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Fast Company's Advice on How To Make 2012 Your Best Year Yet

BY Erin SchulteThu Dec 15, 2011

Fast Company wants you to have a banner year in 2012. As our gift to you, we present our very best advice and tips on how to work smarter, manage your career, and lead a more meaningful life.

Work Smarter, Create Stars, Live Fully and Mean It.

Read more

A Nursing Home Shrinks Until It Feels Like A Home

www.nytimes.com  

Toni Davis spent much of her childhood roaming the corridors of a nursing home in West Orange, N.J., where her mother was the director. Even now she recalls the pleas of the residents there: “ ‘Please help me, please take me home with you,’ they’d beg,” Ms. Davis said. “I remember asking my mom, ‘Why can’t we take them home for dinner for just one night?’"

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Following in her mother’s footsteps, Ms. Davis is now director of Green Hill Retirement Community, a nursing home and assisted living facility, and she is determined to make it into a place where residents feel little reason to leave. She has added fish tanks and bird cages, hung pictures on the walls carpeted the corridors, and brought in dogs for pet therapy.

 

Still, the nursing home looks like... a nursing home. “No matter what you do, you can’t get that homelike feeling in an institution because it’s too big,” she said.

Read more....

PRIMETIME EXPO 2011

We encourage you to attend Primetime Expo, a new educational/resource fair serving Baby Boomers, their parents, senior adults and families in our area. It takes place this Sunday, October 30, at the Jewish Community Center Staenberg Family Complex, 2 Millstone Campus. Dr. in Creve Coeur. Hours are 11 a.m. to 3 p.m. In addition to more than 50 exhibitors, the expo features eight seminars on topics such as financial planning, health/wellness, services for senior adults, Social Security, elder law, etc. Admission is free. Complimentary refreshments available.  For complete information open the attachment or visit www.stljewishlight.com/primetime. 

Come visit us at the Senior Advisory Alliance Booth this Sunday.

5 Ways to Age in Place

Living Well in Retirement

Communities nationwide are experimenting with housing options and services to help seniors live independently and stay in their own homes.

By Christopher J. Gearon, Contributing Editor, Kiplinger's Retirement Report

August 18, 2011

EDITOR'S NOTE: This article was originally published in the June 2011 issue of Kiplinger's Retirement Report. To subscribe, click here.

It's the small things that can mean the difference between remaining in your home and having to move to a care facility. Perhaps you no longer drive and need a ride to a doctor's appointment. Or maybe you can use some help preparing meals. When you change a ceiling light bulb, are you afraid of falling from the step stool?

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The recognition that assistance in everyday matters can go a long way to maintain a senior's independence has spawned what's become known as the "aging in place" movement. Communities nationwide are experimenting with new living options and services that are designed to help older individuals stay put as long as possible. "We think it's what people want, and we think ultimately it's less expensive than institutionalizing people," says Greg Case, director of home and community-based services for the U.S. Administration on Aging. We've reviewed five types of aging-in-place housing options.

Read more: http://www.kiplinger.com/features/archives/krr-5-ways-to-age-in-place.html?topic_id=29#ixzz1XsBGUleG

Help Offered for Tornado Victims Extended to Joplin Area

Due to the slow process of cleaning up and rebuilding, Myra L. Katz & Associates, Inc. is extending its offer to businesses damaged or destroyed by the St. Louis and Joplin tornadoes and are challenging other businesses to follow suit. 

We are providing you with an opportunity to put your best foot forward while rebuilding.  A $500 credit will be applied towards the cost of interior design services, helping to jump start your business.  Let us assist you with the selection of interior finishes, furniture, upholstery and artwork.  We realize that this will not make-up for the devastation and losses you've suffered, but we would like to help you make the best of a bad situation.  It could finally be your opportunity to tie your business interior to your brand.  Whether corporate, financial, healthcare, senior living, hospitality or retail, we have the experience and capabilities to create an interior that will improve your bottom line. 

If this offer pertains to someone you know who will benefit from our services, please pass this information along.

What Should a Caregiver Who Is Diagnosed with Dementia Do?

(Source: Alzheimer's Daily News and Agingcare.com)

If you are a caregiver of someone with dementia and you feel that you, too, are showing signs of the disease, what do you do? This isn't as uncommon as you may think, since at least three circumstances that increase one's risk for Alzheimer's are at play here.

The first is that many caregivers take care of spouses, and likely fall into the same age group. Since age is a big risk factor for dementia, your risk has been increasing over time as you've cared for your mate.

The second factor is genetics. If there is a history of early on-set Alzheimer's in your family, and you are caring for that parent, there is a chance that you, too, carry that gene.

The third factor is stress. While stress can cause dementia-like symptoms without being dementia, studies show that stress hormones can actually contribute to the disease.

If you are diagnosed with dementia, it's important to take these steps while you can still think clearly:

• Make sure that adult children or other trusted parties have the ability to help you.
• Begin making lists and notes. These should be for your own use and those who may be caring for you and the other person with dementia.
• Contact your local Alzheimer's organization.
• Prepare to hire in-home help.
• Work with the person you have chosen to be your Power of Attorney for finances.
• With family members, tour assisted living facilities with memory units.
• Beware of denial.

Go to full story

How Entrepreneurs Can Get The Most Out Of A Co-Working Space

By Deborah Sweeney, MYCORPORATION, August 4, 2011

Watch this space- it could become your next coworking commune. And it’s being built exactly with that purpose in mind.

A couple months ago, the Wall Street Journal ran a piece on creating the perfect office. The perfect office was less focused on perfection and more on how to open up a space to inspire an imaginative environment that increased productivity at the workplace. Four design firms were challenged to create this kind of environment, preferably for the midlevel executive. Sort of like the Project Runway for the corporate world. True to form, the designers made it work- finding that certain elements of the office were kicked to the curb (filing cabinets, plaques on walls, gigantic desks) and others were reintroduced and heavily used to create a modern and engaging atmosphere (glass walls that slide open and shut, wireless technology capabilities, virtual fishbowls).

Read more.....

How the Office Is Evolving

By Eric Kintz Aug. 5, 2011

The traditional office space is in the midst of its most dramatic shift since it was rocked by the creation of the cubicle more than 40 years ago. Driven by new communication technologies, the globalization of supply chains and an increased emphasis on real estate cost reduction, we've seen a massive change in the way people work. The "New Office" is an airport lounge on a tablet, a midnight video call on the kitchen counter, a shared table at the office or a collaboration pod for ad hoc meetings. These new workspaces create fresh

challenges for IT departments and technological demands from today's workforce - from new productivity tools to broader communication and collaboration solutions.

Read more.....

See this post on us from In-LawSuite.com

With the cost of healthcare insurance and nursing homes skyrocketing for those with Alzheimer’s Disease and other disabilities, how can you provide the best quality of life for your loved one?


http://in-lawsuite.com/aging-in-place-home-solutions/

NEW USES FOR CUCUMBERS

This is very interesting...hope you take the time and read this :~)

WOW WHAT A LITTLE GEM THE CUCUMBER IS, I WILL LOOK AT IT DIFFERENTLY NOW. Who Knew!!!!

1. Cucumbers contain most of the vitamins you need every day, just one cucumber contains Vitamin B1, Vitamin B2, Vitamin B3, Vitamin B5, Vitamin B6, Folic Acid, Vitamin C, Calcium, Iron, Magnesium, Phosphorus, Potassium and Zinc.

2. Feeling tired in the afternoon, put down the caffeinated soda and pick up a cucumber. Cucumbers are a good source of B Vitamins and Carbohydrates that can provide that quick pick-me-up that can last for hours.

3. Tired of your bathroom mirror fogging up after a shower? Try rubbing a cucumber slice along the mirror, it will eliminate the fog and provide a soothing, spa-like fragrance.

4. Are grubs and slugs ruining your planting beds? Place a few slices in a small pie tin and your garden will be free of pests all season long. The chemicals in the cucumber react with the aluminum to give off a scent undetectable to humans but drive garden pests crazy and make them flee the area.
5 Looking for a fast and easy way to remove cellulite before going out or to the pool? Try rubbing a slice or two of cucumbers along your problem area for a few minutes, the phytochemicals in the cucumber cause the collagen in your skin to tighten, firming up the outer layer and reducing the visibility of cellulite. Works great on wrinkles too!!!

6.. Want to avoid a hangover or terrible headache? Eat a few cucumber slices before going to bed and wake up refreshed and headache free. Cucumbers contain enough sugar, B vitamins and electrolytes to replenish essential nutrients the body lost, keeping everything in equilibrium, avoiding both a hangover and headache!!

7. Looking to fight off that afternoon or evening snacking binge? Cucumbers have been used for centuries and often used by European trappers, traders and explores for quick meals to thwart off starvation.

8. Have an important meeting or job interview and you realize that you don't have enough time to polish your shoes? Rub a freshly cut cucumber over the shoe, its chemicals will provide a quick and durable shine that not only looks great but also repels water.

9. Out of WD 40 and need to fix a squeaky hinge? Take a cucumber slice and rub it along the problematic hinge, and voila, the squeak is gone!
10. Stressed out and don't have time for massage, facial or visit to the spa? Cut up an entire cucumber and place it in a boiling pot of water, the chemicals and nutrients from the cucumber with react with the boiling water and be released in the steam, creating a soothing, relaxing aroma that has been shown the reduce stress in new mothers and college students during final exams.

11. Just finish a business lunch and realize you don't have gum or mints? Take a slice of cucumber and press it to the roof of your mouth with your tongue for 30 seconds to eliminate bad breath, the phytochemcials will kill the bacteria in your mouth responsible for causing bad breath.

12. Looking for a 'green' way to clean your faucets, sinks or stainless steel? Take a slice of cucumber and rub it on the surface you want to clean, not only will it remove years of tarnish and bring back the shine, but is won't leave streaks and won't harm you fingers or fingernails while you clean.

13. Using a pen and made a mistake? Take the outside of the cucumber and slowly use it to erase the pen writing, also works great on crayons and markers that the kids have used to decorate the walls!!

China's Senior Living

Here's a blog I found on LinkedIn that I thought would be of interest to my readers wanting more on Senior Living,  Aging-In-Place, as well as cultural differences.  Baby Boomers are aging across the globe, not just in the US.  See what other countries and cultures are doing to address the issue. 

Let me know what you think.

Enter the Aging Dragon: the inaugural blog of China Senior Living!

http://www.linkedin.com/news?viewArticle=&articleID=653250300&gid=134913&type=member&item=63138762&articleURL=http%3A%2F%2Fwww%2Echinaseniorliving%2Ecom&urlhash=vJ9k&goback=%2Egde_134913_member_63138762

Dementia & Hospitalization: 6 Pitfalls to Watch For

Dementia & Hospitalization: 6 Pitfalls to Watch For

Here's a critical read from http://www.caring.com/.  When a loved one with dementia is hospitalized, here's how to guard against some common complications and mistakes.

Read more........

About Patient-Centered Design & Sharing Your Experiences

"Patient-Centered Design" is a principle that should be in the
forefront of any health facility project.  It is a philosophy by which
building owners and their design teams create and develop spaces
to be used by patients.  This principle takes into account the
needs of patients and their families and methods for delivering the
best care to them.  Learning From Patients & Their Families..........Read more
From the Patient-Centered Design Institute

Business Etiquette by Sam Black

To know Sam is to love her.  She's a sassy straight talker from NY, who really knows her stuff.  I've had Sam work with my staff in the past on marketing our services.  I was amazed at how quick she is with responses to help overcome objections.  Anyway, here are some thought provoking Tips from Sam on  Business Etiquette.

Brain Exercises

Most of us know how to exercise our bodies, whether we are diligent about it, or not.  But how many of us exercise our brains on a regular basis?  Dr. Pascale Michelon and The Memory Practice are a great resource.  Let me know what you think.  Read more........

China Takes on Its Alzheimer's Problem

(Source: New York Times) - Last year, an expensive, red-brick residential complex opened in Shanghai, equipped with a hair salon, cinema, game rooms and a karaoke suite offering the latest in pop music.The residents are not Chinese yuppies, they are older patients with Alzheimer's disease or dementia in a nursing home that is on the forefront of a new effort by China to deal with its exploding elderly population.

http://www.nytimes.com

"This is the best place we could imagine," says Miao Yuqiang, who helped his 81-year-old mother enroll. "By the time we found this nursing home, we were desperate."

While many countries are struggling to cope with rapidly aging populations, in China there are forecasts that within three decades there could be nearly 400 million people over the age of 60 and, partly because of the one-child policy, a declining number of working-age people to care for them.

Go to full story:

Great Design Makes a Difference: Bartels

Bartels is a door and hardware manufacturer that understands, not just good design, but great design.  Imagine the difference these products can make in your commercial or residential environment.  Be sure to watch the video.

Bartels

Five Questions All Caregivers Should Ask Themselves

Preparing for Caregiving:  What Caregivers Should Know

By Carol Bradley Bursack, June 02, 2011

Five Questions All Caregiviers Should Ask Themselves

Transitioning a Loved One: Lessons Learned

I just read this blog by Kathleen, who shared a very personal experience with her mother.  Wonderful advice for those with aging parents or loved ones.  Hope you find it helpful.

Transitioning a Loved One: Lessons Learned

Understanding Alzheimer's: 8 Common Myths Debunked by Marguerite Manteau-Rao of The Huffington Post

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/marguerite-manteaurao/alzheimers_b_833644.html

HOW DOES IT FEEL TO GET OLD? SEE HOW YOU CAN WALK A MILE IN SHOES OF THE AGING POPULATION

In a Graying Population, Business Opportunity
By NATASHA SINGER
Published: February 5, 2011
C.J. Gunther for The New York Times

IT’S not easy being gray.

For the first time ever, getting out of a car is no picnic. My back is hunched. And I’m holding on to handrails as I lurch upstairs.

I’m 45. But I feel decades older because I’m wearing an Age Gain Now Empathy System, developed by researchers at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology. Agnes, they call it.

To read on, click here....
http://www.nytimes.com/2011/02/06/business/06aging.html?_r=2&pagewanted=1

JANUARY IS ALZHEIMER'S AWARENESS MONTH

GOOD HEALTH BEST WAY TO REDUCE RISK OF ALZHEIMER'S
(Source: The Record)


WATERLOO REGION — The best protection against Alzheimer’s disease is good health through a balanced diet, regular exercise and community engagement, says a Hamilton geriatrician.

“There’s no magic pill,” said Dr. Irene Turpie. “It’s really your own efforts.”

Basically, she said, living a good life offers the best protection against Alzheimer’s disease and related dementia.

Go to full story: http://www.therecord.com
or Alzheimers Daily News http://alznews.org/

BEST PLACES TO WORK: How to get there?

Setting your goals? Thinking you would like to see your business on the next list of BEST PLACES TO WORK? There are several benefits that accompany this honor, besides the extra visibility.  

Here are just a few:

• Improved productivity, which yields an improved bottom line
• Improved employee morale, which means less absenteeism and turnover
• Greater ability to recruit and retain good employees
• Prospects like to be associated with "winners"

So now the question is...How do we get there????