Page 2 - Access Winter 14.15
P. 2
2
Amazing kids honor elders through commitment and service continued from page 1
passed away. I wanted to write something to help young caregivers understand this disease and provide them with some coping mechanisms,” he said.
This moving and informative story is available in paperback by visiting online at www.puzzlestoremember.com. It costs $11.42 plus shipping and half of the proceeds go toward Alzheimer’s research.
Wallack will complete his undergrad education next year and plans to pursue a doctorate degree to become a geriatric psychiatrist. A motivating factor in his drive to make a difference stems from a conversation he once had with Jan Davidson, co-founder of the Davidson Institute for Talent Development, in which she expressed that anyone who had the ability to help another person had the responsibility to help them.
“I left that day believing that it is my responsibility to help others,” Wallack stated.
Michigan resident Hailey Parker, 10, feels that same sense of responsibility. This Monroe county fifth grader was introduced to the Meals on Wheels volunteer program last year by
Volunteer Hailey Parker age 10.
Program Coordinator Robin Holst, a friend of Parker’s grandfather.
“My most memorable delivery experience was when I visited a customer named Hazel. She always got excited when I came. One day, she gave me a box of chocolates and told me how thankful she was for my service,” said Parker. She continued, “I think
kids make great Meals on Wheels delivery people because older adults usually get really happy to see a kid. It makes them smile.”
Smiles are also lighting up faces in Oakland County due to the volunteer efforts of Birmingham resident Lily Talmers. This Seaholm High School senior leads groups of classmates
on monthly trips to Sunrise Assisted Living Center in Troy to entertain elders through singing, playing musical instruments, or engaging in conversations with older adults while participating in games, like bingo, or crafts.
“I think it’s so important to show older people that we have an utmost respect and understanding for all they have given to this world,” said Talmers. “I feel many of them are disillusioned with my generation. It would give elders hope for the future to know the world will be in good hands. At our core, we all want to make this world a better place.”
She added that young people need to hear stories of triumph when faced with life’s challenges in order to have faith in their own futures. Talmers explained, “Hearing the great things
Volunteer Lily Talmers with her grandmother.
that elders have done and all that they have overcome gives me hope that one day, I’ll be able to do the same.”
Talmers credits her grandmother ‘Yiayia’ as the source of her reverence towards older adults. Talmers noted, “Elders can push your thinking, give you hope, and help you see the light in your own path. It’s an opportunity to see from perspectives we may never know.”
PAID ADVERTISEMENT
Medicare coverage and your expenses
last summer. She bent down to pick up her mail and excruciating pain shot through her spine. On a scale of 1-10, her pain was at a 9.
Kolynuk’s primary care doctor sent her to the nearest hospital for an MRI. Results revealed a fractured disc in her back. Kolynuk was placed in a room on the fifth floor awaiting surgery to fuse the crack.
According to Coordinator Denise Giallombardo, who provides case management and services for the senior apartment complex where Kolynuk resides, “Irene was never formerly admitted into the hospital. Instead, they kept her under observation care and told her that she was in the hospital for an out-patient procedure. She was there for 3 to 4 days.”
Following the surgery, Kolynuk was rehabilitated at home for about six weeks. Giallombardo made arrangements with Medicare for Kolynuk to receive in- home help from a visiting nurse and
a physical therapist twice a week. But the back pain continued.
Kolynuk said, “I returned to the hospital for another MRI. There was one more fracture just below the disk they cemented.” This time, Kolynuk spoke with the hospital social worker before surgery. “I told her that I wanted to be admitted to the hospital for at least three days so that Medicare
continued from page 1
would cover rehabilitation in a skilled nursing facility,” said Kolynuk. But the social worker explained to Kolynuk that this was scheduled as an outpatient procedure and that if she stayed in the hospital to recover, she would have to pay out-of-pocket because Medicare wouldn’t cover it. Provided there
was no infection, Kolynuk would be discharged that day.
Following the surgery, after a day
in the hospital, Kolynuk returned home. Giallombardo was shocked. “The hospital should have taken into account that this was Irene’s second fusion in six weeks time. She’s 85 years old,” said Giallombardo.
“All things considered, Irene would have done much better if she had gone to rehabilitation for two weeks. There’d be a doctor and a nurse; Irene would have gotten her meals on time; her pain would have been managed; and she’d have onsite physical therapy every day,” said Giallombardo. “They’re sending these patients home too quickly. When you’re on pain medication and meals aren’t regulated, it’s easy for a fall to occur.”
For tips on how to insure an “admitted” status during a hospital stay, see page 8. For more information, contact the Area Agency on Aging 1-B’s Medicare Medicaid Assistance Program, at 800-803-7174.


































































































   1   2   3   4   5