Building a New Culture of Aging: Revolutionizing Long Term Care
by Patricia Emery

Journal of Christian Nursing Continuing Nursing Education Winter 2006 Volume 23, Number 1
expires December 2007

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Purpose Statement

The purpose of this self-directed study is to evaluate current thinking about aging and elder care and explore ways care must change to meet present and future needs.

Learning Objectives
After reading this article, learners will be able to:
1. Examine current issues and problems in long-term care.
2. Explore new ways of thinking about aging and elder care.

Questions:

1. Which of these seem to improve with aging?
a. Adaptation
b. Mobilization
c. Stress Management
d. Reminiscence

2. What is Solomon's advice to those who would age well?
a. Focus on happiness and prosperity while you can still enjoy life.
b. Try to slow the aging process when your body will no longer serve you well.
c. Remember your Creator while you are young.
d. Be frugal and provide financial resources for yourself in your sunset years.

3. What do other Scriptures say about aging and old age?
a. Old age brings its own reward or retribution.
b. Older people should focus on eternal rather than temporal matters.
c. We are to acknowledge the elderly for all the good they have done.
d. We are to show respect for the aged and value their wisdom.

4. What is the primary focus of traditional nursing home models of care?
a. Safety of the residents
b. Activities of daily living
c. Exercise and nutrition
d. Mental stimulation

5. With what people-group does Emery compare the institutionalized aged?
a. Prisoners
b. Mentally ill
c. Homeless
d. Adolescents

6. Which of these may be the most difficult for older people about institutional living?
a. Feeling like a non-person, not valued by others
b. Boredom, as one day becomes like every other
c. Lack of ability to get around, immobility
d. Having everything done for them

7. What is an unintended and often unnoticed consequence of nursing home living?
a. Over medication
b. Poverty
c. Immobility
d. Helplessness

8. Which of these is inherent in changing from a medical to social model of nursing home care?
a. Utilizing fewer narcotics and chemical restraints
b. Teaching physical, spiritual and mental hygiene
c. Restoring control to elders and their family
d. Promoting better cooperation between physicians, nurses and support staff

9. According to Administration on Aging statistics, which of these was an average staff/patient ratio in 2004?
a. 1 Registered Nurse to 45 patients
b. 3 Licensed Practical Nurses to 35 patients
c. 5 Certified Nurse Aides to 25 patients
d. 2 Physical Therapists to 15 patients

10. Which of these is true about "Green Houses," a new concept in providing nursing care to frail elderly?
a. Interior decorators suit living quarters to individual taste.
b. Core values include autonomy, dignity and choice.
c. Food is catered in and laundry done for patients.
d. Research conducted on this new concept has been ongoing for many years.

11. What is the most frequently occurring health-threatening problem in the elderly?
a. Hypertension
b. Diabetes
c. Dementia
d. Immobility

12. With 76 million baby boomers heading for long-term care facilities, what is this generation's greatest challenge?
a. Revising Medicare and Medicaid policies
b. Recruiting younger physicians to become geriatricians
c. Building enough nursing home facilities to meet the need
d. Changing the way we think about aging