Elevate Eldercare

Jane Rohde's career in senior living architecture and design is based on a simple but often overlooked truth: What's good for elders is also what's good for everyone.

Our needs don't change as we age, and Rohde joins "Elevate Eldercare" to challenge our idea of what senior living can and should look like – particularly, the notion that real answers to challenges in eldercare can be found by focusing on the living part of senior living.

As the founder of senior living design firm JSR Associates and Live Together – a non-profit focused on developing intergenerational communities that benefit both elders and young people classified as at risk – Rohde is a firm believer in the idea that environment, care, and quality of life are all connected. Listen in for some bold ideas that redefine the bedrock principles of senior living!

Learn more about Live Together: https://www.livetogethercommunity.org/

Connect with JSR Associates: http://www.jsrassociates.net/

Show notes/call to action: Learn more about The Green House Project: www.thegreenhouseproject.org

But what about the immediate challenges facing the current cohort of caregivers – the people who, often at the expense of their own physical and mental health, keep working to keep elders and others safe and comfortable?

Alexis McKenzie, a longtime eldercare leader and current consultant to nursing homes and assisted living communities, joins "Elevate Eldercare" to discuss strategies for easing caregiver stress – primarily by encouraging them to set aside time to direct that caregiving instinct inward.

Drawing on her professional experiences working with elders living with Alzheimer's, as well as her personal story of recovery from a stroke, McKenzie challenges us all to embrace each day with gratitude, while also giving ourselves the grace to recharge.

Learn more about Jon Kabat-Zinn's definition of mindfulness: https://www.mindful.org/everyday-mindfulness-with-jon-kabat-zinn/ Learn more about The Green House Project: www.thegreenhouseproject.org

We continue our new format for "Let Me Say This About That" – highlighting all of the podcasts released in the month in one episode.

In February three podcasts were released:- Reframing Dementia and Caregiving for the Future (Episode 135)- Editing the Genetics of Alzheimer's (Episode 136) - Getting Closer to Home with Marvell Adams, Jr. (Episode 137)

This week on "Let Me Say This About That", we highlight the key concepts and explore the overarching themes between all of the podcasts. In this episode we discuss S.P.I.C.E.S. – Quaker principles and how they apply to organizations, the concept of belonging, epigenetics, the stigma of Alzheimer's and a new frame for the all-important role of the caregiver.

Learn more about the writings of Dr. Karlawish: https://www.jasonkarlawish.com/writings

Learn more about Quaker Principles – S.P.I.C.E.S. https://www.kendal.org/quaker-values-and-their-relevance-today/

Read more about Dementia Action Alliance & Aducanumab: https://daanow.org/wp-content/uploads/2022/02/Discussion-Points-About-CMS-Draft-Decision-on-Monoclonal-Antibodies-1.pdf

Learn more about The Green House Project: www.thegreenhouseproject.org

Marvell Adams, Jr. has built his career in non-profit senior services on a desire to bring the traditional spaces associated with eldercare – the nursing home, the assisted living facility – closer to home. But creating a home isn't as simple as building a structure. It's a deliberate act of fostering an environment where everyone feels included, supported, and valued.

For an organization like The Kendal Corporation, where Adams serves as chief operating officer, that means always remembering that quality care is based on people serving other people. For Adams, it also means tackling society's most pervasive -isms – racism, sexism, ageism, ableism, and more – through the lens of belonging. It's not enough for organizations to achieve diversity, equity, and inclusion goals through the addition of individual people; it's about making those individuals feel as though they truly belong.

Adams – who recently joined The Green House Project's board of directors – joins "Elevate Eldercare" for a powerful and challenging discussion of his experiences as a Black leader in an industry whose executive ranks are dominated by white people. Adams shares a bold vision for an eldercare landscape, from the boardroom to the home, where everyone belongs.

Learn more about The Kendal Corporation's strategies for fostering diversity: https://www.kendal.org/about-kendal/kendal-values/welcoming-diversity/

Read Marvell's firsthand experience with confronting racism in the industry: https://www.seniorlivingforesight.net/ugliness-at-leadingage/

Show notes/call to action: Learn more about The Green House Project: www.thegreenhouseproject.org

Dr. Ornit Chiba-Falek's work as an Alzheimer's researcher sounds almost like science fiction – but it's real. At the Duke University School of Medicine, Chiba-Falek and her colleagues are probing the ways that science can essentially turn off the specific DNA sequences that can lead to Alzheimer's and other forms of dementia.

The science is still in its early stages, but Chiba-Falek is optimistic that her work will eventually lead to new targeted therapies for people living with dementia. There may never be a silver bullet cure for every person, but by learning more about the different ways our DNA affects our risk, Chiba-Falek and her team are laying the groundwork for the next generation of treatments.

Chiba-Falek joins "Elevate Eldercare," along with former Green House Project intern and current Duke student Meghna Datta, to discuss her work and the present state of Alzheimer's treatment, including the controversial new drug aducanumab.

Learn about Chiba-Falek's work at Duke: https://neurology.duke.edu/research/lab-and-translational-research/ornit-chiba-falek-phd

Explore Chiba-Falek's gene therapy startup, CLAIRIgene: http://clairigene.com/

Show notes/call to action: Learn more about The Green House Project: www.thegreenhouseproject.org

Amid the gradual aging of the American population, there's never been more awareness about Alzheimer's and other dementias – but the stigmas and misconceptions have also persisted alongside this public knowledge, even among well-meaning people.

At the University of Pennsylvania's Penn Memory Center, Dr. Jason Karlawish and his colleagues take a holistic approach to caring for people living with Alzheimer's and other forms of dementia; as a medical ethicist and author, he also probes the ways that society devalues caregiving as a vital role, while also treating elders with cognitive decline as "others."

Karlawish joins Susan Ryan for a provocative discussion about Alzheimer's and dementia not just as diseases, but as social constructs: Why was losing one's sense of agency and self-reliance considered a natural part of aging, and not a disease, until relatively recently in human history? Why do we view family caregivers as housekeepers or visitors instead of crucial supports who can help people with dementia live more fulfilling lives – the way wheelchairs and other mobility aids allow those with physical disabilities to navigate the world more freely?

The answers to those questions will only become more vital as policymakers continue to debate eldercare reforms – and as new generations of both familial and professional caregivers look to improve the lives of America's elders.

Learn about the Penn Memory Center and its philosophy on care: https://pennmemorycenter.org/who-we-are/

Read about Karlawish's recent book, "The Problem of Alzheimer's": https://www.publishersweekly.com/978-1-250-21873-5

Show notes/call to action: Learn more about The Green House Project: www.thegreenhouseproject.org

It's a new year and we've got a new format for "Let Me Say This About That" – instead of highlighting just one Elevate Eldercare podcast, we will discuss all of the podcasts released in the month.

In January four podcasts were released:-COVID 2022: Hope and Reality with Dr. William Haseltine (Episode 130)-Building a True Eldercare System with Rep. Jan Schakowsky (Episode 131)- "Be Kind and Be Useful": Finding Common Ground in Eldercare Reform (Episode 132)-Overcoming Inertia in Eldercare Reform (Episode 133)

This week on "Let Me Say This About That", we highlight the key concepts and explore the overarching themes between all of the podcasts. We discuss collaboration, leading from where you are and why each of our voices can make a difference!

Learn more about collaboration and work: https://pingboard.com/blog/collaboration-in-the-workplace/

Read the newly released article – AARP Public Policy Institute on Empowered Direct Care Worker – Lessons from the Green House Staffing Model: https://www.aarp.org/ppi/info-2022/ltss-choices-empowered-direct-care-worker.html

Read more about Evidence-Based Practice: https://hbr.org/2019/08/4-ways-to-make-evidence-based-practice-the-norm-in-health-care

Show notes/call to action: Learn more about The Green House Project: www.thegreenhouseproject.org

As a longtime advocate for better eldercare options, Susan Reinhard knows that calls for change will always be met with tough resistance from those invested in the status quo. Her advice? Be tougher.

Reinhard, the director of AARP's Public Policy Institute, joins "Elevate Eldercare" to discuss her work as a collector and promoter of hard data that can bolster advocacy for eldercare reform. A nurse, educator, policy expert, and researcher, Reinhard draws on a host of different perspectives while providing empirical evidence to support AARP's top legislative and regulatory goals.

From workforce shortages to a lack of comprehensive home health coverage to woefully outdated nursing facilities, the challenges facing eldercare reformers are numerous and complex. But Reinhard reminds us that just as society created the nursing home, forward-thinking leaders can create something better with the right combination of hard data, sound policy, and persistence. Explore the AARP Public Policy Institute's research: https://www.aarp.org/ppi/

View the Public Policy Institute's Nursing Home COVID Dashboard: https://www.aarp.org/ppi/issues/caregiving/info-2020/nursing-home-covid-dashboard.html

Show notes/call to action: Learn more about The Green House Project: www.thegreenhouseproject.org

Laura Tamblyn Watts has a mantra for her work in eldercare reform: Be kind and be useful.

The temperature around long-term care reform debates can often rise into rancor – understandably so, given the abuse and death that too often occurs in the setting, particularly in the wake of COVID. But Tamblyn Watts believes that we'll collectively go farther if we operate with the understanding that so many of us, no matter our exact ideas about the future, believe in the same thing: a completely transformed eldercare landscape and a world free of abuse and neglect.

She joined "Elevate Eldercare" to discuss her work as president and CEO of CanAge, a Canadian organization that seeks to unify and amplify the voices of those calling for change in long-term care.

While there are some differences between the challenges in the U.S. and in Canada, we found there were a lot more opportunities for collaboration and mutual understanding – and being kind and useful knows no national border.

Read CanAge's master plan – "Voices of Canada's Seniors" – and learn more about the organization:https://www.canage.ca/voices-overview/

Show notes/call to action: Learn more about The Green House Project: www.thegreenhouseproject.org

Among the many long-simmering problems that COVID-19 revealed in long-term care, a lack of coordination among providers and leaders may be one of the trickiest to solve – but Rep. Jan Schakowsky believes it's possible with collaboration and a groundswell of grassroots action.

Schakowsky, who represents Chicago and its suburbs, joins "Elevate Eldercare" to discuss the concrete steps that leaders can take to improve nursing homes while also expanding in-home care options – and ensuring that caregivers across all settings receive the pay increases and benefits they deserve.

Though the United States may not have a unified eldercare system now, creating an integrated network of services and supports is vital to honoring the lessons of the pandemic. We look forward to working with Rep. Schakowsky to make this goal a reality!

Show notes/call to action: Learn more about The Green House Project: www.thegreenhouseproject.org

Read about the remarkable life of Timuel Black, the Chicago professor, civil rights activist, and historian who Rep. Schakowsky mentioned in her interview. Professor Black died in October 2021 at the age of 102.

https://www.nytimes.com/2021/10/17/us/timuel-black-dead.html