Intergenerational Communication
While doing some research it was discovered that many assisted living residents are neglected and or abuse. Many have families that never come to see them or even call. Others only have visitors on special occasions. Residents only wish to see their loved ones, not to be alone is a home where the only people they talk to are the care givers who provide them care on a daily basis. Communication between the youth of today and the elderly is advancing into a new society. It is worry some too many residents that they may expire soon without getting to see their loved ones. If more families came to visit, there would be less depression of many residents. Playing games with the resident’s leads to less aggression
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or violence and boredom. Intergenerational Communication will help the residents not feel neglected, they will be more independent and involved in many of the activities the facility offers. Many families feel at fault that their loved ones are unable to function the way they use to or that they need extra care they are unable to provide. Many of the assisted residents are forced into homes and never visited or called. Even if families live out of state and are unable make it to visit a lot, they could call and see how their day went. It takes a caring person to provide the care and support that the residents need. A person who is amenable to give up their own free time to commit to being there for a resident. Many residents start to care and love the individual who gives them the time of day, just to sit down and have a conversation with them. “The promise of assisted living includes maximizing a resident’s choice of independence” (Lieberman 3). For some they are put in an assisted living facility so their family can take advantage of their money. Residents would feel more self-reliant if they only had control over some of their own finances. If residents had daily routines it would help them feel self-ruling and not give up hope on life. Assisting residents to make their own choices lets them feel aware of what’s going on and not so in the dark about important arrangements. For example, choosing what they would like to have as meals for their birthdays. “Some residents may not be able to communicate with each student in ways they used to, but this will be an excellent way for residents to stay positive and it gives them something to look forward each week” (Leggett 1).Getting families involved helps the residents feel self-reliant and not such a burden on others. Let’s them see their families more and relive memories from the past. “Family learning provokes wide ranging discussion” (Kanhadilok 7). Letting them pick their own activities and determining their own decisions builds up their self-esteem. Studies show that certain activities help those who have Alzheimer’s or dementia build up muscle tone that has weakened during the stages of dementia. Positive activities lead to positive behaviors. More residents will want to play games and be more involved in activities. “The Wii, where players mimic actions such as throwing a punch in boxing or taking a swing at the golf clubs as part of a computer game is already extensively used to get fit classes. All these patients involved were impaired as a result of a strokes, arthritis of weakness of muscles after a severe illness (Wii provides 1). Even just sitting down and reading a book with them can help their vocabulary skills later on in life. They will sleep better and do more tasks on their own. It has been known as a reminiscence therapy for those who have suffered from a stroke or who have dementia and Alzheimer’s. “Discovery and play allow the individual (adult or child) to make new distinctions about novel elements in their environment including new setting, objects and social situations” (Kanhadilok 4). By doing interaction activities it will help residents maintain their functional level and help their communication skills. Grandparents wish nothing more than to see their grand kids and to spend time and love them. During research it was found that integrational interaction helps stimulate the communication part of the brain. It helps them connect with others in many different ways such as what they like to do and how society has changed from when they were kids to now. Residents can even just have a conversation with others at their table to get to know one another and share similarities. “Getting to know the residents and learn about their past lives as well as their current lives was rewarding and satisfying” (Serving the Elderly 2).The residents learn how to be more spontaneous, joyful, and silly. “We don’t stop playing because we grow old, we grow old because we stop playing” (Kanhadilok 2). Studies show that having an acting show for the other residents helps them remember who was in the play. It gives them something to enjoy in their day. “Personal relationships that have developed through the activity have tended to last. Many residents who have acted together still remember their partners and visit them….” (Nightly Drama 1). Having younger kids come to interact with the residents gives them something to look forward to during the week. Gives them time to think up some of their old stories from their childhood. “I feel that the old people are so much smarter and wiser and they can share a lot of stories and advice with us” (Leggett 3). Intergenerational Interaction is very important because of the high number of residents who are being neglected or abused. Research shows that 2/3 of assisted living residents owned their own home.
Most residents have families who never come because they are ashamed of what they did and how greedy they were. It would be hard to face your parents when many do not have much time left and you betrayed them. “Studies show that 28% of the elderly residents are neglected and abused. Out of that 28%, 909% are physically abused, .3% are sexually abused, and 5.2% were socially abused” (Alana 1). Elderly abuse is no joke more and more residents are being abused as many families become self-centered and greedy. “90% of these residents who are abused were young adults who had a nasty habit such as drinking or gambling” (1). It is breath taking how many residents are getting pushed away because they are unable to do all the things they use to do when they were young. Reading stories, or hearing stories that residents tell, about how their family never comes to see them, but they sure are thankful for them. Some residents get frustrated and emotional that they are unable just leave and go visit those they care about. Only if those families cared enough to come see their loved ones just for an hour, they could learn a lot about them and what they like now a
days. Everyone’s life is valuable and limited, living life with regret will make life unbearable. Residents only dream of seeing their loved ones and to be able to communicate with them like good old days. Intergenerational interaction is believed to help lower the numbers of abused residents. As a society we all need to become aware of this and change are attitude towards the elderly. We need to come together and get the word out there about this because everyone deserves to spend time with their families on holidays or birthdays. Spending more time with your grandparents may help others to realize that they should do the same. Coming once a week to spend time with loved ones can do a lot for them. Even if it is just helping them pick out what to wear for the day. Pick out an activity that everyone will enjoy. Encourage grandparents to be fit and mobile so they can be independent as long as they can. Try getting neighbors to come and join the activity can get them to make new friends and get out of their comfort zone and talk to new people. Intergenerational communication will help the elderly become more independent, live longer and not be so lonely.
On the night of Saturday, February 1, 2014, I sat down with my grandfather, David Latta, to conduct an interview with him. He currently lives in Clarkston, Michigan, in the newly refurbished basement in my mother's house, along with my step-father, sister, and her son. One could say that my mother's household is quite the crowded nest, with four generation living under one roof. The perspective my grandfather obtains from living in such an atmosphere, is not only something I kept in mind while conducting this interview, but something that guided my questions.
Long ago, in a far flung corner of the world, laid a colossal kingdom, ruled by one of the most powerful and wise kings and queens of that era, the kings and queens were esteemed by everyone, even the richest people honored them because of their dignity and honesty they were admired by every ruler of that era. They had a daughter, Alicia and a son, Peter who loved their parents, but those children were extremely ignorant and rude towards their grandparents.
It is a well-known fact most Americans seniors would prefer to age in their own homes instead of moving into senior living communities. Meeting seniors where they are is a trend that will most likely affect assisted living facilites in the future. One of the main focuses from providers is being patient centerd. Meaning working with the patient to ensure that the best possible care is given. Providers are working with patients and offereing more services within their homes. Another trend that we will see in assisted living facilites is a competive pressure. According to the National Investment Center for Senior Housing and Care, competition housing is an increasing trend that is affecting living situtions for the elderly
...how kindness to them. Unfortunately, many caregivers take advantage of the elderly by taking their money, by using violence and sexual interference, and by abusing clients emotionally. 96% of elder abuse cases are not reported. ( Medscape.com). The Ontario Network for the Prevention of Elder Abuse (ONPEA) is an organization dedicated to raising awareness about abuse and neglect of older abuse. (onpea.com). It stands to reason that there is a large problem still rampant in society where others are taken advantage of, or mistreated. Hopefully more documented information and raising awareness of the issue amongst society will allow more people to understand this as a problem and the abusers to be caught. These obvious abuse of rights are something that should be protected, luckily people become more aware of these circumstances that is happening on a regular basis.
Upon growing older there are many decisions to be made. Among one of the most difficult and perhaps most important decisions is where the elder person will live and how long-term care needs will be met when he/she is no longer capable of doing so independently due to the incapacity that accompanies many with old age. Nursing homes seem to be the popular choice for people no matter the race, gender, or socioeconomic status with 1.5 million Americans being admitted to them yearly.[3] Because nursing homes are in such a high demand and are not cheap, $77.9 billion was spent for nursing home care in the United States in 2010 alone, they are under criticism of many professions including the legal profession, which is in the process of establishing elder law as a defense to issues with in the elder community. Nursing homes have a duty to provide many things to the elderly including medical, social, pharmaceutical, and dietary services so that the individual may maintain the highest well-being possible.[4] Stated another way 'a nursing facility must care for its residents in such a manner and in such an environment as will promote maintenance or enhancement of the q...
It is estimated that 11-78% of residents in nursing homes are suffering from depression, especially those with dementia (Volicer, Frijters, Van der Steen, 2011). Elderly depression can have many causes, however it is widely believed a decline in physical health, and reduced contact with family and friends are two of the most prominent reasons (Llewellyn-Jones, 2007). With limited to no family contact, elderly like the rest of us feel lonely, forgotten and unimportant. On the contrary, a study conducted by researchers Holahan and Moos found with family support, depression in elderly people decreased over a one year time span (Greenglass, Fiskenbaum, Eaton, 2006). Therefore, if more elderly residents of nursing and retirement homes are visited by their family members, their mental and physical well being will likely increase. I have witnessed at the retirement home I work at, some of the residents consistently have family visit them while others I have ever seen them have a visitor. The ones who are visited, often tend to be noticeably happier and healthier, while the ones who usually remain alone tend to be more unhappy and physically unwell. For instance, I worked last Christmas and I was surprised by the amount of residents who remained in the facility on Christmas day. Although the majority of the residents went home, there still were about 25-30 out of approximately 100 residents who remained on Christmas Day. The fact that these residents had no family to spend the holiday with, or were not invited by their family members was heartbreaking, especially since holidays like Christmas are heavily focused on family relationships. Exclusion and isolation, similar to what the remaining residents experienced on Christmas day, can be interpreted by the elderly as a loss of their family 's respect and may feel as though they are a
With over 1.5 million elderly and dependent adults now living in nursing homes throughout the country, abuse and neglect has become a widespread problem. Even though some nursing homes provide good care, many are subjecting helpless residents to needless suffering and death. Most residents in nursing homes are dependent on the staff for most or all their needs such as food, water, medicine, toileting, grooming- almost all their daily care. Unfortunately, many residents in nursing homes today are starved, dehydrated, over-medicated, and suffer painful pressure sores. They are often isolated, ignored and deprived of social contact and stimulation. Because of insufficient and poorly trained staff commonly found in nursing homes. Care givers are often overworked and grossly underpaid that often results in rude and abusive behavior to vulnerable residents who beg them for simple needs such as water or to be taken to the bathroom.
Elder abuse in nursing home is a social problem that has had more and more attention in these recent years. “Elder abuse is the most recent domestic violence issue to gain the attention of the public and the medical community.” (Elder Abuse: A Review) According to the Senate Special Committee, about 5 “million older Americans are abused and neglected every year.” Abuse for the elderly can be considered a social problem due to the people who are in denial of it actually occurring, for example, the caregivers and nurses who do not consider themselves to be actually performing the abuse. It is a problem because the elders are put into these nursing homes by loved ones and ones who
If an older individual is not given the proper care in an assisted living home, it will damage the well being of the individual. “Resident independence with ADLs
With the aging population growing faster every year many families must make a difficult decision whether their loved ones should live in assisted living or nursing home facilities. I can relate because I made the decision to care for my mother at my home. Some people do not have the money or resources to care for their parent so they must live in a facility for health and safety reasons.
Collins, Jordan & Coleman (2012) stated that dysfunctional intergenerational boundaries are commonly present in divorced and in conflict families where one or more children go against one parent. Due to the existence of multiple subsystems in this family, it is evident that the boundaries between the family members are rigid and that the family is disengaged. An example of the specific behavior that demonstrated the existence of disengaged boundary with grandma E, was the relinquishment of her caretaking role as a mother to her first born child to her parents so she could pursue her interests in finding a husband.
During these calls and visits, people should ask their family members how they are doing, and ensure that their needs are being met. Additionally, it is helpful for people to vary the days and times when they visit. This may help ensure that nursing home staff are not able to take steps to hide signs that they have abused a resident. By staying involved in their loved ones’ care, people may help prevent nursing home abuse from occurring at all, or identify potential problems right
Nine quantitative research papers focused on the contents of parent-child communication about sex. Six papers focused on parent-child pairs. A number of researchers used a range of different topics to assess whether or not parents had ever discussed the topic with their children. For example, ten items of content and ten items of process of communication between mother and adolescents were established by Miller et al. (1998a), with the aim to measure which sex-related topics were discussed and how their content was transmitted. The same research team used the instruments with various groups of participants. For examples, Dutra et al. (1999) used the content and process instruments to measure not only mothers and teenagers but also fathers’ communication, and Whitaker et al. (1999) used these instruments to measure the influences of parent-child communication about sex in content and process with sexual risk behaviours in sexually active young people.
Communication is very important when we interact with our patients especially the older adults. It is important to know that communication plays a major role in nursing, and it can prove very useful when caring for the elderly. It is always important the way we communicate with the elderly, for example, whenever one gets a little older, he or she tends to be a little slower and that goes for communication as well. Therefore, it is important that when we communicate with the elderly, we speak in a very soft tone and voice, and also to speak slowly so that they can understand. It is important to know that there are times when the elderly will nod their head in agreement, even though they were not sure what was said. Therefore, it is important
Old age homes which are designed to give shelter and provide a place to live, for those old ones’ whom no one has to care about but today people are making it as their tradition where the people leave their parents in an old age home, where the two generations never stay under one roof and from them, one has to bow down for leaving that family and those are always older aged parents. Where more and more people are thinking about and many are opting to put their aged parents in old age homes. Where the presence of old age parents at home becomes too much of a trouble and there is no room for them as they need constant need of care. Where it becomes impossible to bring friends at home because their parents can be a source of embarrassment for children, it is becoming a shameful thing to introduce their parents to their friends. So, for avoiding these kinds of embarrassment and shameful things the old aged parents are being hit by this drastic detachment from their children at the age when they need a lot of care, when they start losing their memories. They might have grown old by outside but from inside they become those little kids who could never grow up again. ”People say old age is the recoiling of childhood” and it is true that old aged people need attention correspondingly as a young child.