Page 6 Portland Observer JULY 27, 1989
SPOT LIGHT ON HEALTH
N/NE Community Mental
Health Center
AGING
Serving the Mental health needs of the
inner N/NE Community
Services available:
Crisis Intervention counseling
Children services
Psychiatric Care
Social Support Services
Rehabilitation Therapy
Residential Services
Located at 4950 N.E. MLK Jr. Blvd.
249-0066
Life Expectancy After Retirement:
How Many Years?
AMERICAN LIFE EXPECTANCY
1
The life expectancy of the average American is rising. Today, Americans
can expect to live ten, twenty and thirty or more years after they retire.
With our life expectancy after re­
tirement increasing, and more
Americans taking early retire­
ment, the question being asked
most often is: Am I financially se­
cure?
One reason this question is so
often asked is that one in four el­
derly Americans can expect some­
day to be confined to a long-term
care facility. While most Americans
own their their own life insurance,
few are protected against this cost.
Encouragingly, with the cost of
long-term care services becoming
an important national issue, many
employers look for affordable ways
to help their workers get such pro­
tection.
In response to the challenge
posed by long-term health care
financing, First Penn Pacific Life
Insurance Company of Oak Brook
Terrace, Illinois, has become one of
the first insurance companies in
the nation to introduce a life insur­
ance policy providing financing for
nursing home care through prepay­
ment of the policy’s death benefits.
Conditions covered under the pol­
icy include Alzheimer’s Disease.
The new policy is called Assured
Care. It’s available to persons be­
tween the ages of 20 and 70, with
the minimum policy death benefit
set at $25,000. The maximum death
benefit is $300.000.
Premium payments for the as­
sured care benefit can now be made
through payroll deduction. The cost
for the nursing home benefit is low.
In fact, the premium for the As­
sured Care is typically only three
percent more than for an otherwise
identical universal life policy which
does not provide the convalescent
care benefit.
TEENS AND
W H E N I ’M I N
A ID S W O R K ­
C H A R G E CLASS
S H O P T O BE
O FFERED AT
H E LD AT RED
R ED CROSS
CROSS
Teenagers will have an opportu­
nity to learn about and discuss the
AIDS epidemic in a free two-hour
workshop on Wednesday, August 25,
from 3:00 - 5:00 P.M. at the Red
Cross, 3131 N. Vancouver Ave.
This workshop will include up-to-
date facts about HIV Disease/AIDS
and a discussion of ideas for prevent­
ing the spread of the virus.
Call the American Red Cross at
284-0011, ext. 176 to register.
r
When I” m in Charge is an excel­
lent course for children, ages 8-11,
who have to stay at home alone from
time to time. The 1-1/2 hour class
will be held at the Red Cross, 3131
N. Vancouver Ave. on Saturday,
August 12, from 10:00-11:30 a.m.
Children will learn how to handle
phone calls and visitors.create a safe
home environment and perform ba­
sic first aid skills.
Cost: $6.00. To register, call 284-
0011, ext. 176.
Multnomah County
Health Clinics
Aging, even old age, is not an
illness, it is a normal process. It is
obvious that old people get sick more
frequently than the young, but the
aging process itself is not a disease.
A number of things (physical sys­
tems) do change as we age.
There are changes in the senses­
hearing, vision, taste, smell and touch.
It is difficult for people when these
senses may become less sensitive.
However, there are often ways to im­
prove. Changes can be made in the
home environment to ease a person’s
adjustment to a decreased ability to
see, hear, or taste.
For example, many elderly people
have changes in their eyes that they
themselves may not recognize. The
lens of the eye loses its ability to
focus sharply on the close objects.
Bifocal lenses help, but some still
find it difficult to see small details
such as directions on medication
bottles. As the lens changes, a person
may not be able to tell the difference
between certain colors like blue and
green. Bright light may easily blind
an older person and dim light may
not be enough light to achieve visual
sharpness.
Many of these same kinds of
changes occur with hearing, making
it hard for older adults to sort out
sounds, respond accurately, or par­
ticipate in conversation.
Perhaps their sense of smell de­
creases, so they stop bathing as regu­
larly, or their taste sense disappears,
“ nothing tastes good” , so they stop
eating right.
The real point of the above ex­
amples is that decreased function due
to these very normal changes can
most often be helped. But very often
people don’t get help and, as a result,
other things begin to happen. Be­
cause they don’t recognize a voice or
remember a face people start to think
they are getting confused or that their
memory is declining. Because they
can’t read small print, they mistake
Pointers
For Parents
Since the first baby was
gently quieted to sleep by a
lullaby, parents have known
the powers of soft, soothing
melodies. Today, experts tout
the benefits of music, saying
it may help calm a crying, col­
icky infant.
“Music encourages sleep,”
says Syracuse, N.Y., Regis­
tered Polysomnographie Tech­
nologist James Moore, who
works with people with sleep
disorders. “It gives the mind
a focus.”
Although a cradlt song sung
by Mommy or Daddy may be
preferred, Moore says any soft
music may produce the desired
calming effect.
_______
Immunization Available At These Locations:
Monday & Tuesday or Thursday & Friday
9:00 a.m. to 11:30 a.m. or
1:30 p.m. to 4:00 p.m.
4
Appointments & Walk-Ins Welcome
“ Health Care is a right and not merely a privilege’’. High quality health care
for the “ high risk” our specialty. The uninsured, indigent, low income and
medically poor are welcome.We care! Sliding Fee Schedule, Welfare
(non-PCO) and Private Insurance
I I
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!
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N itey Lite features a
friendly mouse and a story­
book for bedtime story tel­
ling. It also has a radio to
lull the child to sleep.
One new product, the GE
Nitey Lite’“, a radio-night-
light combination, provides
parents with a 30-minute
sleep switch that allows chil­
dren to be gently lulled to
sleep by AM or FM tunes. The
soft-glow front panel light il­
luminates a cartoon mouse
character.
Quiet, relaxing music is
best With the music, young
children and their parents
can both enjoy the pleasure of
a good night's sleep and par­
ents can be assured they are
giving their child a positive
experience.
“A deprivation of stimula­
tion can actually retard de­
velopment and be psychologi­
cally harmful,” says Syracuse
University Psychology Pro­
fessor Jerome Dusek “Music
adds a stimulation that young
children may find relaxing ’
Í
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HEALTH
Q&A
* y
B e a v e r t o n S to r e
4 00 0 S.W. 117th
Open ~
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9a.m.-0jì.n».
4
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If you would like turther miorma-
tion about sensory changes and ag-
ing a free article is available. Send a
self addressed, stamped, envelope
to:
it
Corlx-ft Store
4‘ k .W S A t C . 'r lx t t
‘Lt.nt. Sp.m.
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Concordia College
Sensory - HCA
2811 N.E. Holman
Portland, Oregon 97211
Suzanne A. Scopes, N.D.
Naturopathic Physician
By Betty P. Brackenridge,
MS, RD, CDE
President
American Association
of Diabetes Educators
Soft Music May
Calm Crying Infants
Your Childrens’
Shots Are Up-To-Date
— WALK-INS —
5311 North Vancouver Ave.
Portland, 97217
(503) 284-5239
Hours 9-5 M-F
9-1 Sat
Call for appointments
their medications or miss an appoint­
ment written on a calendar. Every­
Frem ont Store
one starts to think they can’t take
3449 N.E. 24th
Open 7 days a week
care of themselves, and often consid­
9a.m.-Hp.m.
ers limiting their independence. People
are sometimes put in nursing homes
because the family is so concerned
about their seeming decline and
because of some problem that could
have been corrected with a new eye ten people don’t realize that correct-
glass prescription,hearing aid or minor ...g 3CH5O1 y loss could save hundreds
changes in their home or diet. Often of dollars spent on unnecessary
cost is the reason people don’t buy medications and illness, or home and
new glasses or a hearing aid, but of- nursing home care.
a Make Sure
Grace Peck
Health Center
2415 S.E. 43rd Ave.
(503) 238-7150
North Portland
Health Center
I 8914 N. Woolsey Ave.
(503) 248-5304
Northeast Health Center
5329 N.E. Union Ave.
(503) 248-5183
North Portland Nurse Practitioner Community
Health Clinic
Innovative
Natural
Health Care
Q. How do nutrition, exercise,
and medication help control
diabetes?
A. The food you eat provides fuel.
Your body requires fuel to perform
exercise. Diabetes medication helps
your body use fuel normally. These
three factors interact
i* ”’;
SHF
423 S.E. 15th
Portland, OR 97214
(503) 230-0812
w a y s Ex
actly how th ey in ter-
act is reflected in th e
blood su g a r level So
all th ree factors m ust
Brackenridge
be part of any treatment
plan to help control
diabetes.
Meal planning helps you control
the amount of sugar (glucose) in
your blood, control your weight, re­
duce your risk for heart disease,
and improve your overall health.
Regular physical activity assists
with control of both weight and
blood sugar, helps reduce heart dis­
ease risk, and assists you in better
coping with daily stress. Insulin al­
lows sugar to enter cells where your
body can use it for fuel. This causes
the blood sugar level to fall. Coor­
dinating these three aspects of dia­
betes management requires knowl­
edge and skill.
A diabetes educator can help you
learn more about your diabetes
management plan, including how
to test your own blood sugar level
between doctor visits. This infor­
mation can then be used to make
adjustments in your diet, exercise,
or medication to further improve
control of your diabetes.
One termite queen produces about
half a billion offspring during her
lifetime
We are Proud to Serve Our Community
With Ttauma Services
Emanuel is one of two hospitals in Portland
designated to treat the most seriously injured
patients. Cur TYauma Center is equipped and
stalled around the clock, ready whenever you need us.
EMANUEL HOSPITAL
& HEALTH CENTER
A Lutheran Affiliated Center of Caring & Excellent e
2801 N. Gantenbein Avenue. Portland, Oregon 97227
t