Vulnerable People and Places Blog

                As our life expectancy increases and our fertility decreases we will see an increase in our older population. This proves a problem as we have push the retirement age and those that do reach retirement age are getting less and less help from the government. This increase in the older population could lead to more government spending, which is a good thing, but could easily turn sour as that funding could have gone to other things such as schools and other government programs.                 Solutions for these problems include pushing retirement age even further but reducing the hours that they work and are thus able to continue paying taxes to lessen their impact and continue to save. Some also suggest encouraging the elderly into activities such as volunteering and finding other forms of income to take their time. ...

We tend to think that in this day in age there shouldn’t be any form of health disparities. That the Hippocratic oath is something that is always upheld. You would be wrong. In a study done by Jacqueline L. Angel, PhD and Ronald J. Angel, PhD show that race is a factor when it comes to getting health treatment for the elderly. They found that Hispanic and African American seniors were at a disadvantage when visiting their doctors. One speculation that has gained traction is the idea that many in this demographic tend to live in poverty.  Those that live below the poverty line are less likely to visit a doctor or are unable to pay for their life saving treatments. They tend to work for little money and their employers are less likely to have retirement plans set up as they try to make ends meet. They also point out that many older immigrants might have spent their lives working difficult routines that would make life harder later in life. The study also made the strong poin...

                  Japan is a highly developed country that has favored work over almost everything else. People work and work, which has led to a declining population as more people are deciding not to have children and spend their time into their careers as living becomes more expensive. This society that loves to work has led to weird falling outs, as seen by some Japanese people giving up on their lives and becoming recluses in their own homes for many years. As their rising elderly population continues to grow and a decreasing workforce, does the capitalist society that they live in do them any good?  Their high stress work environments have pushed many of their citizens to the brink and thus creating people who are recluses.                 In an article on AlterNet.org, they discuss the drawbacks of capitalism for the elderly and possible sol...

As senior nutrition is becoming more and more a social priority, many have considered alternative methods of connecting seniors with reliable and nutritious food sources. A brand new program aims to connect community seniors with local farmers and community members. This new program is known as the Market Nutrition Program and is starting to be seen more across the country as an alternative to meal services such as Meals on Wheels. This (typically state-funded) program provides access to seniors over 60 years old and under the federal poverty level with rich social interaction and local, community grown food. Programs such as the Market Nutrition Program are important to help support the need to help increase accessibility and provide smart alternatives if the individual decides to forgo or does not have access to local services such as Meals on Wheels. To learn more about a specific usage example visit here , to see how the program is working in Pennsylvania.

The Washington County Cooperative Library Service has a wonderful system in place for those stuck at home: Books on Wheels. Much like the Meals on Wheels service offered to many who are homebound for one reason or another, Books on Wheels will bring l arge print and standard print books, books on CD, books on Playaway, magazines, and video recordings right to the doorstep of those in need of a good escape. They're even nice and easy to return once you're done. And the amazing part about this wonderful system is that it is completely free to the members of Washington County. The process is very simple for those who want to apply, either online or by mail, and when you want to request new materials, it's as simple as calling the service. It can be hard having to stay at home all day, and television broadcasting and the internet doesn't always afford for a happy creative escape.  For more information visit: https://www.wccls.org/homebound

A crucial part of modern life is transportation. People of all ages in all parts of the country rely on some form of transportation on a day to day basis. Some drive cars, take public transportation ride bikes, walk, take cabs or ride share services. But as people age their options become more limited. Senior citizens might not be able to drive anymore because of vision or reaction time, there might not be a bus stop that is within a reachable distance for them to get to, their closest subway stop or light rail station might be not be updated to modern ADA standards, the list of limitations goes on and on. So for many senior citizens a having someone else drive them is their only or safest option. Yet cabs and ride share services like uber or lyft cost money that someone on a fixed income might not be able to afford when making regular visits to the doctor or to run errands. For these people losing their ability to drive leads to 15 percent fewer trips to the doctor and 65 percent fe...

At a certain point senior citizens start to lose the capability to take care of themselves. It’s a known fact of life. Most people plan for this by moving into an assisted living facility or hiring a specialist, such as a live in caretaker move in with them. But if someone doesn't plan for this, and starts to show signs of a physical or mental disability, a court and/or a judge can appoint a guardian for them. This system is designed to ensure that a person is cared for and assure that their assets and property are properly managed. Unfortunately, as comedian John Oliver highlighted in the main segment on his show on June 3rd, the system that monitors senior guardianship is incredibly flawed and is ripe for exploitation. When people don't put someone in place beforehand, the court appointed guardian might be a complete stranger who is looking to take advantage of having access to their finances and bank accounts. Some seniors get trapped in situations with guardians they don...

My grandma was an active Meals On Wheels volunteer in my hometown and one summer she enlisted my help to deliver meals to the locals who were enrolled in the program. Once a week we go to the meal prep kitchen and load the meals we were to deliver into the car and set out to drop them off. Sometimes when we would deliver meals to the house the senior would be there and answer the door, sometimes a nurse or some other caretaker would answer the door, and sometimes no one would answer and we would simply leave the meal on the front stoop or back porch. During that summer and during our deliveries I remember feeling a sense of guilt about the fact that these seniors had lost or were losing their ability to leave the house or provide and care for themselves. I felt that taking them these premade meals was in some sort of way, patronizing, for these people. Near the end of the summer I expressed this feeling and point of view with my grandma and she told me that she had felt that way a litt...

Alone in a bed, a nurse comes in just a couple times a day, rarely any visitors or even none at all, while being too old to do much. With no one to talk it’s easy to become depressed or feel down. Just one simple phone call a day for a few minutes can bring joy and build relationships and allow one to connect.   Even if your grandparent or senior friend isn’t in such a situation, if you can, you should give them a call. Adults are lonely, as with age, families and friends move away or pass away, and mobility becomes a big issue. Communication can become more difficult with hearing loss and decreased vision, which makes it seem like a bigger hurdle to deal with. But, healthy human relationships are life changing and are great for mental health, which in turn affects overall health. And with the number of health problems that the elderly now face, this is absolutely vital. You, yes you, have the power to change and help this. Even if you don’t know any seni...

Waving from the street, an elderly veteran holds up a sign. Homeless, need food, money, or work. Sadly, this is an all too common sight to see. Elderly veterans face a huge lack of support and many difficulties in their lives and many wind up homeless. Why does this happen? For many veterans, they were drafted to fight in wars when they should have been in school and have wound up without any degree. This leads to many veterans working entry level jobs or manual labor, which were sustainable when they were younger with more able bodies. As they’ve grown older these kinds of jobs break down their bodies or due to other aging problems they just can’t work anymore. And, these kinds of jobs can result in not having much of a retirement fund or plan. In addition to this, although veterans can complete disability claim appeals, the process can take up to 2 years before a Regional Office can make a decision due to the humongous backlog. As for the Board of Veteran A...

Chronic illnesses and diseases are a huge problem for the elderly. Four out of five adults suffer from at least one chronic condition, which is 70 million Americans that are above the age of 50. Some of the chronic conditions that the elderly deal with include heart disease, respiratory diseases, cancer, and Alzheimer’s disease. The leading cause of death is heart disease, followed by respiratory diseases. Some things that you can do are to preventation of such diseases.   Such illnesses can already be hard to deal with and manage at younger ages but when health insurance and old age come into play it becomes extraordinarily difficult. Not only do some worsen with age, and the ability to combat them is decreased, if an older person doesn’t have health insurance it is almost impossible to get them. Insurance companies know that they will have to pay a lot of money and consider the elderly with chronic diseases to be high risk and won’t support them. In addition to th...

For many community members, the common belief is that the only way you can help your local Meals on Wheels program is to volunteer. Granted yes, that is a viable way to help, but there are many other methods to help as well! Meals on Wheels is a very welcoming and flexible organization when it comes to accepting your creative ideas on impacting their service community, and how you can help. It’s just a matter of taking the first step. You can always call and get in touch with your local office to suggest an idea such as cards to send with deliveries, seasonal care packages... etc. These small but thoughtful gifts can be mighty by helping brighten a senior’s day. A few other ways you can support Meals on Wheels is by decorating lunch bags and placements, to give them a nice creative pop for their recipients. By organizing small donation tables at local fundraisers and community events such as farmer markets, and most important of all—educate. Read and research the effects of hunge...

With a series of recurring natural disasters such as floods, fires, earthquakes, and tornadoes becoming more three times frequent, it is essential to understand how we can best serve and help seniors during and after a national disaster. Recent events have shown that older adults are particularly vulnerable, especially if they need ongoing health care. Such disasters can limit or permanently close access to essential Pharmacy locations, and displace seniors out of nursing homes. For example, according to New York City’s Hurricane Sandy Retrospective Analysis during Hurricane Sandy in 2012, over 31 nursing homes closed, leaving more than 4,500 residents in need of emergency assistance. These events can lead to seniors being left out in the cold once the immediate aid is over. Currently, there is no centralized system for collecting, reporting and sharing data on after-disaster-care for any demographic. This lack of data makes it hard to reflect and adjust to help better serve co...

What happens when the city you live in grows too expensive to afford housing? For a large amount of senior citizens, homelessness is a reality. The housing crisis in Portland has been building for years, creating an income gap in which realistic and affordable housing is few and far between. So where do these senior citizens turn? That is where Northwest Pilot Project steps in. Beginning in 1969, this volunteer program was started to provide support for seniors at risk of losing their ability to live independently. This initiative spawned the first Meals on Wheels program in Oregon, addressed accessibility issues with the TriMet system, relocated seniors who lost housing due to gentrification and closures, started a group of Portland churches providing help to the poor, and set up a vast network of volunteers willing to help seniors with services, ranging from health care to legal assistance. Once a program outgrew the ability of the NWPP, it became its own entity, leaving the NWPP to...

Recent Survey Shows Rise In Homeless Demographics It is no surprise that we have a homeless crisis on our hands here in Portland. With the cost of living in the city rising, and the lack of affordable housing has only exacerbated the numbers of people that find themselves sleeping on the street. In a recent article by the Oregonian, Molly Harbarger reported on the recent survey showing that the “homeless population in Multnomah County increased nearly 10 percent in the last two years: [meaning that] there are now at least 4,177 people without permanent homes on any given night in Portland.” Recent strides have been made to try and work together in an effort to help citizens out of poverty and homelessness. As previously reported on this blog, the initiavtive to start two new “one stop shop” shelters downtown and at the Wapato Jail site. Ted Wheeler has combined Portland City and Multnomah County services under one roof to create the Joint Office of Homeless Services. Their efforts have...

Staying active is a way to keep youthful and healthy in mind and body. For many senior citizens organized group activities provide a way to exercise, stay active, and widen your social circle. Many community centers offer organized activities. Doing arts and crafts, field trips and exercise classes like yoga and tai chi. Another great way for our vulnerable citizens to stay active is at senior centers. Many senior centers   focus on activities like dances, bus trips, auctions, bingo and other games. A company called Senior activities in Everett Washington provide in-home activities. I put a link to their website below.   For those who like to travel, there are travel clubs and RV resorts. Below I've posted links that have fun activity ideas from how to make ice cream to treasure hunting with metal detectors.  http://www.elder-one-stop.com/senior-activity-ideas.html https://www.liveabout.com/free-entertainment-activities-for-seniors-2969299 http://senioract...