Bringing you the issues since 1986 
During my recent holiday I was denied my preferred aisle seat on the plane because I had not checked in early enough. I was seated next to an older lady who required the aisle seat due to her physical disability. Sitting beside her was her daughter. They were traveling together […]
While there are many organized activity centers, some seniors prefer belonging to less formal social groups. Norm, 93 years young, was my late father’s buddy. He recently wrote to me about the PLAY DO group he belongs to: “People Living Alone And Yearning to Dine Out.” Every three weeks about […]
Spring has arrived. Along with green leaves and colourful blooms is the desire to spend more time outside. Montreal’s winter was harsh and many of us spent too much time indoors. Many people fear their last years of life will be spent in a nursing home, in a room confined […]
Holidays are especially stressful for family caregivers. Memories of happier times bring a mixed bag of emotions. Friends and family may be less inclusive for parties, knowing that a guest with dementia causes difficulties. The greatest gift you can give a caregiver is your support. This does not include advice […]
I recently attended the 2014 Canadian Conference on Dementia in Vancouver. The focus of the conference was a “person-centred approach to dementia care.” Research presented by leaders in the field proved that we need to offer this approach. This is nothing new to anyone working or familiar with dementia but […]
Researching a definition for autonomy in seniors, I became more confused with each confusing article. This is a difficult subject with no clear answers. Residences offer different levels of care, including autonomous, autonomous with services, assisted living and full nursing care. Each residence has its own definition of each. I […]
We read stories about neglect of seniors, be it at home or in public or private residential care. It’s an unfortunate, global reality, but some of these sad situations could be prevented if families were able to have a stronger presence in the residence and be more vigilant in “supervising” […]
There has been much media attention paid lately to the lack of public nursing beds for frail seniors. Consider the historical plight of children who were unable to live with their parents. Many were moved from foster home to foster home before finding a permanent placement. It took many years […]
Many seniors live in neighbourhoods that once matched their needs. Flash forward 50 years. Some adult children left Montreal during the ’70s exodus. While travel was frequent by parents and children, eventually the parents were the ones travelling less. Over time their parents’ support system shrunk as communities changed. Now, […]
When your loved one is living in a care facility and no longer able to express herself, who will speak on her behalf? We hear the good, the bad and the ugly of residential care. Horror stories make headlines, when fragile seniors are abused or neglected. We react with shock […]
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