Sandra Martin,
The Globe and Mail
Published Friday January 24th, 2014
To a casual observer, the two-hour surgery seemed like a small construction project – retro-fitting the back porch came to mind. The amazing part was watching Ms. Baker show off her dexterity and stamina two days later as she gamely made it up and down a hospital corridor with the help of a walker.
And then she was discharged, thanks to Sunnybrook’s Home on Day 3 initiative aimed at getting surgery patients in and out more quickly and freeing up beds in a hospital that, like many in urban Canada, typically runs at more than 100-per-cent capacity.
Leaving hospital so soon wasn’t easy for Ms. Baker. Even though she had family support, including moving into a ground-floor bedroom with adjoining bath at her son’s home, she found the aftermath gruelling. Recovering from surgery “is a slow process,” she says. “They need to spend more time on that aspect.”
It’s not perfect, but the “day three” program is one solution for the health-care conundrum about who should get hospital beds, how long they should stay in them and who looks after patients when they are released. Sunnybrook, like all hospitals, is faced with a growing number of aging patients who are living longer than ever and coping with more and more complex needs. At the same time, it is being squeezed by budget cuts. And, just like Ms. Baker, it doesn’t have much time to recover.
Ms. Baker’s short hospital stay and post-operative difficulties are symptomatic of a hospital system that is only just evolving to match the country’s changing demographics.
Back in the mid-1960s, when universal health care was instituted, mandatory retirement meant that people quit working at 65. Most of them conveniently died within the next decade.
Now, we never have to retire and life expectancy is heading into the stratosphere. A 60-year-old man in 2013 will live long enough to celebrate his 87th birthday, according to recent figures from the Canadian Institute of Actuaries. His female counterpart will likely reach 90. Whether either will be in robust health is not nearly so certain: Medical successes in combatting rapacious killers such as cancer, heart disease and diabetes means people are living long enough to be afflicted with dementia, depression and other chronic and complex diseases of old age.
In the 1960s, the average age in Canada was 27; now it is 47. “Our interaction with the health-care system tended to be in and out,” Deb Matthews, Ontario’s Minister of Health and Long-Term Care, says of the past. “If you needed your appendix out, you would go into hospital and get it out and then go home and be healthy again.”
Even “getting out,” though, meant staying in hospital longer, and there were more family members to help us recover when we did leave. Nowadays, a lot of those expectations have been passed on to patients. We are supposed to keep ourselves healthy and active, and to make arrangements ahead of time for post-operative care when we are briskly wheeled through the revolving hospital door.
For the complete article, go to http://www.theglobeandmail.com/life/health-and-fitness/health/the-hospital/how-one-hospital-is-dealing-with-canadas-ageing-population/article16492881/
Monday, January 27, 2014
Monday, January 20, 2014
SENIORS, YOUTH, UNITE THROUGH ANTI-AGEISM FILM PROJECT
Opal McLean hesitates to admit she used to believe some of the less-than-flattering ideas out there about what older people are really like.
The 16-year-old from White Rock, B.C., doesn't have a lot of exposure to seniors in her day-to-day life, and with a grandmother who isn't very cheerful, she was left with an outlook on aging that was more negative than positive.
It is, McLean says, "kind of embarrassing to say that I did believe the stereotypes.
"My one grandmother is quite grumpy."
McLean's outlook did a 180-degree turn, however, after she took part in a program that drew young Canadians and seniors together in a bid to fight stereotyping and discrimination against people based on their age.
McLean was one of about 20 teens in British Columbia and Ontario to take part in the initiative organized by Revera Inc., a provider of seniors' care, services and accommodation.
Through the Age is More program, run in conjunction with Reel Youth, a non-profit organization that focuses on youth and filmmaking, the teens were paired with seniors to make short videos delving into the older peoples' lives.
"It was amazing," McLean says. "It opened my eyes completely because I never considered ageism to be a really important subject."
"Some people, because of what they think of seniors, they're going to be too scared to go up to someone and talk to them and make a friendship because of the generation gap. It's a really big opportunity people are going to miss out on just because of the fear of them being mean and grumpy."
Such fears lie at the heart of ageism, something that Greg Shaw, a director at the International Federation of Ageing, says is probably one of the "most socially tolerated forms of discrimination in Canada."
More than three in 10 Canadians admitted to ageist behaviour, and, according to Revera, 71 per cent "agree older people are less valued in our society than younger generations."
"There's a misconception that as soon as you retire … it's like an expiry on a food product," says Shaw.
"Just because you've reached a certain age, it doesn't mean that you [can't still] contribute and the knowledge and the wisdom and the counsel that you can provide can't be valued.
"I think that's the biggest misconception that this [film] project and the Age is More program is actually trying to shed light on."
At the same time, research shows social contact can play a vital role for seniors as they grow older.
A report released by Statistics Canada last year found nearly 25 per cent of seniors say they want to take part in more social activities.
"The greater the number of frequent social activities, the higher the odds of positive self-perceived health, and the lower the odds of loneliness and life dissatisfaction," Statistics Canada said. "This is consistent with research that has found seniors with a wider range of social ties have better well-being."
"I think there are too many assumptions made by older people that youngsters are not capable of thinking any situation through thoroughly," says Bernie Custis, an 83-year-old resident at Appleby Place Retirement Living in Burlington, Ont.
Custis, who was a school principal for 33 years, also played football for the Hamilton Tiger-Cats, becoming the first black quarterback in professional football in North America in 1951.
"Far too often people are judged," Custis said in a statement. "In my life I have been fortunate enough to break some of these social barriers, which is why I was keen to participate in making this film."
In his film for the project, Custis talks of his football career, starting in high school.
"I think I still have a message to deliver to people that let's judge everyone on their content of their ability, and then that eliminates all these other issues that we're dealing with in life," he said in an interview.
Norma Clark, a 91-year-old retired nursing instructor, and her husband Roy, an 87-year-old retired surgeon, enjoyed the time they spent on the Reel Youth Project. The couple, who also live at Appleby Place and were medical missionaries in Africa for 15 years, were asked by their young interviewers about the romantic side of their relationship.
"We just basically talked about how we met," Roy said in an interview. "And then they wanted us to kiss each other, so we did that."
The Clarks met in 1950 in the emergency room of Toronto East General Hospital, where Roy was doing his residency. Another nurse helped set the couple up.
"Then we sort of fell for each other and we got married two years later," says Roy. "We've been married for 61 years. We've been together for a long time."
While the Clarks would have liked their video to explore their career experiences, they appreciated the opportunity to be part of the project.
"I think there was a good camaraderie in all of the relationships," says Norma. "When we signed up, we weren't all that sure it was going to be worthwhile, but it was really good. And then when they showed the pictures … it was excellent."
"We find this kind of inter-generational work really inspiring," says programs manager Zoe Miles.
"It's become really clear to a lot of us at Reel Youth how much those inter-generational connections are missing for a lot of people in our culture, in our society, and just how much magic there is … when people get to connect with folks of other generations."
That magic goes both ways, Miles says: older people come alive because they are feeling as if they are being heard and celebrated, and younger people appreciate not being treated like children and instead being honoured as contributing members of a group.
The videos have been posted online and will be spread through social media, YouTube and the Revera network. They will also be submitted to film festivals in which Reel Youth is involved.
Revera's experience with the film project has prompted administrators to consider how they might do similar initiatives in their other 93 communities across Canada, particularly in light of predictions that the seniors' population in Canada will double by 2036.
"Oftentimes as we deal with seniors in our society, there's a big gap between the seniors and Gen Y and Gen X, and there's not the opportunities really I think to interact," says Stephen Foster, Revera's senior vice-president of retirement living.
"This project has provided an opportunity for them to interact and I think that having this dialogue and creating this awareness really helps break down some of the barriers."
The 16-year-old from White Rock, B.C., doesn't have a lot of exposure to seniors in her day-to-day life, and with a grandmother who isn't very cheerful, she was left with an outlook on aging that was more negative than positive.
Opal McLean, far right, appreciated the opportunity she had to take part in the Age is More film project with, from left, Hannah lohnes, Doreen Reid, Meg Fitzgerald and Bernard Beaudoin. (Submitted by Opal McLean)
"My one grandmother is quite grumpy."
McLean's outlook did a 180-degree turn, however, after she took part in a program that drew young Canadians and seniors together in a bid to fight stereotyping and discrimination against people based on their age.
McLean was one of about 20 teens in British Columbia and Ontario to take part in the initiative organized by Revera Inc., a provider of seniors' care, services and accommodation.
Through the Age is More program, run in conjunction with Reel Youth, a non-profit organization that focuses on youth and filmmaking, the teens were paired with seniors to make short videos delving into the older peoples' lives.
"It was amazing," McLean says. "It opened my eyes completely because I never considered ageism to be a really important subject."
'So enlightened'
The revelation came as a result of the time she spent with seniors Doreen Reid and Bernard Beaudoin. Everyone involved in the project — seniors and youth — came away feeling "so enlightened," McLean says."Some people, because of what they think of seniors, they're going to be too scared to go up to someone and talk to them and make a friendship because of the generation gap. It's a really big opportunity people are going to miss out on just because of the fear of them being mean and grumpy."
Such fears lie at the heart of ageism, something that Greg Shaw, a director at the International Federation of Ageing, says is probably one of the "most socially tolerated forms of discrimination in Canada."
'I think there are too many assumptions made by older people that youngsters are not capable of thinking any situation through thoroughly'- Bernie CustisA 2012 report by Revera and the federation included research by Leger that found six in 10 seniors age 66 or older say they have been treated unfairly or differently because of their age.
More than three in 10 Canadians admitted to ageist behaviour, and, according to Revera, 71 per cent "agree older people are less valued in our society than younger generations."
"There's a misconception that as soon as you retire … it's like an expiry on a food product," says Shaw.
"Just because you've reached a certain age, it doesn't mean that you [can't still] contribute and the knowledge and the wisdom and the counsel that you can provide can't be valued.
"I think that's the biggest misconception that this [film] project and the Age is More program is actually trying to shed light on."
At the same time, research shows social contact can play a vital role for seniors as they grow older.
A report released by Statistics Canada last year found nearly 25 per cent of seniors say they want to take part in more social activities.
"The greater the number of frequent social activities, the higher the odds of positive self-perceived health, and the lower the odds of loneliness and life dissatisfaction," Statistics Canada said. "This is consistent with research that has found seniors with a wider range of social ties have better well-being."
Breaking barriers
For seniors who took part in the film project, it became a welcome opportunity to forge new friendships with young people, and learn a few things for themselves in the process."I think there are too many assumptions made by older people that youngsters are not capable of thinking any situation through thoroughly," says Bernie Custis, an 83-year-old resident at Appleby Place Retirement Living in Burlington, Ont.
Custis, who was a school principal for 33 years, also played football for the Hamilton Tiger-Cats, becoming the first black quarterback in professional football in North America in 1951.
Retired school principal and CFL quarterback Bernie Custis says people are judged 'far too often.' (Revera Inc.)
In his film for the project, Custis talks of his football career, starting in high school.
"I think I still have a message to deliver to people that let's judge everyone on their content of their ability, and then that eliminates all these other issues that we're dealing with in life," he said in an interview.
Norma Clark, a 91-year-old retired nursing instructor, and her husband Roy, an 87-year-old retired surgeon, enjoyed the time they spent on the Reel Youth Project. The couple, who also live at Appleby Place and were medical missionaries in Africa for 15 years, were asked by their young interviewers about the romantic side of their relationship.
"We just basically talked about how we met," Roy said in an interview. "And then they wanted us to kiss each other, so we did that."
The Clarks met in 1950 in the emergency room of Toronto East General Hospital, where Roy was doing his residency. Another nurse helped set the couple up.
"Then we sort of fell for each other and we got married two years later," says Roy. "We've been married for 61 years. We've been together for a long time."
While the Clarks would have liked their video to explore their career experiences, they appreciated the opportunity to be part of the project.
"I think there was a good camaraderie in all of the relationships," says Norma. "When we signed up, we weren't all that sure it was going to be worthwhile, but it was really good. And then when they showed the pictures … it was excellent."
Natural fit
For the Reel Youth organization, the film project was a natural fit."We find this kind of inter-generational work really inspiring," says programs manager Zoe Miles.
"It's become really clear to a lot of us at Reel Youth how much those inter-generational connections are missing for a lot of people in our culture, in our society, and just how much magic there is … when people get to connect with folks of other generations."
That magic goes both ways, Miles says: older people come alive because they are feeling as if they are being heard and celebrated, and younger people appreciate not being treated like children and instead being honoured as contributing members of a group.
The videos have been posted online and will be spread through social media, YouTube and the Revera network. They will also be submitted to film festivals in which Reel Youth is involved.
Revera's experience with the film project has prompted administrators to consider how they might do similar initiatives in their other 93 communities across Canada, particularly in light of predictions that the seniors' population in Canada will double by 2036.
"Oftentimes as we deal with seniors in our society, there's a big gap between the seniors and Gen Y and Gen X, and there's not the opportunities really I think to interact," says Stephen Foster, Revera's senior vice-president of retirement living.
"This project has provided an opportunity for them to interact and I think that having this dialogue and creating this awareness really helps break down some of the barriers."
By Janet Davison, CBC News Posted: Dec 14, 2013
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