Changing Aging

Last week was a busy, interesting time on Capitol Hill in the area of “Changing Aging in America.” 

Three different hearings (one including Ecumen)  . . . all highlighting the need for holistic aging public policy in America - no planning in silos - so that the United States rides the age wave and people have the independence, quality of life and safety that they desire and deserve.

Justice Sandra Day O’Connor testified before the U.S. Senate Special Committee on Aging urging Congress to take a more active role in the research and treatment of Americans with Alzheimer’s Disease  Justice O’Connor’s husband John has it, and another person is getting it every 72 seconds.  Her testimony is here.

Kathy Bakkenist, Ecumen COO and senior vice president of strategy and operations, testified on technology to support family caregiving in a U.S. House briefing led by Rep. Patrick Kennedy (D-RI) and the National Alliance for Caregiving.  You can read Kathy’s testimony here.

And the House Committee on Energy and Commerce held a hearing about rogue nursing homes (which should be eliminated from existence).  You can read more about it here.

“After going from crisis to crisis, Joan is finally in a place where they have the time and training to really help,” said her husband, Terry, 76, a retired math teacher and businessman from Shoreview.  “How many places can you get kicked out of?  Let’s see, for us it was four in one year.” . . . .

Today the Minneapolis Star Tribune told a wonderful story of Ecumen’s Summit House at Prairie Lodge, a new option in Brooklyn Center, Minn., for people and families dealing with the extreme behaviors that at times accompany Alzheimer’s.   Thank you to the Wagener family for choosing Ecumen’s new housing option and being so candid about telling this powerful story.  We salute you!

“Drugs may be a good answer, but it should never be the first answer,” said Janelle Meyers, Ecumen’s director of Prairie Lodge.  “A resident isn’t trying to be nasty or disruptive.  It’s the disease talking.  If someone is screaming, they’re trying to communicate something.  We need to figure out what that is.”

Above are just a few of the innovators (several of whom are pictured at last week’s Ecumen Leadership Conference) who sought a new way to help people and family members dealing with the most extreme behaviors of Alzheimer’s.  They are part of an incredible team of people throughout this organization who are delivering a beautiful vision for “Changing Aging”:

We envision a world in which aging is viewed and understood in
radically different ways.

Andrew Carle, founding director of the Program in Assisted Living/Senior Housing Administration at George Mason University, will hold an online keynote webcast next Wed., March 26th at 10 a.m. central as part of the McKnight’s Online Expo.  Registration is free.  You can reserve your spot here.  You can read more about technology in senior housing and aging services by visiting our white paper library here.

The Nitendo Wii video game was originanlly designed for young consumers, but we’re finding that a number of our customers are also enjoying it.  Several Ecumen communities use the Wii for bowling (which seems to be the most popular Wii sport)m tennis, baseball and boxing.  It also is being incorporated into Ecumen physical therapy sessions.

The photo above taken by Brian Basham of the Detroit Lakes Tribune is from Ecumen’s Emmanuel Community in Detroit Lakes, Minn. Rossman Elementary School’s 4th and 5th graders have twice monthly Wii sessions with their friends at Emmanuel Community.

 Emmanuel Community customer Suzy Rogstad is a former college field hockey player.  Now she’s trying tennis via the Wii and says “it’s fun.”  It’s interesting . . . just five years ago, there weren’t any Wiis.  Now seniors are using a variety of technologies in their daily lives.  And it’s only going to continue increasing.

Who will care for you or the one you love?  Could it be older Americans?  Could they help you stay more independent?

In our Age Wave Study, most boomers said they aren’t going to retire, but they’re going to do something that they enjoy, that has purpose and keeps them connected to others.  That could be working in aging services.

Today about 20% of American adults needing care assistance are unable to find either paid or voluntary help, according to a 2006 study by the International Longevity Center-USA, a nonprofit research policy organization in New York City.  According to the Center, demand for home health aides during the next decade is expected to increase by more than 50%.

Can older workers fill this gap?  Shari Roan in the L.A. Times shares a story today of Silverado Senior Living, a California-based company that provides hospice, home care and assisted living with a specialty in memory care, that is already turning to older care workers.  At Silverado, 12% of its paid employees are over age 55.  Many have flexible schedules that allow for extended time off if, for example, they want to travel or have health needs of their own.

According to the American Association of Homes and Services for the Aging, seniors who have a caregiver have a five times better chance of remaining in their homes.  Also, if you have a caregiver, you have human interaction, which is critical to living fully.

The design of senior housing is undergoing a number of changes.  Below are two newer designs of several that recently received Merit Awards from the American Institute of Architects (AIA).  You can see the others there.  You can also download our white paper “A New Day and New Trends in Senior Housing Development”

This project by Hebrew SeniorLife is a slated to be completed next year and will be a multigenerational community with a K-8 school. This continuing care retirement communtiy is planned to include clustered cottages, 12-unit villa living, and two-story penthouse units served by elevators. Care services will be provided using “small house” principles.

This planned 30-story, 224 unit tower called Mirabella is part of the developing South Waterfront District in Portland, and offers an urban environment with a number of amenities within easy walking distance. a Portland Retirement Services community, it will provide all levels of senior care, including independent apartments, residential living, memory care, and nursing care.

Technology is going to play an increasing role in aging and the transformation of America for the Age Wave.

Christine Capecchi, a reporter with MinnPost.com, spent time with Honor Hacker, an Ecumen customer, yesterday (at left) at the Ecumen community of Lakeview Commons.  Here is Christina’s interesting story.

Honor and Kathy Bakkenist, Ecumen’s COO and senior vice president of strategy and operations, will be testifying tomorrow before members and staff of the Senate Special Committee on Aging on the subject of aging and technology.

Jeff Opdyke of the Wall Street Journal had an interesting article today on the growth of adult day care in the United States.

(We have to change that name.  Yes, it provides care, but my mind goes to child care, and this isn’t child care.   We can (have to) do better.  Some Ecumen communities call it Adult Day Services . . .any other names come to mind?)

Some interesting stats from the National Adult Day Services Association:

 - Demand is growing up to 15% per year.  (You can count on that growing a heck of a lot more with more two-income earning baby boomer families who fall in that sandwich generation).

- At least 400,000 people are served nationally in adult day services.

- The average national cost is $61 a day.  A home health aide in comparison runs $152 per day.

In an earlier post we discussed 10 senior housing development trends for 2008.  Another big change is the size of apartments or condos.

Consider these stats from the National Apartment Association:

In the 1950s, the average size of a new single-family home was 983 square feet. By 2006, that number had more than doubled, reaching a record 2,469 square feet. Today, 39 percent of new homes have four or more bedrooms (At Changing Aging, we ask, who sleeps in all those bedrooms?), almost double the rate of 20 years ago, and 26 percent of new homes have three or more bathrooms, nearly tripling the rate in 1986.

In the 1980s, many senior housing developers created an influx of studio apartments.  While many people want to rightsize from a single family home, they still desire ample privacy and space.  Now you are seeing multiple bedrooms, full kitchens, dens, offices and other features such as robust fitness centers that weren’t in senior housing just 10 years ago.

More information on senior housing development trends can be found in our white paper: A New Day and New Trends in Senior Housing Development.

Look for these 10 senior housing development trends from 2007 to pick up even more steam in 2008 as the age wave gains force:

1.  Congregational Senior Housing:  People want to live in nurturning, vibrant communities.  Churches want to extend their ministries, strengthen their congregations and build community.  Congregational senior housing, such as the visionary ELCA project in Sandpoint, Idaho is a win-win.

2.  College Campus Senior Housing:  Lifelong learning is a key part of successful aging.  Look for more colleges to create intergenerational communities and see the benefits of senior learners and neighbors.

3.  Increased Technology:  Technology is allowing members of the sandwich generation to be greater participants in their parents’ lives and care.  At the same time, it is giving people more control over their health and independence.  Look for increased growth in interactive technology in 2008.

4.  Memory Care:  Every 72 seconds someone develops Alzheimer’s Disease.  New memory care households focus solely on the challenges of Alzheimer’s and dementia, while eliminating the institutional style of the past.

5.  Green Construction:  Enviro-friendly and sustainable development is increasing in senior housing and will continue to grow in 2008.

6.  Catered Living:  Combines independent living and al la carte assisted living services.  This housing type allows a person to stay in their home even when they need or want more assistance.

7.  Smart, Innovative Design:  Look for innovative designers, such as Michael Graves to increasingly bring their skills to aging and using smart, creative design to improve people’s lives. 

8.  Livable Communities:  More cities are getting hip to integrating senior housing close to other community resources such as transportation, shopping and libraries, rather than sticking them in the fringes next to nothing.

9.  Successful Aging Centers:  Look for wellness centers connected to senior housing that help people of all ages and abilities nurture their physical, intellectual, social, emotional, spiritual and vocational health.  These increasingly serve as larger community resources for successful aging.

10:  Virtual Retirement Communities:  In this model, all the amenities of a senior housing community are brought to an exisiting neighborhood, such as the model Beacon Hill Village.  New bricks and mortar might include a very small health center that provides more intensive care when needed.

We invite you to download Ecumen White Papers on a range of subjects related to changing aging, including senior technology and senior housing development tips in our online library