Tag Archives for COVID-19

Don’t Drop Your Guard Against COVID, Flu, and RSV

Published in RINewsToday on December 12, 2022

COVID 19 cases across the nation are fewer in number than this time last year. But health care experts say that the Covid-19 is here to stay.

A new poll released by the Washington, DC-based American Psychiatric Association (APA), the nation’s oldest medical association, shows that while nearly a third of Americans report that while they anticipate being more stressed out this holiday season than last year, they are less worried about spreading or contracting COVID at a festive family gathering. Researchers say the findings, reported in the Dec. 2022 Healthy Minds Monthly Poll, reported they were more worried about affording holiday gifts. The APA’s study was conducted online by Morning Consult from Nov. 9-14, 2022, among 2,209 U.S. adults, with a margin of error of plus or minus 2 percentage points.

Holiday Worries, Less Concern about COVID Pandemic  

According to the poll’s findings, 31% of adults say they expect to feel more stressed this upcoming holiday season compared to last. This is an increase of 9 percentage points since 2021. Potential drivers of holiday stress include worries like affording holiday gifts (50%) and meals (39%) and finding and securing holiday gifts (37%). Younger adults and those making less than $50,000 are more likely to worry about affording the holidays, say the researchers.

Compared to 2021, adults are less worried this holiday season about spreading (35% in 2021 versus 25% in 2022) or contracting (38% in 2021 versus 26% in 2022) COVID-19 at a holiday gathering, noted the researchers. Adults are also less worried about spending time with family who have different views about COVID-19 (30% in 2021 versus 18% in 2022),” they say.

“This is a busy time of year for many people, and it’s common to put a lot of expectations on ourselves during the holidays,” said APA President Rebecca W. Brendel, M.D., J.D in a Dec. 1st statement announcing the study’s findings. “We can all benefit by enjoying moments that bring meaning and belonging, but those times are different for each of us. It’s also okay to opt out of some or all events if they bring more stress or distress than joy. There is no one right way to spend the holiday time of year,” she said.

On the positive side, the researchers added, “the plurality of adults (47%) say they are most looking forward to seeing family and friends this holiday season, of the options tested. That varied by age: Older adults (45-64: 50%, 65+: 63%) are more likely than younger adults (18-34: 37%, 35-44: 36%) to say so. A fifth of American adults (21%) said they were most looking forward to eating good food.”

The researchers noted that parents (39%) are more likely than non-parents (27%) to say they anticipate experiencing more stress this holiday season compared to last year. “Young adults and Democrats are more likely to worry about discussing politics and spending time with family with different viewpoints about COVID-19 during the holidays,” they say.

“While Americans are looking forward to seeing family this year, it’s important to remain vigilant about COVID-19, the flu and RSV,” warns APA CEO and Medical Director Saul Levin, M.D., M.P.A. “We are in a different situation than in 2020 or even 2021, but it’s still important to take precautions and stay home if you are sick,” she said.

Beware of the “Tripledemic”  

 With the Christmas holidays just weeks away, older adults must now not let their guard down about protecting themselves against a “tripledemic” of COVID, flu and RSV, says Nick Landekic, a retired scientist and biotechnology entrepreneur who is a contributor to RINewsToday. 

“COVID is now a pandemic of older people,” warns Landekic in a Dec. 9 article in the state-wide news blog. “With the year-end holidays upon us and infection rates rising across the country, the stark new reality is COVID is now a pandemic of older people,” he says.

“Right now, is a particularly risky time with a ‘tripledemic’ of COVID, flu, and RSV, with almost the entire country at ‘high’ or ‘very high’ levels of infection. Hospitalizations and deaths are both up sharply over the past two weeks, with deaths increasing as well,” says Landekic.

According to Landekic, the most accurate predictor of ending up hospitalized or dying from COVID is age. “Older people are thousands of times more likely to die of infection than younger persons,” he says, noting that the statistics bear this out. “Ninety percent of COVID deaths are now among those over 65. Over 300 Americans continue to die of COVID every day, and nearly 1,000 just on December 7 – a rate of over 100,000 a year – and most of them are over 65,” he says.

(COVID is now a pandemic of older people – Nick Landekic: https://rinewstoday.com/covid-is-now-a-pandemic-of-older-people-nick-landekic)

“You don’t want to get sick from one of these viral  infections and miss visiting with family and friends during the Christmas and New Year holidays, says Michael Fine, MD, author and chief health strategist for the City of Central Falls, adding that  “we’re in a “tripledemic” of COVID, flu and RSV (filling the nation’s pediatric hospitals). “It’s the worst flu year we’ve seen in recent memory,” he says, noting that “it has come early and hit hard.”

Dodging the Bullet 

During the upcoming holidays, Fine says it is easy to protect yourself against the “tripledemic” to prevent infection.  He recommends the importance of getting a bivalent COVID booster  if you haven’t had a booster during the last four months.

“You want to be extra careful two weeks before attending holiday gatherings,” says Fine, a family physician who contributes on health and medical issues (as well as short stories) for RINewsToday and is the former Director of the Rhode Island Department of Health.  Specifically, wear masks in stores and avoid restaurants and bars for about two weeks before a gathering or planned travel. “I don’t think many are eating outside at this point,” he quips.

“Wearing a mask in an airport terminal is important when traveling to family gatherings,” says Fine.  While there is good air infiltration in the air, it is not so in terminals, he adds.

When attending a holiday gathering with multiple households, it is a very good idea for everyone attending to take a COVID 19 home test. “It is not perfect but better than nothing,” says Fine.

“Those who have not been vaccinated yet, you still have time to do so before attending those holiday gatherings,” says Fine

Fine believes that people who haven’t yet been vaccinated can take comfort from the last two years and our now extensive experience with the vaccine. “We have two years of experience with the vaccine with billions being vaccinated.  We haven’t seen any substantial programs. It’s now the best tested vaccine in history,” notes Fine. 

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Inflation less of an issue for seniors in Assisted Living

Published in RINewsToday o December 5, 2022

A report released TODAY by PayingforSeniorCare.com finds that inflation of goods and services has severely impacted seniors, but inflation of senior living is much softer by comparison. 

The two-part report shares findings based on a survey of 1,000 U.S. adults aged 55+, and data showing the best and worst states for senior living inflation in the United States. Researchers say that this aims to both highlight seniors’ inflation concerns, and provide informational resources for those who need financial assistance.

According to the survey findings, 4 in 10 seniors worry that they won’t be able to afford food and groceries in the future due to inflation, and 1 in 5 say that inflation has caused their grocery bill to increase by more than $250 per month. Overall, 1 in 4 seniors say that they’ve had to make drastic changes to their lifestyle to cope with inflation. For example, more than 1 in 10 seniors say they’ve had to skip meals or by delaying needed medical procedures to save money.

However, researchers say that inflation for senior living is not as extreme. According to data from Caring.com, the nation’s leading senior living referral services, senior living in the U.S. has not experienced the inflation that other sectors of the economy have. Average assisted living costs have only increased 3.7 percent since 2019, while the Consumer Price Index (CPI), a measure of consumer goods and services, has risen by 15.6 percent during the same time period.

“Some may find it surprising to know that since 2019, average inflation for the cost of senior living in the U.S. is less than 1/4th the cost of general inflation (3.7% vs. 15.6%). Many don’t also realize that many of the essential expenses rising in cost — food, energy, gas — are included in the rate of a senior living community,” says Han Hwang, Caring.com’s EVP of Partnerships. 

“While inflation remains a serious concern for seniors and the population in general, relatively low occupancy rates in senior living communities driven by COVID-19 has largely kept inflation at bay,” notes Hwang, “However, we are hearing from operators that rates will continue to increase over time – those prices just haven’t caught up yet with inflation in general,” he says. 

Hwang adds: “For those not yet living in senior living, the report’s insights on the alarmingly high number of seniors skipping meals, medicines and medical procedures due to inflationary pressures should be concerning to everyone. These are essentials for seniors’ well-being, and shouldn’t be skipped. We hope this report will help direct seniors and their families to support resources as soon as possible.

This report finds that not all states have enjoyed the same low inflation of senior living. Several, including North Dakota and Hawaii, have inflation rates of over 20% since 2019 – significantly outpacing the 15.6% inflation rate of the CPI.

Over age 65 seniors comprise 17.7% of Rhode Island’s population. This percentage is expected to grow to 25% by 2030. From the Paying for Senior Care report: Rhode Island is ranked 7th in this study for states with lowest inflation rates for senior living. Rhode Island is among the states that saw a decrease in the average cost of assisted living since 2019, averaging $108 less per month and $1,301 annually in rent and care costs for assisted living. 

This report is made up of two parts: an online survey conducted in October of 2022 of 1,000 U.S. seniors, and data and analysis based on the cost of senior living between 2019 and 2022 according to data provided by Caring.com.

For those who need specific help and guidance on coping with the cost of inflation,  PayingForSeniorCare.com offers a free service – Senior Care Experts who can guide seniors or their loved ones through the decision making process, and provide personalized advice based on their budget and care needs. This service is available by calling (855) 481-6777.

For a copy of this report, go to www.payingforseniorcare.com/2022-inflation-and-seniors-impact-report.Herb Weiss, LRI’12, a Pawtucket writer covering aging, health care and medical issues. To purchase his books, Taking Charge: Collected Stories on Aging Boldly, and a sequel, go to herbweiss.com. 

To the Class of 2022: Age boldly, enjoy your journey

Published in RINewsToday on May 16, 2022

According to Research.com, this year commencement speakers at colleges and universities in Rhode Island will impart their “pearls of wisdom“ to 19,782 graduating college seniors and their families. The usual commencement speech, traditionally about 10 minutes in length, offers simple tips and observations that, if taken, just might offer the young graduates a more rewarding personal and professional life ahead. Social media platforms and websites will quickly disseminate this sage advice given by well-known lawmakers, judges, television personalities and CEOs, to millions across the globe.

Globe columnist Dan McGowan gives his readers in the Rhode Map, the paper’s free newsletter about Rhode Island, a who’s who list of well-known commencement speakers that will gather at Rhode Island’s 12 Colleges and Universities to give the Class of 2022 advice on making their new journey in the world amidst the continuing COVID-19 pandemic causing sweeping societal changes in the workplace, health care, and social activity. 

McGowan’s detailed listing of “marquee names” delivering commencement speeches at Rhode Island’s colleagues and universities are:  

House Speaker Nancy Pelosi at Brown University; Emmy Award-winning actor and director Henry Winkler at  New England Institute of Technology; Human Resource Guru William J. Conaty at Bryant College; Rhode Island Governor Dan McKee at CCRI; Big East Commissioner Val Ackerman at Providence College;  Entrepreneur and Author Bruce Poon Tip, Founder of G Adventures; Miriam Hospital President Maria Ducharme at Rhode Island College, Deep Sea Explorer Robert Ballard noted for his work in undersea archeology at URI; Graphic designer, educator and Author Cheryl D. Miller at RISD; Navyn Salem, who founded the nonprofit Edesia, Inc. whose mission is to treat and prevent global malnutrition at Salve Regina; and Dr. Anthony Fauci, Chief Medical adviser to the president at Roger Williams University.

This year’s commencement speakers are very well-deserving of their honor to address Rhode Island’s graduating college seniors.  But if I had an opportunity to speak before the graduating class of 2022, here are my thoughts and tips I would give, centered on the importance of aging gracefully and boldly over your accumulating years, and they will accumulate faster than anyone could imagine.

Aging can be viewed as a life-long, unpredictable journey.  A slang phrase in Wikipedia sums up “a simple existential observation that life is full of unpredictable events. Over the years, you might have heard the phrase, “Shit Happens.” Many people choose to hold on to their fading youth, not wanting to look in the mirror to see wrinkles, sagging stomachs, and even gray hair.  They hold fiercely to their memories of the 1963 Pepsi Generation commercial that celebrated youth and active people.   

It’s so easy to say, accept and embrace your aging.  

You will be tempted to chase after prestige, power, the perfect relationship, or a high paying job.  I say being healthy is your most important possession you can have in your lifetime. Cherish it. Work towards it. URI Gerontologist Phil Clark once told me, “Use it or lose it. Stay as physically active as you can.”  “If you rest, you rust,” he says, noting that physical exercise elevates our mood and benefits our cardiovascular system, too. This conversation took place over 25 years ago, and I still remember this advice.  

Before the COVID-19 pandemic, a North Attleboro couple, Mark and Nancy Shorrock began dining daily, seven days a week, if their schedules permitted, at Spumoni’s Restaurant in Pawtucket.  Over the years, they developed personal relationships with around 30 couples who frequented the informal restaurant and bar. While not a support system, that informal group who knew each other innately, benefited the Shorrocks, and I would think all of the people who kept coming back as regularly as they did. 

The importance of being around others is documented in a 2017 national report. The Global Council on Brain Health (GCBH) report, released by AARP, cites strong scientific evidence that behavior changes and lifestyle habits can positively impact one’s brain health. It’s not uncommon for social networks to shrink as we age. “Research tells us that larger social networks may positively impact your health, well-being, even your cognitive functioning,” said Sarah Lock, AARP Senior vice president for Policy and GCBH Executive Director. 

So, as the decades fly by, work to maintain your social network of family and friends to maintain good cognitive functioning. And while you may build your on-line networks, do not overlook the greater importance of the in-person kind, those you break bread with, share what your children may be doing, or call just to hear a voice who knows a whole lot about you, without your even having to say it.      

Research also tells us that you can also reduce your risk of cognitive decline by exercising your brain. Take time in your busy day to read newspapers, magazines, and books, or even play a challenging crossword puzzle, build your vocabulary, learn a new skill, even play chess.

Being a volunteer can also be a protective buffer from the curve balls that life may throw at us as we age. “Volunteering can be medicine for the soul. It allows you to connect with other people, explore and remedy emerging community issues, make a difference as a caregiver or mentor and change lives. Volunteering is powerful and can define and redirect your life’s journey,” says Vincent Marzullo, who for 31 years served as RI’s National Service Director and still volunteers weekly at Hasbro Children’s Hospital.

When you require help, don’t be afraid to ask your family, friends or even professional colleagues for support and assistance. People will always go up the ladder of their careers, even down, too.  Take the opportunity to be there for not only people you know, but also strangers when they need a helping hand to jump-start their faltering personal relationships or professional careers. 

Time really does fly after you graduate college.  Don’t be afraid to pivot in your career – you may have spent 4 years or 8 years or many more studying and becoming an expert in a particular subject, but find your passion calls you to another career-path. Don’t be afraid to take the path that calls out the loudest for you. As you move into your middle or later years, view your life as a meaningful journey, living in the present, not tied to past experiences, nor possible future events. It’s the journey, not the end result, that you should focus on.

Amma, a well-known Hindu spiritual teacher, tells her millions of followers to view their life as a ‘canceled check.’ Let go of those past regrets, forgive yourself for those mistakes especially made in childhood and teenage years, more important those you made as you move into your middle or later years. Don’t regret passing up personal or professional opportunities, for others will follow, she says. Use your time on earth wisely; don’t waste it carrying the burdens of past guilt or personal grudges. Think about that.

View your life as being back in high school, learning from each positive and negative experience you encounter. When you confront life’s health, financial, and personal and professional challenges, keep a positive attitude. Don’t be overwhelmed by negative thoughts. Each day you will make daily choices as to how you will react to your problems. In these situations, you can either see the proverbial glass as either being “half-full” or “half-empty.” A positive attitude allows you to see a “half-full” glass, thus allowing you to successfully overcome the adversity.

As we grow older, we sometimes put too much energy into reflecting on our personal and professional defeats, being depressed on the “bad hands” we were dealt. Savor your victories, but always forgive yourself for your shortcomings and failures. Learning from your shortcomings and defeats will build a strong bridge to future successes.

Also, forgive others who have hurt you personally and professionally. You cannot live or reconcile your life peacefully if you are still holding onto grudges, anger, and bitterness, all tied to past relationships or negative employment experiences.

Writer Simon Kent tells us a powerful story about forgiveness in an article penned in 2013 on the Toronto Sun’s website. When Nelson Mandela’s National African party won the election that would end apartheid in South Africa, he forgave his white political foes, says Kent, noting that the power of forgiveness kept the black majority ruling party from seeking revenge.

According to Kent, at his 1994 inauguration, Prisoner 46664 — Nelson Mandela — had kept a seat set aside for a very special guest he wanted to witness his swearing-in as President, the highest office in the land. This person, one of his former jailers from Robben Island, where he was held for 18 years of hard labor. 

Why do we continue to hold anger, bitterness, and grudges against others? If Mandela can easily forgive his former jailor and a white society that kept his black brothers and sisters enslaved for centuries, why can’t you forgive others, too? 

Pass on your hard-earned wisdom. As you begin to accumulate more of life’s professional and personal experiences, share your story with others, especially those younger than you. By the time you reach your twilight years, you will have accumulated a huge reservoir of untapped wisdom gained from your life’s journey from making both good and bad decisions.  When taking on the new role of parent or grandparent, always continue to share your insights and lessons you have learned to your children and grandchildren.  The generations following you will lose out if you remain silent and keep your knowledge and history from them.

Get off the treadmill of life. Learn to slow down and enjoy the simple moments of your life. In her books and lectures, nationally-acclaimed author Connie Goldman, has stated that the simple act of watching a beautiful sunrise or sunset or even puttering around your garden can be as stimulating as a jam-packed calendar of activities.  

My final thought – nothing is guaranteed in life except death, taxes, and even, hopefully, growing old. So, Class of 2022, I urge you to make the most of your life that is just beginning to unfold before you. Don’t focus on the end result. Focus on the journey. Sometimes it is not the big things that you do that count, rather the simple daily acts of loving kindness you give to all those around you.  

Enjoy your new journey. Age boldly.