Farmington Community Matters March 2017

Commun ty Matters Farmington Presbyterian Manor

March 2017

Annual fundraiser set for Presbyterian Manor Farmington Presbyterian Manor’s annual Chicken and Dumplings Dinner and Silent Auction will be Thursday, March 23, to benefit Presbyterian Manor residents who have outlived their financial resources.

The event will be at Farmington Presbyterian Church, 403 W. Columbia. Meals are $8 each in advance or for carry-out, or $9 each at the door. A group of 10 or more are $7 each.

The Good Samaritan Program depends solely on donations from friends and supporters to care for seniors living at Presbyterian Manor who have outlived their financial resources through no fault of their own. Each year, Farmington FUNDRAISER, continued on page 2

Youth is an asset for social services director March is Social Work Month — “an opportunity for social workers across the country to turn the spotlight on the profession and highlight the important contributions they make to society,” according to the National Association of Social Workers.

At Farmington Presbyterian Manor, our own director of social services YOUTH, continued on page 2

YOUTH, continued from page 1

Louis and was planning to start on her master of social work degree right away.

has the distinction of being the youngest member of our leadership team. Rachel Campbell says her age is something of an advantage when it Throughout school, Rachel had comes to working with older adults. worked for Belgrade State Bank, and it would have been easy to stay on “I am younger, so I think a lot of there, she said. “I was torn, because the residents think of me like their I knew I still needed my master’s grandkids,” Rachel said. “They and the bank was flexible. But I was look at me as family and not just a ready to be done with that chapter worker, and that makes it feel more in my life,” she said. like home.”

She applied for social work openings In February, Rachel celebrated at Presbyterian Manor and one her first anniversary on staff at other employer. “I couldn’t even Presbyterian Manor. When she see myself at the other place now. joined us, she had just earned her It all fell into place.” Not only has bachelor’s degree in social work she been able to go to grad school from the University of Missouri-St. after all, Rachel also received a scholarship from the Emily Huff Gantner Memorial Scholarship Fund for Presbyterian Manor employees.

Community Matters is published monthly for residents and friends of Farmington Manor by Presbyterian Manors of Mid-America Inc., a not-for-profit 501(c)(3) organization. Learn more at PresbyterianManors.org Jane Hull, executive director Heidi Beyer, marketing director To submit or suggest articles for this publication, contact hbeyer@pmma.org Telephone: 573-756-6768 Fax: 573-756-6014 Address: 500 Cayce St., Farmington, MO 63640-2910 Our mission: We provide quality senior services guided by Christian values.

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Community Matters March 2017

Rachel said she was initially interested in the field of psychology and behavioral health. Social work,

however, seemed like a more marketable degree – but she also discovered it had a lot of the same appeal to her as psychology. She especially likes finding alternatives to medication for residents such as counseling or calming routines.

“Some people do need medication, but I really like the idea that we can help them in other ways,” she said.

In long term care, the social worker is also responsible for handling resident concerns, together with the ombudsman. Sometimes she is just making sure that residents’ basic needs are met.

“I have excellent people. They are so nice and lovely, they are like grandmas and grandpas to me. I think the most appealing thing about working in a nursing home is the residents. It’s like a little family,” Rachel said.

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facebook FUNDRAISER, continued from page 1

Presbyterian Manor has a fundraiser to support the local Good Samaritan Program. Last year’s dinner raised more than $14,000.

“This event is truly a blessing to those in need, and so is everyone who participates,” said Executive Director Jane Hull. “The Farmington

community provides tremendous support for this event and throughout the year.We look forward to a big crowd March 23.”

For more information about Farmington Presbyterian Manor, 500 Cayce St., Farmington, contact Heidi Beyer at 573-756-6768 or hbeyer@ pmma.org.

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Fighting ageism and unfair treatment in health care

By Terry Fulmer for Next Avenue

Everyone deserves equal treatment — in the broader society and in our health care system. Today, older people are often not treated fairly and do not get the care they deserve, simply because of their age. While one of our great success stories in the 20th century was the stunning gain in human longevity, recent research from The Frameworks Institute, funded by my group, The John A. Hartford Foundation, and others, has found that the majority of us still don’t recognize ageism or its deleterious effects. They call it a “cognitive hole,” a mental blind spot.

and irreplaceable contributions that older adults make every day to enrich our society and culture.

And for those of us at The John A. Hartford Foundation, it is critical to the broader effort to improve care for older people.

anticoagulants instead of making an effort to ensure there is no family violence. Another — the assumption that all older people become confused and forgetful, when, instead, a brain tumor may be the real problem.

The dangers of ageism

These negative and inaccurate views of older people consistently hamper our ability to recruit nurses, doctors and other health professionals into geriatrics and gerontology. The result: our health care workforce often lacks the knowledge and experience to treat a group of patients who make up 35 percent of all hospital stays and 27 percent of all doctor’s office visits. And though nearly four in 10 older people take five or more medications, clinical trials generally exclude older patients with multiple chronic conditions, so we may misjudge drugs’ efficacy (and even dangers) with this important patient population.

Research during the last two decades has implicated ageism in the under- and over-treatment of older patients, as too many clinicians mischaracterize organic medical conditions as normal aging. Others ignore pain, anxiety and depression as unavoidable as we get older or unconsciously view older people as less worthy or less important than their younger counterparts.

As 10,000 of us turn 65 each day, it is critical that we shine a bright light A classic example is the on this insidious prejudice. It is a matter of simple fairness and justice. underdetection of elder mistreatment, when, for example, It is a way to honor the priceless clinicians ascribe bruises to

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儀甀愀氀椀琀礀 漀昀 匀攀爀瘀椀挀攀猀

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Even our own views of aging can have important influences on health and well-being. Researchers note people with more positive expectations about aging live longer, experience less stress and have a greater willingness to exercise and eat better. Conversely, negative perceptions of aging — inadvertently supported by unhelpful and negative stereotypes in popular culture and the media — can AGEISM, continued on page 4

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AGEISM, continued from page 3

reinforce self-defeating behaviors that make us more vulnerable to disease and disability.

Developing an age-friendly health system During the last century, our health care system has consistently demonstrated an impressive ability to adapt and to find innovative

solutions to challenging problems.

Looking ahead, we need an intensive effort to create an age-friendly health system where all older adults and their families feel that the care they receive is the care they want and that they feel respected in the process.

We need health care suffused with aging expertise, devoted to

person- and family-centered care, and able to provide coordinated services in the hospital, clinic and the community. This work is neither simple nor easy. Raising awareness about, and addressing, ageism throughout the health care system — and throughout our society — will be critical to delivering the care all of us want and deserve as we get older.

Farmington Presbyterian Manor 500 Cayce St. Farmington, MO 63640-2910 Return Service Requested

Fitness routines Everyone knows fitness is important. How have you taken steps to be fit? What’s your regular fitness routine? If you’ve started a fitness routine late in life, what advice would you have for others? How do you think you benefit from regular exercise?

If you’ve got a story to share, contact Marketing Director Heidi Beyer, and your story could be featured in an upcoming edition of Community Matters.

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Community Matters March 2017

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