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A Bouquet of Bulbs for your Mother-Light Bulbs, that is….
While May includes Mother’s Day, it is also Older
Americans and Healthy Vision month – who knew? Yet it makes perfect sense
because mothers come in all ages: young, middle and older.
Flowers, gifts and cards are all part of the Mom’s
day landscape, but it is often the gift of illumination that can ease the
burden of tired eyes and greatly increase the safety of our more senior
mothers. Simply improving the lighting of a senior’s home can make all the
difference.
At age 94 Bella, both active and capable, lived at
home by herself. She enjoyed dressing up and driving to church. She adored
cooking for her children, and for her children’s children! Every week Bella
visited her friend Ada
Bella was a happy and productive person until one
night she was awakened by a loud sound. She got out of bed to see what was causing
the sound and awkwardly
stumbled over the edge of the table while trying to reach for the light switch.
She fell, hit her head, and was transported to the hospital.
That was the last time Bella could take care of herself. The simple act
of falling while trying to find the light switch robbed her of her independence.
The whole thing could have easily been prevented!
There are numerous articles about the tragedy of older
adults falling, but do you know
why they fall? Falls occur with frequency in older adults for a wide range of
reasons and with a complex set of underlying causes but a large percentage of
falls are due to visual impairments. Problems of poor sight, loss of visual
field, sensitivity to glare all represent changes due to age, eye disease or lack of eye care. These conditions put
the person, more often than not a woman, at risk for injuries and falls.
Poor vision really alters what older adults are able to do.
They become increasingly sedentary and go out less which can greatly
increase isolation from friends, family and the larger community. This is
especially important for woman as older woman have
higher rates of visual impairment.
Teri Hershberg, a low vision expert who works with
older adult women says that “one of the most common problems with vision loss
for older women is social isolation. Women love to talk, shop, be with others
but when they lose their sight they don’t recognize people as easily, and in
fact, may appear snobbish. So they start to withdraw and become reluctant to
ask for help.”
It is difficult for many people to understand a partial loss of vision.
People think that blindness is total lack of vision but it is more common to
lose partial vision such as central vision loss or diminished peripheral
vision, or depth perception or colors.
Adult children often ask “is my mom faking, being overly dramatic, or
complaining unnecessarily? My
grandmother says she can’t read the paper, see if the food in the refrigerator
is spoiled or read her mail, but she certainly can tell when I get a new hair
style or new outfit or my kids have a stain on their clothes. Is she blind or
NOT?!”
Cataracts are a
big problem but a largely treatable condition. By age 80, more than half of all
Americans have a cataract (National Eye Institute). This is terribly costly for
our country, but not as costly as injuries and hospitalizations if left
uncorrected. A cataract clouds the eye’s lens and is the leading cause of
vision loss in the United
States
Macular degeneration is a more serious
condition for women.
“It is not easily treated”, attests Ms.
Hershberg. “It affects areas of one’s visual field”. But there are other
conditions, she adds, “I’m also worried
about the epidemic of diabetes and the subsequent loss of vision as a
consequence of poorly managed diabetes. And retinal detachments or retinal
tears which can occur as a result of falls or injuries and vision loss caused
by a stroke.”
Bad eyesight
due to reduced visual acuity occurs in one of every six seniors over 80 years
of age. These folks need glasses. And why doesn’t this happen? Once again,
there is no national coverage for glasses. So the very people who need it most;
who have to do more for themselves due to their limited financial situation,
can not turn to Medicare or MediCal for routine eye care.
This disconnect in Medicare coverage largely occurs because it is not set up to prevent expected disabilities such as poor vision. In May 2010 theAcademy
of Ophthalmology
This disconnect in Medicare coverage largely occurs because it is not set up to prevent expected disabilities such as poor vision. In May 2010 the
And
the government knows that 23% of adults over 85 have difficulty seeing
(per Federal Agency Report, 2008). So the experts know, the government knows
and the people know. So let’s consider this.
Your
mother’s and grandmother’s eyes are changing but their homes have not. A home
once thought of as a sanctuary and the family castle may be more like a dungeon. Lighting is
especially overlooked as a necessary modality for remaining independent. Too bright
light is uncomfortable, but the transition from bright to dark is hazardous.
All those endless hallways in the family home or narrow stairways up to the
add-on second floor – great memories from your childhood – but still have just
a single light bulb for illumination creating shadows and hazards.
Bella’s home was mired with traps. The
house had not aged as gracefully as the homeowner.
Frankly, it is amazing she hadn’t fallen before. Expensive but now worn
carpeting poised a constant tripping danger. Furniture low to the floor,
stylish in its day, was now a hazard.
And of course
she hadn’t had an eye exam in years.
So
her fall wasn’t inevitable. In fact most falls are preventable. We can change
this – it may be the cost of a light bulb. Or it may be giving the gift of an
eye exam or glasses.
So
this mother’s day give the gift that keeps on giving, light bulbs – have you
checked your mom’s house to see if any need changing. Dimes to doughnuts they
do. Have you littered the hallways and paths with nightlights? Is the light
illuminating the pathway (the right answer) or the wall (the wrong answer?)
Check
out where your mom organizes her medications. Is it well lit? Is there a magnifying glass close at hand? Is there a
dark surface that she can view the pills on?
Here
are a few other ideas: take your older parent to a falls prevention training
program, provide housekeeping services to keep the pathways uncluttered, put frequently used items in a
consistent place. And finally, get the seniors an eye exam.
Will
they be resistant to these changes?
Yes, they probably will put up a bit of a fuss.
Their determination is one of your mother’s or grandmother’s strength but just
as when you were a child, you found ways to get what you wanted. I’m sure with
loving; thoughtful planning you can start this process.
Local Long Beach area resources:
St. Mary’s Foundation Low Vision Center. The
Center is located on the second floor of the
Parr Health Enhancement Center, 1055 Linden Avenue, the building directly
across from the main hospital. The Center can be reached at (562) 491-9275. The Low Vision
Center provides FREE services to the Southern California community and helps
persons with limited vision enhance their vision to its fullest potential. The
Center also helps individuals with low vision to achieve the greatest degree of
independence possible regardless of their visual loss
Heart
of Ida. a local non-profit dedicated to preserving
independence for older adults has installed hundreds of light bulbs in senior’s
homes. Their well trained repair techs may have gone to improve the safety of
the bathroom or the entry but find in almost all cases burnt out light bulbs,
non-working switches and worn plugs. Heart of Ida offers evidence-based fall
prevention training to older adults throughout the city of Long Beach. For more
information call (562)
496-4734 or info@heartofida.org to get more information about their programs please go to www.heartofida.org
Teri Hershberg, MPA - Long Beach low vision expert may be reached at teri601@hotmail.com.
Disabled Resources Center Inc. of Long Beach
(DRC) - The services offered by Disabled Resources Center evolved from giving
information and referrals, to providing over sixteen services to thousands of people
each year in the cities of Artesia, Avalon, Hawaiian Gardens, Lakewood, Long
Beach, and Signal Hill.
Most of the staff members are people with
disabilities, as are the members of the Board of Directors, who provide
positive role models for other people with disabilities. The mission of the
agency is to empower people with disabilities to live independently in the
community, to make their own decisions about their lives and to advocate on
their own behalf.
Contact the DRC at (562) 427-1000; TTY: (562) 427-1366
info@drcinc.org;. The DRC is located at 2750 E. Spring Street, Ste #100, Long
Beach, CA 90806
Long Beach VA Medical Center: Services for
Veterans of the Armed Services – Male or Female with a Visual Impairment
The Visual Impairment Services Team (VIST)
Coordinators are case managers who have responsibility for the coordination of
services for visually impaired Veterans and active duty Service members. VIST coordinator duties include providing
and/or arranging the provision of appropriate treatment in order to enhance
functioning such as making referrals to Blind Rehabilitation Centers, Blind
Rehabilitation Outpatient Services, and low vision clinics. Other VIST coordinator duties include
identifying newly identified individuals who have disabling visual impairment,
providing counseling, problem resolution, arranging a review of benefits and
needed services, and conducting educational and outreach programs relating to
VIST and blindness.
Veterans and eligible active duty Service
members should contact the VISUAL IMPAIRMENT SERVICES TEAM at the Long Beach VA Medical Center located at
5901 E. 7th Street, Long Beach, CA 90822 or call 562-826-5696 please leave a
voice mail message include your name, phone number, and best time to reach you.
Your call will be returned! Their website is http://www.va.gov/BLINDREHAB/VIST.asp
Dayle McIntosh Disability Resources Center - Dayle McIntosh Center helps people with
disabilities live independently and succeed in every area they desire. The
Center is not a residential program, but a consumer-driven organization that
provides a broad menu of on-site and remote services. Their mission is to advance the
empowerment, equality, integration and
full
participation of people with disabilities in the community. The Center is
located at 13272 Garden Grove Blvd., Garden Grove, CA 92843, (714) 621-3300;
TDD (714) 663-2087 and at http://daylemc.org
Center for the
Partially Sighted. Headquarters are located in Culver City with several
branches around greater Los Angeles. The Center’s mission
is to provide the tools and techniques that maximize the ability of partially
sighted children and adults to live successful and independent lives. For more
information call (310) 988-1970 or find it at www.low-vision.org.
Braille
Institute.
The Braille Institute has a broad and in-depth range of services and
programming. Refer to their information at http://brailleinstitute.org/.
Or call 1-800-BRAILLE
(272-4553) Monday - Friday, 9 a.m. to 4 p.m. (PST).
