good: Yes, if the investment is too good to be true, please appreciate that it is just that. Does the name Bernie Madoff ring a bell? And he built his pyramid scheme with money from friends. 8. Candy Grams: Beware of any callers who request that the money - ostensibly for a family member in trouble or a worthy charitable cause - be sent via Western Union or MoneyGram. These don't require ID at the receiving end. If this does not scare you on behalf of your older loved one, what should scare you is that all these scammers are incredibly creative. Today's scam always has the potential to transform into a new version that will surprise someone tomorrow. Beware of the Nigerian prince who offers to share his inheritance... 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.
Do you know how kinesiologists refer to walking…at least some of them with whom I have spoken? (These are the folks who specialize in the mechanics of body movement.) They call it “controlled falling,” and we can really appreciate this if we look at toddlers just beginning their first adventures with “walking” upright…it is mostly a series of failed attempts at walking that initially end mostly in falls. Fortunately for toddlers they are built pretty close to the ground, so the falls rarely inflict any real damage. Not so with older adults. June is National Safety Month, which makes it a perfect time to highlight one of the bigger health risks among those 65 years of age and older: falls. And this is a good time to underscore the scope of the risk. Like, one in four older adults has a fall each year, but only about one in two of these are ever reported to their physicians. Yet, over three million of these episodes each year are seriously enough for the individual to end up in the emergency room owing to a resulting head or hip injury. By the way, more than one in four of these ER visits result in a hospital stay owing to a fracture or contusion or worse. If you have an older loved one, don’t wait for the phone call; here are some simple steps you can take to assess your care receiver’s risk as well as help bolster their safety:
- Assess your loved one’s risk for falling using the CDC’s questionnaire;
- Make certain your loved one gets an annual eye exam, and keep their glasses (if needed) are current with their vision;
- If you accompany them to their doctor visit, ask about their feet, posture, leg strength and agility;
- Help assess and address any clutter or other safety issues in your loved one’s “space,” and remember that a lot of this revolves around lighting and ease of access.
This last one has a lot to it. If you would like, we have a home safety checklist that you can use to identify potential trouble spots in your loved one’s house. Just email me at info@creativecaremanagement.com, and I will send you a copy. You may have noticed that I have nearly 600 postings in this blog. Please just type in “home safety” or “fitness” in the search box on the Blog…or any other keywords that are top of mind for you about your loved one’s safety. So, let’s all end this month with a spring into summer, not a fall. 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.