HEALTHY AGING AT YOUR LIBRARY:CONNECTING OLDER ADULTS TO HEALTH INFORMATION

Karen Vargas, Consumer Health Outreach CoordinatorNational Network of Libraries of Medicine, South Central Region

Agenda

Older adults and health

Health information access and utilization

Evaluation of health resources

Training and programs

Recommended resources

Aging in America

Early Boomers reached 65 in 2011

According to the CDC

The number of Americans aged 65 years or older during the next 25 years will double to about 72 million.

By 2030, older adults will account for roughly 20% of the U.S. population.

2 out of 3 older Americans have multiple chronic conditions, and treatment for this population accounts for 66% of the country’s health care budget

http://www.cdc.gov/aging/

Causes of Death

Heart Disease - #1 cause of death adults over age 65

Cancer - #2 cause of death adults over age 65

From the CDC WISQARS (Web-based Injury Statistics Query and Reporting System) for 2010 http://www.cdc.gov/injury/wisqars/

A note about Alzheimer’s Disease Right now, as many as 5.4 million

Americans have Alzheimer’s Disease The number of people with AD doubles

for every 5-year interval beyond age 65.

Alzheimer’s is the 5th leading cause of death for adults aged 65 years and older

Medicaid spending for older adults with Alzheimer’s disease is nine times higher

http://www.cdc.gov/aging/aginginfo/alzheimers.htm

Birds do it, bees do it…

Top 5 reasons to talk about seniors sexual health The majority of older Americans are sexually

active 15% of new cases of HIV are people over 50 Most older adults have not discussed sex with

their doctors If we can have this conversation today, it’s that

much easier to handle it when it comes up at the reference desk

#1 reason:

VIAGRA

Health Literacy

Access + Utilization =Health Literacy

Health Literacy: “The degree to which individuals have the

capacity to obtain, process and understand basic health information and services need to make appropriate health decisions.” (Healthy People 2010)

ACP Foundation Video: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ImnlptxIMXs

Costs of Low Health Literacy Annual health care costs for individuals

with low literacy skills are 4 times higher Patients with low literacy skills were

observed to have a 50% increased risk of hospitalization

Patients with low health literacy and chronic diseases have less knowledge of their disease and fewer correct self-management skillsNPSF Ask Me 3 Resources: Stats at a Glance http://www.npsf.org/wp-content/uploads/2011/12/AskMe3_Stats_English.pdf

Why is an understanding of Health Literacy important for older adults?

Adults age 65 and older have lower health literacy scores than all other age groups

Only 3% of older adults surveyed had proficient health literacy skills

The 2003 National Assessment of Adult Literacyhttp://nces.ed.gov/naal/

Additional factors affecting understanding of health information

Vision and hearing changes

Cognitive changes

Additional Disabilities

U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, Quick Guide to Health Literacy of Older Adultshttp://www.health.gov/communication/literacy/olderadults/literacy.htm

And to make things worse...

Multiple conditions

Many, many medications

Talking to doctors

Internet comfort levels

Talking to Doctors: The New World Order Before 1972,doctors told patients what

they wanted patients to know, and what they wanted patients to do.

1972 – AHA Patient Bill of Rights “The patient has the right and is

encouraged to obtain from physicians and other direct caregivers relevant, current, and understandable information about his or her diagnosis, treatment, and prognosis.”

Your health depends on the questions you ask

Questions are the Answer http://www.ahrq.gov/patients-consumers/patient-involvement/ask-your-doctor/index.html

The 10 questions you should knowOr

Build your own personalized list of questions

Older Adults and the Internet

80 is the new 60

56% of seniors over 65 use the Internet 70% of these seniors use the internet on

a typical day 53% of seniors that use the Internet

have looked for health information online

Pew Internet & American Life Project http://www.pewinternet.org/

What about Boomers?

Born between the years 1946 and 1964 (in 2013 boomers are between 49 and 67 years old)

80% of younger baby boomers use the Internet

81% of younger online boomers have looked for health information; 84% of older boomers

Lee Rainie, “Baby Boomers and Technology” March 28, 2012 Pew Internet and American Life Project http://www.pewinternet.org/

However, of seniors over 75… Only 34% of this age group use the

Internet 38% of non-users in this population say

that the main reason they don’t use the internet or email is that they’re “just not interested”

Only 4% of non-internet users in this population said they would like to start using the internet and email in the future

Kathryn Zickuhr, Mary Madden “Older Americans and Internet Use” Pew Internet & American Life Project. June 6, 2012. http://www.pewinternet.org

Medicare Part D

For discussion:

If 66% of adults over 75 are NOT using the Internet, how are they

choosing among the discount drug care programs online through the Medicare

Web site?

Evaluation of Health Resources Not a real drug. Not a real disorder. A

spoof.

ABCs (+U) of Evaluation

Accuracy

Authority

Bias

Currency

Coverage

Usability

Evaluate Resources for Usability Font size Glare-free background color/paper Clear organization “White” space Short sentences Jargon-free, definitions of medical terms

included Information in short segments Meaningful images

Web Usability

Additional Features for the Web Mouse-free controls No flashing images or distractions High contrast No “watermarks” Step-by-step navigation Read-out-loud features Highlighted text (hyperlinks) in dark color

(other than blue)

Click HERE to Win!!!!!

Exercise 1: Usability Evaluation Take a look at the following websites

and evaluate their usability: http://familydoctor.org/ http://nihseniorhealth.gov/ http://www.aarp.org/health/ http://www.afar.org/infoaging http://www.nia.nih.gov/health/publication

Library Programs

SHARING: Program Ideas

What programs for senior health information are offered by your library?

What programs are you thinking about offering?

What problems do you encounter with programming for seniors?

What solutions have you found?

Program Ideas

Wii! Exercise Relationships/dating Sexual Health Drug side effects Managing Medications Medicare Choosing nursing homes/assisted living Memory issues/keeping mind active Local resources

More Program Ideas

Caregiving End of Life planning

Hospice Evaluating health information

Health Fraud Legal issues

Alternative medicines Dancing

Collaborate!

You can’t do it alone. Senior organizations:

Area Agencies on Aging Disease specific organizations (Alzheimer's

Assoc.) Neighborhood senior centers Jewish Community Centers Hospitals and Clinics University Health Science Libraries American Society on Aging National Council on Aging

How do I find partners?

NN/LM Membership Directory http://nnlm.gov/members/adv.html

2-1-1 Texas https://www.211texas.org/211/

Some information about Medicare http://www.medicare.gov 1-800-MEDICARE (1-800-633-4227) Health insurance for people age 65 or

older (or with certain disabilities) Part A: Hospital Part B: Medical Part C: Advantage Plans (HMOs and

PPOs) Part D: Prescription Drug Coverage

How can libraries help with Medicare? Libraries can:

distribute Medicare publications host outreach and education events assist patrons in accessing Medicare.gov

To learn about how to participate in the CMS National Medicare Training Program: http://www.cms.hhs.gov/NationalMedicareTrainingProgram/

Teaching Health Information on the Internet

Why We Teach Health on the Internet to Older Adults

Bridge Digital Divide

Increase confidence

Increase knowledge of health conditions and healthy lifestyles

Help people know how to talk to doctors

Increase skills in evaluating health information resources

SHARING: Tips for Online Training

What tips do you have for training seniors with online health information or online information in general?

Teaching Observations

Seniors are very hungry for health information

Seniors are eager to learn

Learning a new technology may be anxiety producing

Transportation can be a problem

Teaching Tips

Provide hands-on practice and repetition

Use health topics they are interested in (HBP)

Provide regular access to computers

Teach small groups, low teacher/student ratio

Teaching Resources

Beanworks: Computers, Older Adults, and Libraries http://beanworks.clbean.com/computers-

older-adults-and-libraries/ Carol Bean, Palm Beach County Library Includes mousing tutorials Helpful articles Other training materials

More Teaching Resources

NIHSeniorHealth: Helping Older Adults Search for Health Information Online:A Toolkit for Trainers http://nihseniorhealth.gov/toolkit/

toolkit.html

Exercise 2: Train the Trainer

Working with a partner, Take a few minutes to review the

NIHSeniorHealth training module in your packet

Talk with a partner Present interesting features to class

For trainers? For students (seniors)?

Even More Teaching Resources MLA Senior Seminars: Power Points and

handouts for training http://www.mlanet.org/resources/consumr_index.html#senior Reliable Sources of Health Information Your Medicine: Play it Safe Medicine Record Form Buying Prescription Medicine Online: A

Consumer Safety Guide

HEALTH RESOURCES

NIHSeniorHealth

http://nihseniorhealth.gov Health information for older adults Partnership of National Institute on

Aging and National Library of Medicine Information comes from

National Institutes of Health Senior-friendly features (large text, sound,

contrast) Information in bite-sized pieces

MedlinePlus

http://medlineplus.gov Links to reliable, understandable

health websites Health Topics for Seniors Easy-to-read articles Slideshows that have sound and contrast Medical dictionary Medical encyclopedia with large illustrations Links to local services English, Spanish and other languages No Advertisements!

NIH MedlinePlus Magazine

National Institute on Aging

http://www.nia.nih.gov Free publications (English and Spanish) Alzheimer’s Disease Education and Referral

Center (ADEAR) Database of more than 300

national organizations that provide help to older adults.

CDC Healthy Aging

http://cdc.gov/aging/ Health Topics Data and Statistics Reports Focus on Prevention

Nursing Home Compare

http://www.medicare.gov/nursinghomecompare/

From the Center for Medicare and Medicaid Services

Allows consumers to compare information about nursing homes

Links to Hospital Compare, Physician Compare, Dialysis Facility Compare, and more

USA.gov Senior Citizens’ Resources http://www.usa.gov/Topics/Seniors.shtml

Serbia photo by HelpAge International on Flickr.com

Gay, Lesbian, Bisexual and Transgender Elders http://www.lgbtagingcenter.org/ National Resource Center on LGBT Aging Specific issues for LGBT older adults, like

HIV and Aging; Medicaid & Medicare; and Coming Out Later in Life

Exercise 3: Reference Exercises

On your own or with a partner, answer the reference questions in your handouts.

Questions?

Karen Vargaskaren.vargas@exch.library.tmc.edu

National Network of Libraries of Medicine800-338-7657

Developed by NN/LM SCR staff.  This project has been funded in whole or in part with Federal funds from the National Library of Medicine, National Institutes of Health, Department of Health and Human Services, under Contract No. HHSN-276-2011-00007-C with the Houston Academy of Medicine-Texas Medical Center Library.