Babes Among Elders

While living independently or with family members is the most satisfying way of life for many developmentally disabled individuals, it currently is not always a possibility. Strict Medicaid funding regulations prevent families and individuals from receiving the funding necessary to support these living situations, even if they are the more inexpensive solution. This article addresses the problematic issue of acquiring appropriate funding to support a more independent lifestyle as well as the extremely unsuited locations the developmentally disabled can end up in as a result of funding limitations.

Funding challenges when providing for the developmentally disabled continue to restrict the ability for this group of citizens to maximize their independence and quality of life. The SimplyHome system is an affordable technology option which can be combined with varying levels of direct care to provide optimal results for each individual. For more information on how this system works, visit the website below.

SimplyHome

Assistive Technology: A Positive Approach

This Positive Appoaches article addresses assistive technology as a solution for meeting the varied needs of people with developmental disabilities. The strengths of assistive technology are outlined in the article as well as some of the key factors which prevent people from embracing this solution. The following is an excerpt from the article:

"When you help people help themselves, when you assist a person in finding tools or devices that aid her in being more self-reliant and less dependent upon others, you help create a situation where that person feels more in control and less helpless. What could be more positive?"

SimplyHome

10 Tips for Helping Aging Parents Remain Independent

Watching parents age can be a difficult process. As parents strive to maintain their independence, children struggle with how to help in the process. This article talks about 10 things baby boomers need to consider as their parents begin to age. Thanks to assistive technology, like the systems provided at the SimplyHome website, these items are now much easier to manage for longer periods of time. As new technologies continue to be developed, it will become even easier for aging parents to remain at home.

SimplyHome

Ethical Considerations Of Home Monitoring Technology

Development and implementation of monitoring technology has been on the rise as the populations requiring support continue to grow. This article, originally published in the Home Health Care Technology Report, addresses one of the major ethical considerations when choosing monitoring technology, the right to privacy. The author acknowledges the trade-off between safety and security and privacy and calls for developers of home monitoring technology to provide a means to not only collect information, but manage it as well.

SimplyHome

Parents Worry How Kids With Special Needs Will Survive

The Lansing State Journal addressed some concerns of parents of children with special needs in this article. The article addresses the concern many parents of special needs children have: "who will care for their child when they are gone?" The article also offers solutions for easing those fears as parents and their children age.

"Young adults with disabilities are often able to live more independently than their parents might think possible.
'We have a lot of people who are living with roommates, and staff go in to make sure that there is food and the bills are paid and all that stuff," Knudtson said.'"

SimplyHome

CMI Customer Receives Local Recognition

Innovative Services, Inc., a Wisconsin-based company, was recognized in this article for it's work crews comprised of developmentally disabled adults. The crews work in the community doing odd jobs for businesses and individuals, including but not limited to moving boxes, sweeping, mowing lawns and splitting wood. In addition to the work crews, Innovative Services operates two vocational programs and numerous adult family homes, supportive home care and community-based residential facilities in Wisconsin. SimplyHome technology is used in most Innovative Services programs to enhance the quality of life and services provided for clients and residents.

SimplyHome

Older Adults Are Willing To Sacrifice Some Privacy For Extended Independence

Results of a 2004 Georgia Tech survey revealed that older adults are more willing to welcome new technologies into their homes if the technology will help them remain independent longer. The qualitative data gathered by Georgia Tech provided insight into how older adults perceive different assistive technologies in a home setting. Below is an excerpt from the article regarding the findings of the survey.

"Unlike younger adults, older people don't care if a technology is the latest thing or a status symbol. Instead, what sparked interest among study participants was the degree to which a particular technology could benefit them.

Another key factor was whether they viewed the technology as a luxury or necessity. "They were more willing to embrace a technology if they perceived a need and if they had some degree of control," Rogers said."

SimplyHome

Developmentally Disabled Have New Options for Higher Education

This US Department of State article discusses a number of integration changes which provide developmentally disabled adults with more opportunities than ever for independent living. Mainstreaming initiatives in the elementary and secondary levels of the education process are allowing more developmentally disabled adults to reach their potential. This includes training on topics specific to independent living. Post-secondary education is getting in on the act as well, providing programs which combine training in academics and independent living. In addition to the new and improved education and independent living trainings available to developmentally disabled adults, new and exciting technologies are being developed and becoming readily available to assist in and improve the independent living process. To learn more about some of the technology available to in this area, check out the SimplyHome website below.

SimplyHome

It Takes a Family....with Cell Phones et al

The Guide to Retirement Living, one of our favorite periodicals on senior living options, highlighted this article this week:

WASHINGTON, July 9 (UPI) — As the percentage of Americans over 65 steadily grows, so does the demand for long-term care — a burden that falls largely on the shoulders of family members, experts said Monday.

Unpaid caregivers, usually friends and family members, provide the majority of support for disabled individuals in the United States, grossing the equivalent of $350 billion in free labor last year — more than the total Medicaid or Medicare expenditures in 2005 — according to AARP, a non-profit membership association for those ages 50 and up.

A key benefit of our SimplyHome system is it enables caregivers of seniors and disabled people seeking to live independently to PROVIDE that help efficiently. If, as a caregiver, you have a cell phone, email and web access (who doesn't these days?), then SimplyHome can tether you into the resident's home such that when there's trouble, or the appearance of trouble, you're notified INSTANTLY and can react/respond-- whether you're around the corner or in another state.

And yet, the resident will not find such oversight and monitoring to be onerous or invasive. Our wireless sensors just quietly send data all the time, and alerts when necessary....

SimplyHome website

Why Employers Should Care About Elder Care

This Managed Healthcare Executive article provides insight into the growing challenge employees face to balance their professional responsiblities and the task of caring for family members. Also discussed is a holistic approach to employee benefits to help ease the balancing act for employees. The following are statistics from the article:

• One in four workers has responsibility for caring for an aging parent, according to the 2002 Benefit Survey of the Society of Human Resource Management.
• U.S. companies lose $11 billion a year due to absenteeism, turnover and lost productivity among employees who care for elderly people, the National Alliance for Caregiving and MetLife calculated in 1997.
• One-fifth of people who provide care for the elderly leave their jobs at least temporarily because of those responsibilities, the AARP found in its 2001 survey of baby boomers coping with family and aging issues.

SimplyHome Website

FDA approves first skin patch for Alzheimer's

This MSNBC piece has exciting news for seniors relating to Alzheimer's:

The drug in the patch, called Exelon or rivastigmine, is the same as that now available in capsule form but provides a regular and continuous dose throughout the day, according to Novartis Pharmaceuticals Corp. Since the drug enters the bloodstream directly, the patch also eliminates some of the gastrointestinal side effects associated with the drug when swallowed.

SimplyHome website

Firms Help Workers Care for Parents

ABC News had this well-written article on how corporations are helping employees to care for their elderly parents with everything from "Support Groups at Toyota America to the Option at McGraw Hill to Add a Parent to Employee Health Care."

Excerpt:

"I consider elder care the new child care," said Sen. Amy Klobuchar, D-Minn. "When you look at what's happening to people my age, they're struggling to take care of their own kids. And at the same time, they want to make sure that their own parents are taken care of, too. What we saw in the '70s with child care, we're seeing in this decade with elder care."

SimplyHome website

Two Books by the "Lifestyle Gerontologist"

Alexis Abramson, Ph.D., has written two compelling books, and she also has a highly informative blog.

Here's her bio:

Alexis Abramson is the "Lifestyle Gerontologist" for Retirement Living. Often cited as America's leading, impassioned champion for the dignity and independence of those over 60, Alexis Abramson is an inspiring speaker, corporate consultant, successful author and award-winning entrepreneur. Her message of respect for elders, and solutions for barrier-free and independent living in later years, have been featured in many national publications including TIME, Forbes, Wall Street Journal and People magazines.

In addition to the Caregivers Survival Handbook, Abramson is also the author of Home Safety for Seniors, a room-by-room reference and idea-book for making independent senior, and home-bound, living easier.

Abramson holds a Master's and a Doctorate degree in Gerontology which she received from the University of Southern California, the country's premier school of Gerontology.

SimplyHome website

Resource on the web for Elder Care

This website has a panoply of useful resources on helping your aging parents.

As they describe it:

– A guide to caring for your elderly loved one –

Caring for an aging parent, elderly spouse, domestic partner or close friend presents tough challenges – especially when a crisis hits and the responsibilities of elder care descend upon you suddenly. Perhaps your aging mother has fallen, is hospitalized with a broken hip and needs to go to a rehab facility.

Caregiving can also begin as a result of a series of unsettling mishaps and warning signs that indicate a need for long term care. Perhaps your elderly spouse has wandered off and gotten lost several times. Or a long-time friend has lost a lot of weight and rarely leaves home.

You may be the only person to step in and become the caregiver, or you may be the linchpin of a large network of family members and friends willing to help. Whatever the situation, you are not sure of the next step, or even the first step.

SimplyHome website