Isolation, Mandates, Envy -Welcome to September
Our September Newsletter
Yet another study shows that isolation is on the rise even as the country reopens (sort-of). Homebound seniors aged 70 and older more than doubled from 5% between 2011 and 2019 to 13% in 2020. Vaccine mandates for the health care industry continue to dominate the headlines. (I’m all for it!) And of course the impact of all of this on mental health can’t be discounted. And family caregivers are not immune as a timely article from my friend Barry Jacobs illustrates. Welcome to September. With a start like this, I’ll be welcoming 2022 even more vigorously than 2021.
Homebound Seniors More Than Doubled
Homebound seniors aged 70 and older more than doubled from 5% between 2011 and 2019 to 13% in 2020. Researchers say the numbers of homebound seniors would likely remain elevated through 2021 due to the pandemic.
Only Half of all Unvaccinated Caregivers Are Willing to Comply with New Vaccine Mandates
A new study of 2,000 caregivers for the elderly found only half are fully vaccinated against COVID-19. The study by Caring.com also found that a quarter of those caregivers who still aren’t vaccinated plan on remaining that way indefinitely. Sad!
My father’s nursing home didn’t require vaccinations for its workers. It was a deadly decision.
Obviously this is an emotional issue.
Caregiver Envy? Yes Virginia There is Such a Thing
When human beings resent what other people have or can do because they feel deprived or inferior in comparison, we call that envy. Known in the Bible as one of the seven deadly sins and in Shakespeare's Othello as “the green-eyed monster,” it is a common, sometimes unsettling emotion in family caregiving.
Tech Savvy Seniors Here to Stay
It’s probably no surprise that during the pandemic, older adults’ usage and acquisition of tech increased, according to AARP’s annual tech survey. They predict that these trends will continue. While sheltering at home to protect themselves from infection, adults in their 50’s, 60’s and 70’s streamed movies and TV shows, and video-chatted with loved ones and colleagues. They also bought smart TV’s, phones, watches, tablets, home assistants and home security and were likely to use them daily.
Obviously, I placed the story above deliberately. The need for Sage Stream and similar services is apparent and needed in a time of social isolation, Covid variants, and sever understaffing in care facilities.
Be on the lookout for an invite to a Sage Stream Information Session on October 6 at 3 p.m. eastern.
Caregiver Smile Summit -
Purchase all three Summits for $49.
Use them as a substitute for your Caregiver Conference just as Rural Resources Community Living Connections in Pullman, Washington did this year.
One in Three Under 40 Considering Career/Job Change
Nearly 1 in 3 U.S. workers under 40 have thought about changing their occupation or field of work since the pandemic began, according to a Washington Post-Schar School poll.
Who Will Take Care of America’s Caregivers?
The nation’s caregiving work force is fraying. Paid providers are overworked and undervalued, often forced to take on multiple jobs or turn to public assistance just to scrape by. Many family caregivers are struggling as well, sacrificing their own health and well-being to tend to loved ones for years on end.
In the Media
Using Music to Break Through to Dementia Sufferers, US News and World Report.
How Have Our Perceptions of Aging Changed in Covid Times, Sixty and Me.
I am eSpeakers certified. What does that mean? Click on the photo to find out more.
It’s Never Too Late to Record Your First Album
For a celebrated architecture professor at the University of California, Berkeley, an album of 11 original songs, in a variety of genres, was eight decades in the making.
