The Altzheimer’s Project Airs Tonight
Maria Shriver, co-executive producer of The Alzheimer’s Project, spent time speaking with Diane Sawyer on ABC’s Good Morning America on May 6, 2009. We have provided information on the series in previous Senior Help Forum posts. However, it really is worth your time and effort to watch Maria’s Good Morning America interview online.
It is informative: “Every 70 seconds someone in America is diagnosed with Alzheimer’s Disease.” – Diane Sawyer
It is inspirational: Maria goes in front of Congress to explain how her father remembers the Hail Mary but does not remember her.
It is a bit sad: “It is never easy looking at your parent and having them not know who you are, no matter what your age is.” – Maria Shriver
It instills a sense of hope: “What we have seen in these last years is an incredible and unanticipated progress in understanding Alzheimer’s diease. The understanding is important because it leads to targets for intervention, ways to try to approach disease. There are at least 91; for example, drug trials going on now.” — Dr. Richard Hodes.
The Best Way to Win an Insurance Appeal
The punchline is, “Not to have to do one.”
We’ve posted before on Medicare insurance appeals for Part A/B, Medicare Advantage, and Part D. We’ve even posted on doing battle with insurance companies. The fact is, insurance appeals are time consuming and can feel like doing battle. If you can avoid one, why wouldn’t you? How likely is that you’ll have to appeal an insurance/Medicare decision? I don’t have the statistics, but I suspect that most will do it in their lifetimes. If you haven’t had to appeal, ask a couple of people. Odds are they have.
If you believe that there’s a chance that you’ll want to appeal in the future, why not reduce that chance by spending some time understanding your coverage and what it takes to avoid the calls and letter writing? Consumers Union and The Henry J. Kaiser Family Foundation did, “A Consumer Guide to Handling Disputes with Your Employer or Private Health Plan, 2005 Update” that’s all about how to deal with problems with your insurance. But the gem in there is, “a checklist for diagnosing your coverage”
The checklist covers many of the triggers that will put you in a situation for an insurance appeal. For instance, it asks you to check the medical services for which you need a referral from your primary-care physician. Sure you may know some of them, but if you dig through your insurance coverage forms and identify them in advance, you’ll reduce the chance of a denial of coverage.
There are a number of checklists that you’ll want to fill out:
- My primary-care physician has the following requirements for obtaining referrals
- My primary-care physician can refer me to specialists who
- I have reviewed the Exclusions and Limitations section in my Evidence of Coverage. My health plan will not pay for, or limits, the following services
- My plan will cover services at the following hospitals
- What should I do if I need care while I am out of my plan’s service area?
- Although I can use out-of-network doctors for most services, I cannot use out-of-network doctors for the following services
- If I use out-of-network providers, I will pay
So, here’s what you need to do:
- Print the form a checklist for diagnosing your coverage
- Fill out what you can from reading your plan
- Call your plan provider for the information you don’t have
This won’t guarantee that you won’t have a reason to appeal, but it should give you some peace of mind that you’ve reduced your chances a denial.
And, if you do have to appeal:
- Turned down for a Medicare Part A/B medical expense? Appeal! Here’s how
- How to Appeal Medicare Advantage/HMO coverage denial
- How to Appeal Medicare Part D prescription drug coverage denial
- Doing Battle with Insurance Companies
Tips for Communicating with Someone with Dementia
The skills that help us successfully navigate the world around us don’t necessarily work when we’re with someone who has dementia. Dementia can be caused by a number of things including neurological disorders such as Alzheimer’s disease, blood flow-related (vascular) disorders such as multi-infarct disease, inherited disorders such as Huntington’s disease, and infections such as HIV.
Whatever the cause, dementia is characterized by memory loss, attention loss, and/or disorientation. In order to effectively manage the day-to-day activities, while treating the person with respect, a different approach is required when interacting with someone with dementia.
In order to avoid confusion, consider these tips:
- Be direct – Instead of asking what they want for dinner tonight, you can say, “I thought I’d make lasagna for dinner.”
- Be brief – Focus on the core activity. Instead of discussing all of the activities associated with getting ready for bed, try, “Let’s get ready for bed now.”
- Set the context – When someone comes to visit, give names and a few points about the people, “Paul and Susan, our friends from next door are here for a visit.”
- Speak slowly – Don’t expect an immediate reply. Be patient.
Don’t assume too much about how someone with dementia is processing what you say. In some cases, or some days, it may be very little, or it may be everything. Instead, keep an eye on their behavior. Also, don’t assume that they can always tell you what they need. Do they have any unmet needs that they are unable to communicate?
- Do they need to use the restroom?
- Are they thirsty?
- Are they hungry?
Are they trying to tell you something else?
- Has their routine been disrupted?
- Are they too hot or too cold?
Be aware of how your tone of voice and body language may affect them. Though they may not always fully understand what you say, it doesn’t mean that they won’t perceive your frustration, or anger. Having a relaxed, positive demeanor can make them feel at ease and more comfortable with the situation. And related to that, be patient. Know that you won’t always get somewhere on time. Things won’t always go as you intially imagined. Being prepared to change plans, or have them changed for you. Roll with the punches as they say.
Remember, these tips are as much for the benefit of the caregiver as they are for the person receiving the care. They should help you avoid the anger an frustration that can result from trying to communicate with someone whose communication skills may, or may not, always be there.
Great Caregiving Resources to Recommend to a Friend
Courtesy a4gpa via Flickr
We’re always looking for the best resources on the Web that can help the busy, perhaps harried, caregiver do what they need to do with confidence and compassion, while maintaining a balance in life. Sometimes it’s not easy. One thing working in our favor is that we do have the Internet and its abundance of resources. We also have the networks of caring people with which to share information and ideas. But sorting through the huge volume of information can be challenging and time consuming.
While surely not a definitive list, we thought we’d provide our picks of some of the best caregiver resources among the embarrassment of riches. Our picks were chosen to get someone a little more thoroughly grounded in role of caregiver. If we’ve missed a great resource, let us know in the comment section below.
Family Caregiver Alliance
While there’s much to be had on the Family Caregiver Alliance site, we honed in on the “Caregiving Issues and Strategies” section of the site. This page provides links to printable pages on a good number of topics, including:
Read the rest of this entry »
Risk Factors for Stroke that You Can Control
Certainly, there are many risk factors for stroke that you just don’t have any control over. Such as, age, gender, ethnicity, family history and medical history. According to an online article by Everyday Health entitled, Stroke Risk Factors: What You Should Know “about 50 percent of people who survive a stroke will be disabled preventing them from being completely independent and taking care of everyday activities. The good news? Nearly 80 percent of all strokes can be prevented if you know your risk factors, and make changes that can decrease your risk.”
Everyday Health lists the following as things you can do to minimize your risks:
- Do everything in your control to manage conditions such as high cholesterol, high blood pressure, heart disease, etc.
- Watch your diet – limiting your intake of fat, calories, and sodium
- Keep moving – make sure you are exercising regularly
- Keep your weight under contol and your waistline trim
- Quit smoking
- Avoid hormone use
For detailed descriptions of each of these factors, visit the Everyday Health website.
Altzheimer’s Programming on HBO
Last week, I posted information on an upcoming series that HBO will be airing on Alzheimer’s Disease. I have been back to the HBO website several times since posting the story. For any of you who are interested in educating yourselves, I think you will find their dedication to this devastating disease impressive. Click here for a link to this special area.
I also recently learned that you can purchase a book from their site on The Altzheimer’s Project for $19.99 and a 3 dvd set for $24.98. If you choose to purchase both the book and dvds at the same time, you can get them for $39.99. Click here for a direct link to the HBO store.
Tips for Caring for Your Parents from Afar
Courtesy daviddesign via Flickr
A January 31, 2008 online article entitled, Caring for Mom and Dad from Afar on CNNHealth.com, reports that “Between 5 million and 7 million Americans care for an older relative from afar – - at least one hour away, according to Family Caregiver Alliance. ‘The need is so great, and the out-of-town kids feel so helpless,’ says Dr. Eric De Jonge, director of geriatrics at Washington Hospital Center.’”
The article provides the following tips for making the situation a bit easier.
- Appoint one sibling and one doctor to be in charge of the care.
- Fly into town for an in-person visit with the appointed doctor.
- Find a doctor who is willing/able to keep in touch with you via email. It is quick and avoids the endless string of voice mail messages.
- Build a strong network of friends and neighbors to provide additional support.
Please visit the article online for detailed explanations to each of the tips outlined above.
The Alzheimer’s Project
HBO Documentary Films will be airing a four part multimedia event, “Changing the Way America Thinks About Altzheimer’s Disease” starting on Sunday, May 10th at 9:00 p.m.
Part 1: The Memory Loss Tapes
Part 2: Grandpa, Do You Know Who I Am? with Maria Shriver
Part 3: Momentum in Science
Part 4: Caregivers
Visit the HBO site for a trailer of the program.
This worthwhile look at Altzheimer’s Disease is being backed by The National Institute on Aging, the Alzheimer’s Association, Fidelity Charitable Gift fund, and Geoffrey Bean Gives back
How to Help the Elderly with Spring Cleaning
Many of us look forward to Spring-cleaning each year. I am no exception. I have been trying to make the most of the nice weather we have had lately to do just that. After having overdone it a bit last weekend, I found myself a little sore on Monday morning.
It was at this time that I noted how nice it would be for each of us to lend a helping hand to our elderly family members and/or neighbors who could use a little extra help with many of these tasks.
Give a little thought to helping out with tasks that would require them to get down on their hands and knees, those that would require the use of a step ladder or those that require extra exertion.
Indoors
- Washing insides and outside of windows
- Removing storm windows and inserting screens
- Changing the batteries in smoke detectors
- Installing window air conditioners
- Wiping down walls
- Vacuuming walls in the corners where walls meet the ceiling (cobwebs)
- Dusting the tops of tall objects (refridgerators, entertainment centers, etc. cupboards, etc.)
- Wash mirrors
- Moving interior furniture and doing a thorough job vacuuming
- Wiping down the woodwork
- Wiping off chandeliers and replace any burned out bulbs
Outdoors
- Taking them to the local nursery to pick out and purchase summer flowers
- Preparing flowerbeds for spring/summer plantings
- Planting flowers
- Vacuuming out the car
- Bringing seasonal furniture out of storage
- Bringing grills out of storage and cleaning them
- Replacing propane tanks in gas grills
- Trimming overgrown bushes
Lending a hand with the tasks outlined above can go a long way to helping reduce the number of falls in the elderly.
What to Expect after a Heart Attack
Flickr Image by 96dpi
An online article from Everyday Health provides a nice of list common questions that patients have after experiencing a heart attack. Following each question they also provide readers with answers. It is important to note that we are not physicians. Please consult your physician for medical advice on any restrictions you may have following heart problems and what you can come to expect in the coming days/weeks/months.
What kind of pain can you expect? Some patients, but not all, experience some tightness in their chests following an attack. This is known as angina. It is important to consult your physician if your pain progresses.
When can I return to work? Most patients are eventually able to return to work following an attack. Recovery time varies from patient to patient. Some return within a couple of weeks. Others need an extended recovery time.
When can I drive again? Most patients can return to driving within a week. However, some states have restrictions. Check with your doctor or your state department of motor vehicles for your state’s current regulations.
What about sex? You can usually return to your usual pattern of sex once you are able to walk around easily.
What about exercise? Most heart patients need more exercise following an attack than they did prior to suffering their attack. Heart rehabilitation programs are great ways to increase your exercise while being closely monitored by professionals.
What kind of rest is needed? A full night’s rest is essential. Naps are also considered a good idea. Rest before getting too tired.
What about another attack? Make sure you are fully aware of all of the symptoms of a heart attack and seek medical attention as soon as you suspect something is out of the ordinary.
Everyday Health reports, “The signs and symptoms include chest pain, shortness of breath, indigestion, nausea, and pain in the back, neck, or jaw. Someone in your family might want to take a CPR course — not only to be prepared but also to learn more about how to recognize a heart attack if it happens.”