Quick Blood Pressure Facts

Quick Blood Pressure Facts

Who Has High Blood Pressure

• Women are about as likely as men to develop high blood pressure during their lifetimes. However, for people younger than 45 years, the condition affects more men than women. For people aged 65 years and older, it affects more women than men.
• About 28% of American adults aged 18 years or older have prehypertension.
• In the United States, high blood pressure is more common among blacks than whites. About 44% of black women have high blood pressure.
• Mexican-Americans have the lowest level of hypertension compared to non-Hispanic whites and blacks.

Health Impact of High Blood Pressure

• High blood pressure is a major risk factor for heart disease, stroke, congestive heart failure, and kidney disease.
• High blood pressure was a primary or contributing cause of death for 336,353 Americans in 2007.
• There were more than 46 million visits to doctor’s offices for hypertension in 2007.

High Blood Pressure and Salt

• A diet high in sodium (salt) increases the risk for higher blood pressure.
• Most people eat more than double the amount of salt than they should.
• Current dietary guidelines for Americans recommend that adults in general should consume no more than 2,300 mg of sodium per day. At the same time, consume potassium-rich foods, such as fruits and vegetables. However, if you are in the following population groups, you should consume no more than 1,500 mg of sodium per day, and meet the potassium recommendation (4,700 mg/day) with food.

You are 51 years of age or older.

You are African American.

You have high blood pressure.

You have diabetes.

You have chronic kidney disease.

• About 77% of the sodium Americans consume comes from processed and restaurant foods.
• Watch this engaging video: Salt Matters: Preserving Choice, Protecting Health, available at http://www.cdc.gov/CDCTV/Salt_Matters to learn more about how salt affects your health

The above information was provided by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.
The CDC website is a great resource for senior health related topics.

Offered by ParentYourParents.com 

Safeguarding Elderly Against the Outdoor Heat

Safeguard Elderly Against the Outdoor Heat

As we get closer to the end of the dog days of summer we must remember that we are not out of danger when it comes to the heat of the late-summer sun. As we all know, the sun continues to provide us with its extensive warmth all the way through September.

The dangers involved with going out into the heat of the sun are often overshadowed by the dangers of sunburn. Prolonged exposure to the sun results in sunburn, heat exhaustion, dehydration, and heat stroke. There are a number of things we can do to avoid these conditions but ultimately, the best way to avoid these dangers for our seniors, is to pay close attention to them.

1. Visit them twice a day and help them stay in contact with their neighbors. This is very helpful since seniors who remain isolated are at risk of heat related conditions.

2. Avoid going outside during the mid-day heat. Plan any errands for the morning or late evening.

3. Stay hydrated. Do not wait until you are thirsty since it takes time for your brain to signal thirst. It is important to note that for seniors, the thirst sensation is even less sensitive than that of younger adults.

4. Wear appropriate clothing. For seniors, the body’s ability to cool itself is not as good as it once was. Compensate for this by donning clothes that are cool, breathable and loose-fitting.

5. Wear lots of sunscreen ensuring that the ears, nose and lips are protected with a minimum of an SPF 15 sunscreen. Consider wearing a hat and sunglasses as well. The hat will help protect your head and provide shade to your neck and face. Sunglasses with UV protection will protect your eyes and reduce the risk of developing cataracts.

For more information on heat related illnesses, go to the Centers for Disease Control here:http://www.cdc.gov/nceh/extremeheat/seniors.html

Promote Senior Mobility with Durable Medical Equipment

Promote Senior Mobility with Durable Medical Equipment

The hours and days just after being discharged from a health facility can be filled with uncertainty. Home should be a place for recuperation, where you or your aging loved one can focus on rest. It is important to make sure your home promotes recovery, which can be aided with the help of Durable Medical Equipment (DME). This is a broad category which addresses a range of different health issues, but all are designed to promote healing for seniors and other homecare patients. The most basic types of DME offer simple, practical ways to support walking and avoid injuries from falling.

Each patient’s DME-needs are unique, so you should always ask a trusted healthcare professional for their assessment. But below is a list of basic DME to get you started thinking about medical equipment in your home.

Bathroom grab bars

Falling in homes is a common and serious problem among the elderly, especially in bathrooms where wet floors can present an unexpected hazard. One simple solution is installing grab bars to help seniors keep their balance.

This type of home care equipment is available for $25-45 per bar at most hardware stores. When deciding on which type to buy, you should consider:

• Weight: How much weight can the bar support? Most can hold up to 250 pounds, but the actual limit should be listed on the packaging.
• Number: How many do you need to install? Research recommends installing 2 bars inside your bathtub or shower, 1 bar near the outside and 1 next to the toilet.
• Length: You will need to measure your bathroom’s dimensions beforehand.

Walking aids

Canes, crutches and walkers help seniors maintain their mobility. It helps them move around the home and out the door to visit friends and family, or walk to the park.

Canes are the easiest to use and are meant for aging patients suffering from balance issues or minor lower-body problems. For a quick test, walk across a room with someone else providing support. If one assisting hand is enough to help you walk, a cane might be a suitable option. But if you need both hands then a walker is probably the best be.

Make sure you choose a cane with the proper type and length. Standard canes are meant to steady balance while offset canes are designed to support more bodyweight. Likewise, the recommended cane length is the distance from your wrist crease down to the ground, when you are standing straight with both arms hanging at your side.

Walkers are ideal for patients who need more stability.While they are quite cumbersome, walkers also offer a substantial degree of support for seniors lacking upper-body strength or balance. These mobility aids come in a variety of forms. No-wheel walkers provide the most stability, while 2- and 4-wheel walkers allow for easier mobility. If you or your elderly loved one has arthritis in the fingers, a larger grip will make grasping the walker much more comfortable.

Crutches are helpful when you need to remove all weight from your lower-body, and might be a good option for fit seniors recovering from acute leg injuries. Many elderly people are unable to use crutches, but for those with enough stability and upper-body strength, it can provide more mobility than other walking aids.

Where to buy DME

Medicare should cover costs for most walking aids with a doctor’s prescription, but there are times when insurance won’t cover DME. Fortunately, patients have alternatives to paying out-of-pocket for new equipment. Buying used is one option. Many independent living centers can provide listings for used medical equipment, while websites like Disabled Dealer, Planet Mobility and UsedHME host classifieds geared towards DME.

Caring Senior Service also offers used medical equipment in special cases. Our DME donation drive offers a great way to re-use older home medical equipment, and offer a tangible improvement to the lives of our clients and other aging patients. Our drive will run through August and September, so stay tuned for more information on ways to donate.

For more information, please visit our website at www.caringseniorservices.com 

Aurora Behavioral Health Grand Opening of ECT Treatment Program

Aurora Behavioral Health System is pleased to announce the grand opening of our
ECT Treatment Program at Aurora West in Glendale.

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Advantages to using Aurora for your patients' ECT needs include:

* Initial consultation available within 72 hours.

* Outpatient appointments can be scheduled in 24-72 hours!

* One of the few locations in the state to be using the very latest in ECT technology, which helps reduce short-term memory loss.

* Family member/friend can meet with the psychiatrist and anesthesiologist before each ECT treatment.

* Family member/friend can be with the patient up until the the time of anesthesia.

* ECT psychiatrist will be available to answer a patient's questions and address any concerns after the treatment.

For more information, or to schedule a consult for a patient, please contact our 24/7 Patient Services Helpline at 480.345.5420.

When To Start Planning for ALTCS?

Our latest Arizona Republic article in the weekly Aging and the Law column can be found below. Our column runs every Friday in select Arizona cities.

Q: A couple of weeks ago, my father suffered a fairly severe stroke.  After a brief hospitalization, he was transferred to a skilled nursing facility for rehabilitation.  He is making strides in his therapy, but we don’t know if he will fully recover.  Without this knowledge, how can I determine when to prepare for the ALTCS program?

I am assuming that your father’s care is currently covered by Medicare.  By design, however, Medicare covers only acute care, or that care which is rehabilitative in nature.  For as long as your father is showing marked improvements, then, his Medicare coverage could remain in effect for up to 100 days.  More specifically, Medicare could cover the first 20 days without co-payment, and days 21-100 for a co-payment of just over $150 per day.  Importantly, once it is determined that your father’s health has plateaued, and that he has transitioned from acute care into long-term care, Medicare coverage will end.

Once Medicare coverage ends, your father will have a few options.  If he is well enough, he can return home and resume his previous way of life.  If his health has not returned by this point in time, however, he will have to pay privately or seek an alternative payer source.  If your father has substantial long-term care insurance, then this could provide a solution, but without such coverage, ALTCS might be his only viable option.

Given the huge expenses associated with long-term care, it makes most sense to hope for the best, but plan for the worst.  By this, I am suggesting that the time to begin considering the ALTCS program for your father is now.  Each application process is fact-dependent, but it can sometimes take several months or more to gain access to the benefit, so planning while Medicare is still in effect can be very advantageous.

Aging and the Law is authored by the attorneys at JacksonWhite and addresses legal issues that arise for the elderly and their families.  Questions can be sent to firm@jacksonwhitelaw.com.

Click to view all of our Aging and the Law columns.

For additional information visit our website at www.arizonaseniorlaw.com 

5 Life Care Centers in Arizona Help Restock Local Salvation Army Water Supply

FIVE ARIZONA LIFE CARE FACILITIES HELP RESTOCK LOCAL SALVATION ARMY WATER SUPPLY

From June 16 – 21, five Life Care Centers of America facilities in the East Phoenix area joined efforts to restock the local Salvation Army’s supply of bottled water.

Each year, the Salvation Army and Channel 3 News in Phoenix hold a Bottled Water Drive to stock hydration stations throughout the valley, focusing especially on helping the homeless, homebound individuals and emergency responders.

“The Salvation Army told us that they had depleted their supply in early April, when Arizona had a fire up north and the organization delivered 25,000 bottles of water to first responders,” explained Misti Valentino, senior executive director at Mi Casa Nursing Center in Mesa.


Mi Casa and Citadel Care Center, also in Mesa, kicked off a friendly competition among Life Care facilities to support the effort. Life Care Center of Scottsdale, Scottsdale Heritage Center and Desert Cove Nursing Center in Chandler all joined the efforts.
Associates and families contributed 8-oz. or 20-oz. water bottles to the facilities and loaded up the facility buses. Together, they donated 33,180 water bottles.

“The staff immediately supported the idea,” said Mark Muir, executive director at Citadel Care Center. “Our associates decided not only would they donate cases of water, but they wanted to do a food sale to raise money to buy additional cases of water. We had a food drive the following Wednesday and raised approximately $150, which was then used to buy more water. The momentum and fun grew by the day. It was extremely rewarding for our associates to see our facility bus filled with water on Friday as we prepared to deliver it Saturday morning.”

Three of the Life Care buses – Mi Casa’s, Citadel’s and Life Care Center of Scottsdale’s – were so full of water that associates had to rent a U-Haul truck, which they also filled. They dropped the water off at the Westgate shopping center in Glendale, Arizona, on June 21.
Citadel and Mi Casa together came in first place in the competition among the facilities.
“It was truly a blessing and humbling to see and to be able to serve others in need,” Muir said.

For more new or information visit our website at  www.lcca.com 

Preventing Traumatic Brain Injury in Older Adults

Preventing Traumatic Brain Injury in Older Adults

March was Brain Injury Awareness Month and BAYADA Home Health Care shared these facts from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention to help raise awareness and prevent traumatic brain injury (TBI) in older adults.

The Brain Injury Association says, “a brain injury does not discriminate, in fact, 2.4 million Americans sustain a brain injury each year.” A traumatic brain injury is a blow, jolt, or bump to the head or penetrating head injury that disrupts the normal functions of the brain.

The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention reports that 1.7 million people, including 475,000 children sustain a TBI each year and 3.1 million individuals live with a lifelong disability as a result.

TBI is a special health concern for older adults who begin to struggle with activities of daily living as they age. People ages 75 and older have the highest rates of TBI-related hospitalizations and death. They also recover more slowly and die more often from these injuries than do younger people. Falls are the leading cause of TBI. Assistive or personal care aides can help keep older adults safe at home, supporting families who are unable to provide constant care to their loved ones. 

If you are one of the millions of people in this country caring for an older adult, you should learn about traumatic brain injury and be able to recognize the symptoms of TBI. 

The facts and tips contained in this article are from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention

Recongizing the symptoms of traumatic brain injury

Symptoms of a mild TBI:

• Low grade headache that won’t go away 
• Getting lost or easily confused
• Feeling tired all the time, lack of energy, or motivation
• Loss of balance, feeling light-headed, or dizzy
• Increased sensitivity to sounds, lights, or distractions
• Blurred vision or eyes that tire easily
• Loss of sense of taste or smell
• Ringing in the ears
• Mood changes like feeling sad, anxious, listless, or becoming easily irritated or angry for no reason
• Having more trouble than usual remembering things, paying attention, organizing tasks, making decisions, or solving problems

Symptoms of a moderate or severe TBI:

• A headache that gets worse or does not go away
• Repeated vomiting or nausea
• Convulsions or seizures
• Inability to wake from sleep

• Dilation of one or both pupils

• Slurred speech

• Weakness or numbness in the arms or legs

• Loss of coordination

• Increased confusion, restlessness, or agitation

The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention also recommends that older adults taking blood thinners should be seen immediately by a health care provider if they have a bump or blow to the head, even if they do not have the symptoms listed above.

If you think an older adult in your care has a TBI, take the individual to the doctor right away. Tell the doctor about any prescription drugs, including over-the-counter medicines, blood thinners, or aspirin that the older adult takes.

Some things you can do to help prevent falls in older adults  

• Encourage exercise. Exercises that improve balance and coordination, like Tai Chi, are most helpful for reducing the chances of falling. Always check with a doctor first to ensure certain exercises are safe to do.

• Make home surroundings safer by removing clutter in hallways or walkways, adding brighter lighting, and installing grab bars near the toilet and in the tub or shower.

• Ask a health care provider to review all prescription and non-prescription medications to ensure you and your loved one understand their side effects - particularly if they could increase the chances of falling. As people age, the way medication works in the body may change, causing drowsiness which can lead to a fall.

• Take your loved one in for a vision check. Make sure eye glasses are correct and that there are no conditions that limit vision, like glaucoma or cataracts. Poor vision can increase the chance of falling.

Home health care can help older adults maintain their independence, safely, in the comfort of home. Learn more today.

Visit our website at http://blog.bayada.com/cares