The Aging Brain: Maturity & Making Health Transitions

The Aging Brain: Maturity & Making Health Transitions

Alicia I. Arbaje, MD, MPHAssistant Professor of MedicineAssociate Director of Transitional Care ResearchDivision of Geriatric Medicine and Gerontology

Learning Objectives• Understand demographics and special

needs of older adults

• Discuss the 3 “D’s” of the aging brain—Dementia, Depression, Delirium

• Discuss experiences from graduating programs

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Mary• 81 years old

• Completed 8th grade

• Cares for husband with dementia

• Daughter lives 20 miles away

• Six chronic conditions

• Four physicians

• Nine medications

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Presenter

Presentation Notes

Allow me to introduce to you Ms. Mary… Bridge: As you can see, Mary has a complex physiology, a complex medical regimen, and a complex social situation.

During the past 6 months…

Multiple settings

• 3 hospitalizations• 2 rehabilitation

stays

Several providers

• 8 physicians• 25 nurses• 7 therapists

Changes to plan of

care

• 4 medication lists• 3 new

prescriptions

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Presenter

Presentation Notes

Then we add a complex health care system. 3 hospitalizations for exacerbations of her CHF in the setting of poorly controlled DM and old CVA. These have required 6 weeks of rehabilitation in 2 different facilities During this time, she has been seen by numerous providers in each setting, and she has undergone various changes in her plan of care. Meanwhile, it is likely that her primary care physician is not aware of these changes. Bridge: Now you can see why some older adults are heavy users of the system and have higher costs. Now I will talk about why they do worse.

Increasing Number of Older Adults 5

Presenter

Presentation Notes

This chart for Indicator 1 - Number of Older Americans shows the large growth of the population 65 and older from 1900 to 2008 and the even greater projected growth from 2008 to 2050. It also shows the growing numbers of persons 85 and older and their large projected growth to 2050.

Where Older Adults Live 6

Presenter

Presentation Notes

This map chart for indicator 1 - Number of Older Americans – shows the percentage of persons 65 and older by county. The highest percentages are in rural areas of the central and western part of the country, some areas of the eastern states, and Florida.

How Older Adults Live 7

Presenter

Presentation Notes

This chart for Indicator 5 - Living Arrangements – shows that most men over 65 live with spouses (72 percent), although there are racial and ethnic variations. Only 19 percent of older men live alone. However, only 42 percent of women 65 and over live with spouses and 40 percent live alone. There are also racial and ethnic differences among older women.

Sensory Impairments and Oral Health 8

Presenter

Presentation Notes

This chart for Indicator 17 - Sensory Impairments and Oral Health – shows that in 2008 42 percent of men and 30 percent of women reported any trouble hearing; 15 and 19 percent respectively reported any trouble seeing, and 24 and 27 percent respectively report that they had no natural teeth.

How Do Older Adults Spend Their Time? 9

Presenter

Presentation Notes

This second chart for Indicator 28 - Use of Time – shows that in 2008 watching TV was the activity that occupied the most leisure time—about one-half the total—for Americans age 55 and over. Americans age 75 and over spent a higher percentage of their leisure time reading (14 percent versus 9 percent) and relaxing and thinking (10 percent versus 5 percent) than did Americans age 55–64. The proportion of leisure time that older Americans spent socializing and communicating—such as visiting friends or attending or hosting social events—declined with age. For Americans age 55–64, 13 percent of leisure time was spent socializing and communicating compared to 9 percent for those age 75 and over.

Residential Services 10

Presenter

Presentation Notes

This first chart for Indicator 36 - Residential Services – shows that in 2007, 2 percent of the Medicare population aged 65 and over resided in community housing with at least one service available. Approximately 4 percent resided in long term care facilities. The percentage of people residing in community housing with services and in long-term care facilities was higher for the older age groups; among individuals age 85 and over, 7 percent resided in community housing with services, and 15 percent resided in long-term care facilities. Among individuals age 65–74, 98 percent resided in traditional community settings.

Residential Services 11

Presenter

Presentation Notes

This second chart for Indicator 36 - Residential Services – shows that People living in community housing with services had more functional limitations than traditional community residents, but not as many as those living in long-term care facilities. Forty-six percent of individuals living in community housing with services had at least one activity of daily living (ADL) limitation compared with 25 percent of traditional community residents. Among long-term care facility residents, 83 percent had at least one ADL limitation. Thirty-six percent of individuals living in community housing with services had no ADL or instrumental activities of daily living (IADL) limitations.

Older Adults Are Different• More chronic conditions• More medications• More healthcare providers• More hospitalizations• More susceptible to diseases• More difficult to diagnose• More sensitive to medications• More sensitive to changes in their environment

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CHF

Stroke

DM

Functional decline

COPD

Stroke

Older Adults are Heterogeneous

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Presenter

Presentation Notes

One reason is that older adults are heterogeneous. Just like 80-90 years ago, pediatricians argued that children were not small adults, geriatricians point out that older adults are different from younger adults and from each other in their internal physiology as well as in their abilities to recover from illness. They each have an individual cluster of conditions that interact with each other in different ways. The challenge for caring for Mary and other older adults is that treating one condition often affects the state of another condition. For example, Mary and her husband both have a history of stroke, but with her husband, the stroke and subsequent cognitive impairment combined with COPD lead to functional decline as his overarching problem. Treatment for him focuses on cardiovascular risk reduction, occupational and physical therapy for functional decline. He is not on warfarin for anticoagulation because of his frequent falls. The focus for Mary is on cardiovascular risk reduction, including anticoagulation, and careful titration of her volume status for her CHF. Bridge: This complexity makes it difficult to apply a clinical guideline across the board to older adults.

Common Geriatric Syndromes

• Confusion

• Constipation

• Delirium / hallucinations

• Depression

• Dizziness

• Drowsiness / fatigue

• Falls and fractures

• Incontinence

• Insomnia

• Loss of coordination

• Malnutrition/dehydration

• Memory loss

• Pain

• Vision/hearing problems

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Common Consequences• Decreased quality of life• Emergency room visits• Hip fractures and other physical disabilities• Hospitalization• Loss of functional ability• Loss of independence• Nursing facility placement• Death

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Where Do They Receive Care?• Across all aspects of the care continuum▫ Emergency department▫ Hospital▫ Rehabilitation facility▫ Nursing home▫ Ambulatory care clinic▫ Hospice▫ Home

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Transitional Care

• A set of actions designed to ensure the coordination and continuity of health care as patients transfer between different locations or different levels of care within the same location.▫ Logistical arrangements▫ Patient/caregiver education▫ Coordination among the health professionals

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Brought to you by the letter D.

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The 3 D’s in Older Adults

• Common

• Difficult to seek help due to social stigma

• Difficult to diagnose

▫ Symptoms similar to other conditions

• Difficult to treat

▫ Take longer before seeking treatment

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What Can You Do to Impact the Brain?

• Connect older adult to the social environment

• Help deal with “retirement blues”, especiallymen

▫ Activities, hobbies, senior center

▫ Counseling

• Exercise! Just as good as medication.

• Volunteer! Can actually remodel the brain.

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What Can You Do to Impact the Brain?

• Treatment of underlying medical conditions

▫ Caveat: not too little, not too much (HTN, DM)

▫ Prevention of delirium

• Adequate nutrition

▫ Hydration

▫ Vitamin D

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Summary• Older adults have special needs from the

community

• The 3 D’s are common and can impact the success of your program

• There are several targets for intervention

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Questions for Group• How did you deal with transitions in leadership?

• How has the economy impacted your program?

• How are you reaching out to the “younger” old?

• What is the importance of data?

• What are your plans for sustainability?

• How do you help older adults feel like there are

still in control over their lives?

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The Aging Brain: Maturity & Making Health Transitions

Health & Medicine

Transcript of The Aging Brain: Maturity & Making Health Transitions