On August 25, 2011, the Hartford Courant published my letter on Elder Mediation. The previous week, on August 17, the Courant ran a Kiplinger News Service article by Erin Peterson, “Help in arriving at what’s best: specialized mediators can work with families to settle elder care disputes.” As I stated in my letter, the Courant […]
“Holidays and Tough Conversations”
Last week, I had the pleasure of speaking on “Holidays and Tough Conversations” at The Hearth at Tuxis Pond in Madison, CT. It’s a timely topic: when families gather for the holidays they may find that family situations have changed since they last gathered: a loved one may be more frail, a caregiving plan in […]
Shoreline Eldercare Alliance December presentation – Part II
Earlier this month, the Shoreline Eldercare Alliance (SEA) gave a presentation on loss and change at Peregrine’s Landing in Clinton, Connecticut. The evening featured excellent speakers and an attentive audience. The emphasis on “change” was an especially helpful one. It is easy to think of aging as simply decline and inevitably negative. This perspective reinforces […]
Shoreline Eldercare Alliance December presentation – Part I
Earlier this month, the Shoreline Eldercare Alliance (SEA) gave a presentation on loss and change at Peregrine’s Landing in Clinton, Connecticut. The evening included excellent speakers and an attentive audience. One of the points that hit home to me as a mediator was the perspective that our society has an especially difficult time discussing death. […]
Holidays and tough conversations – Part III
In Parts I and II, I wrote about the holidays as a time when families might be together face to face for the first time in a number of months. Changes that might not have been obvious on the telephone become clear or statements from a local sibling that Mom needs more help may be […]
Holidays and tough conversations – Part II
Last time, I wrote about the changes in an aging loved one’s emotional and physical health that family members might notice at the holidays. If a face-to-face holiday visit is the first one in a number of months, a decline in health may be both obvious and startling. The prospect of a difficult conversation can […]
Holidays and tough conversations – Part I
Today is Thanksgiving and some families are gathering together, face to face, for the first time in many months. The general press talks about how large a role family dynamics — or dysfunction — can play in these get-togethers. The holidays are also a time to witness change in an aging loved one. A physical […]
Elder Medation talk at Fowler Nursing Center- Postponed
I was scheduled to speak at Fowler Nursing Center, Guilford, CT on Thursday, October 29, 2009 at 7:00. That talk has been postponed as a precaution against H1N1. As Connecticut shoreline residents know, Guilford has been hard hit by H1N1. So many students have been struck by it, that school administrators decided to close Guilford […]
Presentation on Crisis Intervention in Elder Mediation
On October 22, 2009 I gave a presentation on Crisis Intervention in Elder Mediation at VNA Community Healthcare in Guildford, CT. This presentation was a “return engagement” in a sense: in April, I had given an overview of elder mediation, including how it fits into mediation as a field and how it fits into the […]
Elder mediators and geriatric care managers
Yesterday’s New York Times included an article by Lesley Alderman titled “When Elder Care Problems Escalate, You Can Hire an Expert.” The article described the valuable role that geriatric care managers can play in helping elderly loved ones age safely. When families need help with health assessments, living accommodations, medication management, attending doctors’ appointments, finding […]
