A hearty
welcome to all our new readers. We're glad to
have you along on this up and down ride!
Remember, there's no such thing as a dumb
question, and none of us know what we don't
know.
As we go through the year putting
together these newsletters there invariably is a lot
left on the cutting room floor, either because it's
too long, or it doesn't fit the theme of the day.
Every now and then it's time to clean the good
leftovers out and pass them along. So, today's the day
for some bits & bobs:
Add
Shingles & Tetanus To The List Of
Medicare-Covered Vaccines
|
Medicare covers vaccines for
preventable diseases that the Centers for
Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) has
identified as being especially serious for
adults over the age of 65 years. Most everyone
knows that influenza (flu) and pneumococcus
(pneumonia) vaccines are covered. Many people
don't know that tetanus and shingles are also
included.
The tetanus shot is covered only if it is
medically necessary (if you cut your foot on a
rusty nail, for example).
Don't Count on Medicare
When You Travel Abroad
|
If you are
planning to travel outside the U.S.A. it is
important to know that Medicare does not cover
medical care you get outside the United States
except if:
• You are
traveling in Canada on a direct route between
Alaska and another U.S. state and you need
emergency services;
• You are
traveling on a cruise ship, and
1. The ship is registered in the U.S. (very few
cruise ships are registered in the U.S.A.), and;
2. The ship's doctor is registered with the
Coast Guard, and;
3. You receive care while the ship is in U.S.
territorial waters (the ship is in a U.S. port
or within six hours of arrival at or departure
from a U.S. port).
Some Medicare supplemental insurance policies
(MediGap policies), provide coverage for foreign
travel. Medigap plans C through J cover 80
percent of the cost of emergency care abroad
during the first two months of a trip. You will
generally have to pay the cost of care and
submit receipts for reimbursement.
If you are in a Medicare private health plan,
call your plan administrator to find out if your
plan will cover any kind of medical care abroad.
If you will be traveling to a foreign country
and want health coverage, talk to your travel
agent about purchasing a short-term health
insurance policy designed specifically to cover
travel. You may be able to find a policy that
pays medical providers directly. Also ask
whether available policies cover ambulances and
emergency flights home.
| If you think
you're too small to be effective, you've
never been in the dark with a mosquito. |
Elder
CareTip:
Reducing Mealtime Battles
|
Mealtimes are a problem for many of
us. Either our loved ones will
barely eat anything, or they rush
through a meal and hardly take time
to chew and swallow. Either way, it
can pose problems. For either kind
of eater, try this:
Put a small amount of one kind of
food on the plate - no more than
three or four bites. When that's gone,
take the plate back and put on three
or four bites of another food. Then
back to the first food, then the
second. And so on.
Waiting for
more food to be added to the plate will
slow down a fast eater. A slow and
easily overwhelmed eater will never
be faced with "too much" on the
plate.
Since many of our seniors don't
drink enough, offer water or another
beverage each time you re-fill the plate
and wait until it's been drunk.
This may mean you're popping up and
down like a jack-in-the-box. It's
worth it if it makes meals more
pleasant. |
|
A
Simple, Elegant Holiday Craft
To Do Together
|
 This
is a project you, your children, and your
elder can do together. It's easy as pie,
and the results are really quite stunning.
I can take credit only for finding the
instructions while looking for something
completely unrelated.
Here's how to make these.... Have fun! |
|
Find
Senior Low Vision Services
|
The
American Foundation For The Blind features a
national directory of low vision services that
can help older adults adjust to vision loss. The
directory includes information on support
groups, adaptive sports leagues, low vision
specialists, and more. It also connects visitors
to vision rehabilitation agencies where older
adults can learn techniques for performing daily
living activities with vision loss. Many of
these low vision tips are described in videos
and articles that appear on the Web site.
Was it only 20 years ago that Jo
Horne wrote this everlasting list of Caregiver
Rights? It was something every caregiver needed
to hear then, and it remains so today. We need
to re-read and reaffirm these every now and
then:
•
I have the right to take care of myself.
This is not an act of selfishness. It will give
me the capability of taking better care of my
relative.
•
I have the right to seek help from others
even though my relative may object. I recognize
the limits of my own endurance and strength.
•
I have the right to maintain facets of my
own life that do not include the person I care
for, just as I would if they were healthy.
•
I have the right to get angry, be
depressed, and to express other difficult
feelings occasionally.
•
I have the right to reject any attempt by
my relative to manipulate me through guilt,
anger, or depression.
•
I have the right to receive
consideration, affection, forgiveness, and
acceptance for what I do for my loved for as
long as I offer these qualities in return.
•
I have the right to take pride in what I
am accomplishing and to applaud the courage it
has sometimes taken to meet the needs of my
relative.
•
I have the right to protect my
individuality and my right to make a life for
myself that will sustain me in the time when my
relative no longer needs my full-time help.
•
I have the right to expect and demand
that as new strides are made in finding
resources to aid physically and mentally
impaired older persons in our country, similar
strides will be made toward aiding and
supporting caregivers.
| Caregiving:
Helping An Aging Loved One, 1987 |
We all get
heavier as we get older because there's a
lot more information in our heads.
~ Vlade
Divac, NBA player
|
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