In
this issue: I. Resources and Reports II. Conference and Event Announcements III. Funding Opportunities and Awards
Website
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CDC Healthy Aging Podcast Series - Oral Health CDC's
Healthy Aging Program has released the third podcast in its new podcast series
focused on Healthy Aging. This installment focuses on the importance of
maintaining oral health in older adulthood. These podcasts are important
resources for aging and health care professionals, so please feel free to
share. To listen to this podcast, please visit: http://www2a.cdc.gov/podcasts/player.asp?f=10181
The State of Mental Health
and Aging in America
Good
mental health is integral to overall health and is an emerging public health
issue. To meet the needs of public health and aging professionals, policy
makers, journalists, and others, CDC's Healthy Aging Program developed "The State of Mental Health and Aging in America" issue briefs. The
recently released first issue brief documents the mental health of older adults
50 years of age and older at the national and state-levels using 6 mental
health indicators from the 2006 Behavioral Risk Factor Surveillance System
(BRFSS). The second issue brief, which will be released in early 2009,
will describe selected evidence-based programs that organizations can implement
to address depression in older adults. This brief also includes community
examples of successful efforts to address depression, identifies other
resources, and 'Calls to Action' where critical gaps need to be
filled. You can find the document online at:
Nutrition Assistance for Older Americans Nutrition
assistance programs play a vital role in promoting the well-being and
independence of older Americans. This fact sheet, distributed by AARP,
highlights the various nutrition assistance programs available to older adults
and the funding sources that support these programs.
American Diabetes Month November
is American Diabetes Month. Diabetes
is a leading cause of kidney failure, blindness and amputations, and a major
cause of heart disease and stroke. Nearly 24 million Americans have diabetes,
and about one quarter (or 5.7 million) of them don’t know that they have
the disease. Millions more are at risk of developing diabetes. For more
information and resources, please see:http://www.cdc.gov/Features/Livingwithdiabetes/
National Family Caregivers Month The
White House has proclaimed that November is National Family Caregivers
Month. You can view the proclamation here: http://www.whitehouse.gov/news/releases/2008/10/20081029-2.html This
month is for all of the family caregivers in America, over 50 million and
growing. For specific ideas on how to recognize and celebrateNational
Family Caregivers Month please visit the National Family Caregivers Association
at www.thefamilycaregiver.org.
Alzheimer's Disease, Unraveling the Mystery The
National Institute on Aging released a new edition of Alzheimer's Disease: Unraveling the Mystery, an
illustrated, 80-page book written for people with Alzheimer's disease (AD),
their families, health care professionals, students, and others with an
interest in the disease. This update to the 2003 edition of Unraveling the Mystery helps readers
understand AD, its impact on individuals and society, and research advances to
prevent or diminish the effects of the disease. The new edition describes the
basics of the healthy brain, focuses on changes that occur in a brain affected
by AD, highlights findings from recent NIA-funded research into the causes of
AD, new developments in diagnosis, and the search for new treatments, and
addresses issues of concern to AD caregivers and families. The book also
includes a glossary, a comprehensive list of organizations offering more
information, and a list of recommended reading. To view, download, or
order copies of Alzheimer's Disease:
Unraveling the Mystery, go to: www.nia.nih.gov/Alzheimers/Publications/Unraveling, or call
NIA's Alzheimer's Disease Education and Referral (ADEAR) Center at
1-800-438-4380.
Alzheimer's Association Releases "Voices of
Alzheimer's Disease" Report As
part of the 2008 Annual Dementia Care Conference, the Alzheimer's
Association released "Voices of Alzheimer’s Disease: A
Summary Report on the Nationwide Town Hall Events for People with Early
Dementia." The report includes qualitative data collected over a
one year span from an audience of more than 300 people living with early stage
dementia, collected through four events hosted around the nation and through a "virtual town hall," which was hosted on the Alzheimer’s
Association website. The report identifies four major challenges faced by
those living with Alzheimer’s and other dementias: social stigma,
diagnostic challenges, dissatisfying interactions with the medical community
and finding support that would promote appropriate levels of
independence. The report includes quotes from meeting participants to
highlight and elucidate analytical themes. A full copy of the report is
available at www.alz.org/townhall.
II. Conference and Event Announcements
Communicating Effectively with Healthcare Professionals Date: Thursday, November 13, 2008 Location: Your Phone or Computer The
National Family Caregivers Association is hosting a free national TeleClass for
family caregivers. This is the second part of a two-part series and
consists of a 1-hour phone call. In this session, participants will
develop strategies to establish rapport/collaborate with their loved
one's healthcare providers, distinguish between different styles of
communicating with healthcare professionals, compose assertive messages for communicating
in healthcare situations, and be prepared for and cope with an emergency room
visit. For more information and to register, please call 1-800-896-3650
or visit:
Third National Leadership Summit on Eliminating Racial and
Ethnic Disparities in Health: A Blueprint for Change Date: February 25-27, 2009 Location: The Gaylord National Resort and Convention Center,
National Harbor, Maryland The
U.S. Department of Health and Human Services Office of Minority Health is
hosting this summit, which aims to (1) build a renewed sense of leadership and
partnerships across communities, (2) share success stories and methods, (3)
demonstrate how model programs can be replicated or tailored for greater
impact, and (4) create methods, tactics, and ideas that support more effective
and efficient action. As part of OMH's broader initiative to eliminate racial
and ethnic health disparities, this 2009 Summit's
objectives and tracks are: increase awareness of health disparities, strengthen
leadership at all levels, enhance patient-provider communication, improve
cultural and linguistic competency in delivering health services, and
coordinate and utilize research and outcome evaluations more effectively.
Abstracts are now being accepted and the deadline to submit is November 18th,
2008. For more details, please visit:
The Network of Multicultural
Aging (NOMA) Award in Multicultural Aging The Network of Multicultural Aging (NOMA) of the American
Society on Aging each year honors programs that enhance the lives of the
multicultural population of elders in the United States. Using a framework that
reflects the broad vision of diversity at ASA, the NOMA Award for Excellence in
Multicultural Aging seeks to identify and encourage replication of best
practices in developing and implementing services for elders of color;
immigrant elders; or lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender elders. The award is
sponsored by the AARP Foundation.
Robert Wood Johnson Foundation Grants The
Robert Wood Johnson Foundation maintains a list of current calls for
proposals. To see what funding is available, please visit: http://www.rwjf.org/applications/solicited/cfplist.jsp
Building Healthy Communities for Active Aging: Training and
Demonstration Projects The
EPA Aging Initiative, located in the Office of Children's Health
Protection and Environmental Education, is seeking proposals for a new grant
opportunity for Building Healthy Communities for Active Aging: Training and
Demonstration Projects. Proposals must include their strategy for
accomplishing one of the following two goals: (1) Training older adults, to be
environmental leaders on local planning decisions that affect their
community’s built environment; (2) Demonstrating how greenways and
sustainable streets can improve the quality of life for persons of all ages
while improving environmental quality.
Website
addresses occasionally are broken due to the text wrapping from one line to the
next. To fix the broken link, please copy both lines of text
into your web browser without spaces in between. Website address will
usually end with ".html", ".htm", or
".asp".