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Seniors Helping Seniors Origins and The Conversation Project

Date: July 5, 2017
Author: Erynn
Categories: Caring For Seniors NH, Stories & Tips
Seniors Helping Seniors Origins and the Conversation Project

On this segment of “Caring for Seniors,” Judy spoke with guest hosts Hal Shurtleff and Ed Naile about Seniors Helping Seniors origins and The Conversation Project. Hal and Judy hadn’t met before so Judy explained what Seniors Helping Seniors does and the origin story. Judy talked about her own struggles caring for her parents and how it gave her the idea for the business.

Seniors Helping Seniors Origins and The Conversation Project

Seniors Helping Seniors Origins and The Conversation Project

 

Judy then moved onto The Conversation Project, continuing the discussion from the last segment. About 90 percent of people say having the conversation is important but only 27 percent actually have that conversation.

The Conversation Project goal is that they can help jump start the conversation while everyone is cognitively able to. Judy, Ed, and Hal talk about how other cultures seem to value elders, they come with wisdom, while our culture doesn’t value them as much.

The Conversation Project helps with that reverence because then the loved ones know what the person wants. Do they want to live and die at home? Would they like to go to a community? Who would be a healthcare proxy. What is a healthcare proxy? As a person, it’s the same as the durable Power of Attorney for healthcare, and it’s also a document.

Check out the whole segment here.

Seniors and Living Wills

Date: June 21, 2017
Author: Erynn
Categories: Caring For Seniors NH, Stories & Tips
Seniors and Living Wills

In this segment, Judy and Rich discuss seniors and living wills. They open with talking about “at risk” people, these are people who aren’t safe in their homes or not safe to be left alone due to injury or cognitive impairment. Judy states that the number one fear that elderly people have is loss of control. This can happen easily if their loved ones are concerned for their safety and everything starts to change. To them, it feels like suddenly they have no control.

But what is surprising is that very few people have started the process to have their wishes honored.

Seniors and Living Wills

Seniors and Living Wills

 

Judy recommends The Conversation Project, centered in Boston, which has developed tools to help get the conversation started. About 90 percent of people say having the conversation is important but only 27 percent actually have that conversation. Neither Judy or Rich were surprised by the numbers.

It’s a tough conversation to have. It can feel like the beginning of loss of control. Even Judy had to take baby steps with her father to find out what his wishes were. A study in 2012 found that only 15 percent of patients with Alzheimer’s had a living will and only 39 percent have a healthcare proxy. Which is concerning because now they have a cognitive impairment so they aren’t able to describe their wishes or they might think they are significantly younger than they are.

Having the papers ready can help stop a lot of discord in the entire family. Courts could get involved and disagreements can hurt family members. If only one person knows the wishes verbally and something happens to them, then the wishes are gone. Papers are cut and dry, and they lay everything out. Please, if you are a parent, the child, a doctor, don’t hesitate to have this conversation.

For more of Judy’s segments, click here.