This Is Getting Old: Moving Towards an Age-Friendly World Podcast with Dr. MELISSA BATCHELOR

Learning throughout one's life encourages social inclusion and improves one's health. There's a substantial correlation between learning and improved health, especially among older adults. The notion of life-long learning encompasses not only the acquisition of job-related credentials but also the promotion of learning throughout one's life to improve overall well-being. While 73% of older adults...

One in every five Americans—nearly 80 million people—will be over 65 in 20 years, and surveys suggest that almost 90% intend to stay in their own homes  as long as possible. However, the nation now lacks the affordable housing and accompanying social services required to meet these needs. In particular, the four issues are; The majority of houses in the United States are inaccessible to older adul...

Join us in today's episode of This Is Getting Old—Part 5: Emergency Preparedness and Resilience. This series is related to the 10-part AARP/ Age-Friendly Social Innovation Challenge participated by George Washington University's Center for Aging, Health and Humanities, our five regional age-friendly municipalities, and our multiple partners.  Watch the full episode to hear about some resources tha...

The proportion of older adults with unmet care and support needs continues to grow significantly as care systems face significant problems in the United States of America. Although 20% of older adults aged 60 and over use home- and community-based support and health services , many older American's and their families have a vague understanding of what is available for older adults. Addressing thes...

With the population's aging, community engagement has become a critical factor in achieving healthy aging. Low levels of community engagement have been associated with higher death rates and social isolation. In line with these themes, the active aging approach of the World Health Organization and the age-friendly community strategy are both participatory and empowering. They blend 'top-down' poli...

Anyone can be abused, regardless of age, gender, nationality, religion, ethnicity, or social background. Hundreds of thousands of adults over 60 years old are mistreated, neglected, or monetarily exploited every year. More than half a million reports of elder abuse are made to the police each year in the United States alone, and many more go unreported. If an older adult becomes more physically or...

The legislative process is how a bill is enacted into federal law. Aside from knowing the political structure and complying with various regional and local regulations, advocates whose overarching goal is a new or revised policy should be well versed in how a bill can become law and the specific procedural rules that apply to the process. Significant issues may arise if advocates fail to implement...

It's easy to overlook that many of the policies we see and hear in the news aren't entirely decided by the policymakers we see every day. The actual power that initiates innovative ideas into action rests behind the spotlight, with purpose-driven civil servants and professionals.  Despite the many political, logistical, and psychological obstacles these decision-makers encounter, foundations, char...

Nurses are often frustrated about policies and regulations governing nursing practice, mainly when they're developed by individuals who lack healthcare experience. This 3-part series provides an overview of why nurses should be involved in policy, the legislative process, and how to communicate with policymakers. A significant number of nurses are channeling these frustrations into positive initia...

Artist Shimoda Emanuel rearranged her life when she had to take care of her 95-year young mom with Alzheimer's. Changing her whole way of doing things wasn't easy; she was freaking out, losing sleep, feeling like her time wasn't hers anymore.  Determined to make a change, she found better ways of implementing a healthy lifestyle of art, laughter and music into caregiving. This is a 2-part series o...

Artist Shimoda Emanuel rearranged her life when she had to take care of her 95-year young mom with Alzheimer's. Changing her whole way of doing things wasn't easy; she was freaking out, losing sleep, feeling like her time wasn't hers anymore.  Determined to make a change, she found better ways of implementing a healthy lifestyle of art, laughter and music into caregiving. This is a 2-part series o...

Seventy million baby boomers are still out there and will be around for another two or three decades , and happily, in this third act of life. Thought leader and American cultural historian Larry Samuel invites us to rethink our mindset about ageism and how we must work on ways to serve older 50s to mid-70s as they enter a new era in their lives, needing to be heard and supported. Key points cover...

The biggest surprise to a man's life is getting old. And it's true: As one ages, the person inside remains the same and what changes is the exterior. In this episode, I have a conversation with Larry Samuel, the author of Age Friendly: Ending Ageism in America, Aging in America: A Cultural History, and Boomers 3.0: Marketing to Baby Boomers in Their Third Act of Life. We discuss insights on aging...

Welcome to This Is Getting Old with your host Melissa Batchelor. I share a recent initiative I've been working on called the AARP / Age-Friendly Social Innovation Challenge.  This episode is Part I: Overview of a special 10-part series related to several regional events we've held at the George Washington University's Center for Aging, Health and Humanities. Learn from the outcomes of our collabor...

Typically, around 85% of people will experience swallowing problems medically known as dysphasia at the end of life. Your loved ones or the people you care for can have trouble swallowing food, liquids, or both.  This is a 4-part series on Alzheimer's Care and Swallowing Problems , and this episode is focused on Maximizing Independence In Eating.            In Part 1, I talked about The Basics of...

Typically, around 85% of people will experience swallowing problems medically known as dysphasia at the end of life. Your loved ones or the people you care for can have trouble swallowing food, liquids, or both.  This is a 4-part series on Alzheimer's Care and Swallowing Problems , and this episode is focused on Adaptive Equipment. In Part 1, I talked about The Basics of Swallowing Problems.  In P...

Typically, around 85% of people will experience swallowing problems medically known as dysphasia at the end of life. Your loved ones or the people you care for can have trouble swallowing food, liquids, or both.  This is a 4-part series on Alzheimer's Care and Swallowing Problems, and this episode is focused on Modifying Textures + Flavor Building.  In Part 1, I talked about The Basics of Swallowi...

Alzheimer's Disease Care: Swallowing Problems Part I: The Basics with Melissa Batchelor   Typically, around 85% of people will experience swallowing problems, medically known as dysphasia, at the end-of-life. What this means is that your loved one, or someone you care for, has trouble swallowing food, liquids, or both.    This is a 4-part series on Alzheimer's Care and Swallowing Problems, and thi...

How do you feel about becoming older? Do you see it as a rite of passage or a dreaded occurrence that you must endure? As we become older, "health" means more than simply being free of illnesses. Every older person may achieve "positive aging," also known as "healthy aging," if they strive to make better alternatives to improve their life in the long run. Dr. David Lereah, PhD, is one of the few w...

If you wish to maintain health and longevity as you age, it may be helpful to include a special muscle group in your workout: your creative muscles.  According to ongoing studies , creativity is essential for healthy aging. Engaging in creative activities like singing, theater, and visual art may help older people feel better. Further, creativity, linked to the personality characteristic of openne...

Alzheimer's Disease Care: 3 Tips for Eating and Drinking at Home I went home to help my 70-year old mother take care of my 91-year old grandmother, who'd been in a nursing home for a year and a half during COVID. Grandma Trudie was extremely debilitated, and in this episode, I share. When your loved one is as weak as my grandmother was, you may need to make some adjustments that allow her to conti...

I went home to help my 70-year old mother take care of my 91-year old grandmother, who'd been in a nursing home for a year and a half during COVID. Grandma Trudie was extremely debilitated and my Mom needed me to help her figure out how to provide basic care - including how to wash her hair.  In this episode, which is part of a 3-part series on Alzheimer's Care, I will give you 3 Tips for how to s...

I went home to help my 70-year old mother take care of my 91-year old grandmother, who'd been in a nursing home for a year and a half during COVID. Grandma Trudie was extremely debilitated, and could only bear her body weight when she first came home. She could not pick up her feet to even step side-to-side or pivot - which had the potential to put a lot of work on my Mom's back until Grandma Trud...

Have you ever felt like someone discriminated against you because of your age? Maybe you didn't get that promotion because you were too young, or perhaps you felt like they didn't hire you because you were too old.  In either scenario, I doubt you ran down the road and told your friends because you had just been the victim of a "raging ageist".  In this episode of This is Getting Old podcast, we t...

New Drug for Alzheimer's Disease "Don't let yourself be sucked in by all of the publicity and marketing about the new drug for Alzheimer's. Think about whether it's got any benefit, the side effects— which can be very severe, and think about where that money otherwise would go." Howard Gleckman, Senior Fellow, Consultant, and Editor, TaxVox Blog ________________________________________________ Adu...