Los Angeles Jewish Home

By Nancy Sokoler Steiner

Music expresses that which cannot be said and on which it is impossible to be silent.
~Victor Hugo

One of music's most striking powers can be seen in its impact on individuals with Alzheimer's and other forms of dementia. A dramatic example of this effect is found on a viral YouTube video featuring an elderly Alzheimer's patient named Henry. At first, Henry is slumped over in his chair, his head bent forward, his speech condensed. Then an aide gives him an iPod. The moment Henry starts listening, he becomes instantly animated: his face lights up and he begins to move his arms and legs. After his headphones are removed, he talks about his love of jazz, and sings lyrics from a favorite song.

Later in the same video, neurologist and author Oliver Sacks comments on Henry's response. "In some sense, Henry is restored to himself," says Sacks. "He remembered who he is and has reacquired his identity for a while through the power of music."

While music doesn't always evoke reactions as extreme as Henry's, it does seem to engage even the most unresponsive of individuals. That is one reason music plays a major role in the Los Angeles Jewish Home's skilled nursing and dementia care.

Susan Leitch, community manager of the Goldenberg·Ziman Special Care Center and Max Factor Family Foundation Building, notes that music is played throughout the day, and carefully chosen to set the tone and help cue residents. For example, calm, relaxing music is played in the evening to signal winding down of the day.

Music is also used more formally in music therapy sessions for skilled nursing and dementia care residents. Music therapist Cindy McGee facilitates sessions twice a week. These sessions, she says, are not sing-alongs; they are therapeutic interventions with specific goals.

One goal, called reality orientation, aims to bring participants who may not be aware of their surroundings into the present moment. Another is to aid recall and reminiscence by evoking thoughts and memories associated with the music.

During music therapy, says McGee, "participants will mention the name of a relative or tell a story they normally can't remember. It allows them to connect to something outside themselves."

As a recent session, McGee played Somewhere Over the Rainbow, and residents sang along. She asked them who sang the song, and passed around a photo of the Wizard of Oz cast. After several of them pointed to Dorothy, McGee asked them to name the movie.

"What would you ask the Wizard for?" she later queried the group.

"Good health," answered one.

"A good looking guy," said another.

Whether in the background or in a formal setting, music evokes a response. That response may be as subtle as the tapping of a foot, as dramatic as the transformation of YouTube's Henry, or as familiar as the desire for romance.

The beauty of music, it seems, is it's universal appeal. As Susan Leitch says, "Music involves everyone. It doesn't matter what level of function you're at."

Labels: Alzheimer's, Dementia, For the Spirit, Music, Nancy Sokoler Steiner, Therapy, YouTube

The other day, some of the nursing staff at our Eisenberg Village campus planned something really fun for our residents: they organized a luau!


The residents who participated live either at the Goldenberg•Ziman Special Care Center, which cares for seniors with Alzheimer's disease or age-related dementia, or the Max Factor Family Foundation Nursing Building, which provides skilled nursing to seniors who need extra assistance.

When the residents saw their nurses — who are normally in scrubs — enter in hula skirts, their eyes lit up! The entire room was laughing, clapping, and singing along.

In addition to being a fun, entertaining afternoon, events like these serve a profound therapeutic purpose. Happiness is known to have incredible life-lengthening health benefits; and the positive atmosphere, the music, and the dancing promotes both physical and cognitive strength.

Labels: Aging, Alzheimer's, Around the Home, Dementia, Eisenberg Village, Elderly, Factor, Goldenberg-Ziman, Healthy Aging, Hula, Luau, Nursing, Seniors, Skilled Nursing, Staff, Video, YouTube

It’s 2:15 a.m. Out of a deep sleep, you awaken to clanging noises in your kitchen. Not long ago, you would have thought someone was attempting to get into the house. But with everything that’s gone on lately, you realize it is actually someone trying to get out. It’s your mom. She’s ‘wandering’ again.

Recently, you’ve noticed she is having memory problems. It’s been harder for her to recall what was just said. Now she’s forgetting the day, the date and other little features of daily life. Learning new things seems especially challenging for her, and she is starting to make up details to fill in the parts of stories she’s forgotten.

At first, it was possible to chalk it all up to getting older. After all, there are many challenges to deal with as the years advance. But things have really begun to change for the worse.

Mom can’t sleep through the night. She wakes up disoriented and confused. During the day, she believes she has appointments that have never been made. She talks about going to see friends or family who have long ago passed away or moved. She gets mad and lashes out when she is prevented from doing things you know she can no longer do.

Sometimes Mom seems depressed. It is harder and harder to take care of her personal needs, and she doesn’t seem to understand why you want her to take a shower. Sometimes she even forgets who you are.

It seems that her symptoms are coming on faster and faster, and, since she took that fall last week, things have gotten so much worse. Her doctor prescribed some medication, but it really isn’t helping.

You get out of bed and go downstairs to try to help Mom back to bed. She isn’t settled until 4 a.m. You don’t know what you’re going to do. One of these days you might not be able to get to her in time.

Mom has dementia, and now you’re worried about her safety. You need someone to help you figure out what to do next.

The preceding scenario is a composite of several we’ve heard from families caring for loved ones with various forms of age-related dementia.

At the Jewish Home’s acclaimed Auerbach Geriatric Psychiatry Unit (AGPU), we counsel families on mental health services for their senior loved ones, and provide short-term (acute) intensive treatment for seniors experiencing stressful mental or emotional challenges.

More than 50% of patients treated are suffering from acute dementia. The goal of our small, specialized hospital unit is to help restore seniors to an optimal level of functioning so they may safely return to their home or residential setting.

While most people do not need to be admitted, the staff at the Auerbach Geriatric Psychiatry Unit can help you sort through your options, gain new insights on dealing with dementia, and where to go for additional help.

If you have a loved one who is experiencing acute mental health challenges, please call the Jewish Home’s Auerbach Geriatric Psychiatry Unit at (818) 758-5042. A helpful staff member will either talk with you immediately or get back to you promptly.

Labels: Aging, Alzheimer's, Auerbach Geriatric Psychiatry Unit, Dementia, Feature Articles, For the Mind, Luke Jackson, Memory, Parents, Wandering

It's always interesting to see how Eastern medicinal techniques make their way into Western practices. Today's posts in The New Old Age, an award winning blog sponsored by The New York Times, talks about the use of reiki in special care centers to help people with dementia.

In a recent Jewish Home Feature Article, Dr. Edward Schneider explained that Eastern and Western medicine can complement one another. What would be interesting to know definitively, though, is whether reiki can physically heal, or whether the presence of a calm caregiver or peaceful music simply puts dementia patients at ease.

What do you think?

Labels: Alternative Medicine, Caregiving, Dementia, Eastern Medicine, For the Body, Healing, Health, Japanese Medicine, New York Times, Reiki, Schneider, Staff, The New Old Age, Traditional Medicine, Wellness

Cross posted from ElderDepot.com.



Maria Shriver helped cared for her father, who suffered from Alzheimer’s, and has become a champion of Alzheimer’s Caregivers. Her journalism career began with KYW-TV in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, but she soon moved up to the National News and later gained a different sort of fame when she married Arnold Schwarzenegger. The former First Lady of California has been a lifelong advocate for people with intellectual disabilities and recently co-authored an Alzheimer’s study with the Alzheimer’s Association.


Princess Yasmin Aga Khan cared for her mother, Rita Hayworth, who was suffering from dementia. Yasmin is internationally recognized for her advocacy work promoting awareness of Alzheimer’s Disease.


Steve Slater cared for his father, who suffered from Lou Gehrig’s disease, until his death. In 2010, while caring for his mother who suffers from Lung Cancer, Steve achieved national notoriety for quitting his job as a JetBlue Flight Attendant in spectacular fashion.


Susan Boyle was the primary caregiver for her elderly mother until she passed away at the age of 91. In 2009, two years after her mother passed away, Susan appeared on Britain’s Got Talent and gave a performance of “I Dreamed a Dream” that made her an International Sensation overnight.


Rosalynn Carter helped care for her father when he was diagnosed with terminal leukemia and has since cared for several family members, including her late mother who died in 2000 at the age of 94. The former First Lady of the United States has even authored a book on Caregiving entitled, Helping Yourself Help Others – A Book for Caregivers.


Can you think of Famous Caregivers that we’ve missed? Let us know in the comments and we’ll add them to the list.


Read the original blog post.

Labels: Alzheimer's, Caregiving, Cross Post, Dementia, Elder Depot, Eldercare, For the Spirit, Senior Care, Staff

Interview with Dr. Fernando Torres-Gil,
Author of The New Aging: Politics and Change in America

Dr. Fernando Torres-Gil is the Associate Dean of the UCLA School of Public Affairs and Associate Dean of Academic Affairs. He holds appointments as Professor of Social Welfare and Public Policy and is the Director of the Center for Policy Research on Aging. A former Professor of Gerontology and Public Administration at the University of Southern California, Dr. Torres-Gil continues there as an Adjunct Professor of Gerontology. He was appointed by President Clinton as the first Assistant Secretary for Aging in the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services.

Q. Your book, The New Aging: Politics and Change in America, published in 1992, examined how the retirement of the baby boomer generation would affect how we age. Have most of your predictions come true?

A. I believe most have been on the mark. The need for public programs today is more urgent than ever. There will be no "retirement" for baby boomers, at least not the kind we fantasized about. The pending old age of 80 million people comes at the very time the U.S. is confronting serious crises. When I wrote the book, I was concerned that many baby boomers would awaken at 65 to find that they have not saved, that there was no social safety net, and no equity in their home. The crises have occurred far faster than I ever imagined.

Q. Yet you believe the economic events of the past year provide us with a great opportunity.

A. The baby boomers may well become our next generation of gray panthers – a new generation of senior citizen activists. Our parents and grandparents faced their great adversity when they were young – during the Great Depression, WWII, and the Cold War. Baby boomers, who've had it relatively easy throughout their lifetime, will face their great test when they're old. Our country simply has not prepared for increased longevity. The nation is going to need an engaged citizenry to make up for this.

Q. Another challenge may be that boomers still haven't admitted to the fact that they're aging.

A. This may be the existential crisis of the moment. If there is a silver lining to the mismanagement of the Federal government in the last eight years, it is that those of us who are aging can no longer deny the fact. I am hoping that the crises in finance, savings, and housing will arouse a generation to begin asking what can be done to turn things around.

Q. What is the impact of the intersection of diversity and aging that you discuss in your book?

A. During the next 20 years, our current ethnic minorities will become the new majority. We will expect them to be productive and to pay sufficient taxes to cover the services baby boomers will require from government. If we don't invest in these young immigrant communities today, we may not have the tax base to fund the social programs we'll need tomorrow.

Q. It seems that Los Angeles could be an epicenter of such changes.

A. We have struggled with the tension that sometimes occurs with growth and demographic change, but we have managed to rise above it. I believe L.A. County has the highest degree of tolerance and acceptance of diversity and plurality of anywhere in the country. We continue to remain economically viable specifically because of the influx of Armenians, Persians, Asian Pacific Islanders, Central Americans, and Latinos. L.A. County has really shown that it can prosper from diversity, and we remain a role model for the rest of the country.

Q. We have a large and growing population of family caregivers, a situation that is already considered a national crisis. How can cities and municipalities provide assistance?

A. Caregiving is a preoccupying priority, given the difficulties faced by loved ones. It is not only about identifying individuals in need, but about enabling them to receive services in their homes and communities. There is also the issue of the huge and frequently invisible sacrifices that caregivers make, whether it's an inability to keep working, the pressures of caregiving, or high stress levels that can cause health problems. We need to build up a caregiver workforce made up of immigrant minority low-income workers. The challenges of caregiving will cut across race, income, and political affiliation.

Q. The Department of Public Health has predicted a rise in the incidence of Alzheimer's disease. Will this also increase the need for both family and professional caregivers?

A. Alzheimer's and other dementias will be our HIV/AIDS crisis for the older generation. We have made great strides in addressing the issues of HIV and AIDS and responding to the needs of that population. We must develop an equally effective response to the increase in Alzheimer's and the growing number of older persons who are physically unable to care for themselves.

Q. Employers continue to lose millions of dollars as employees take time off to care for older family members. What can we do to mobilize the workforce to help with the issue?

A. During the years when baby boomers became young parents, employers began providing daycare centers and a variety of childcare options. Employers may need to think about adding adult daycare centers to the mix. But we need to consider the balance between economic development and the potential losses due to caregiving support. Businesses have two essential roles – to create jobs and to make profits, which provide tax revenues to support social programs. Ultimately, federal and state governments must provide programs that take the burden off of employers. Having said that, I still believe employers should play a role in providing assistance to workers who have caregiving responsibilities.

Q. What are your thoughts about land use planning, housing, and transportation for our aging population?

A. All too often cities and municipalities allow developers to create housing for individuals who will be aging in the wrong place. When people grow old and are isolated, they will not have the transportation, social services, and healthcare services they need. Decisions are being made to disperse and isolate an aging population, when, instead, we should be promoting smart growth, high density, affordable, accessible housing in places that provide health and social services.

Q. You co-wrote a book with experts in aging from Israel and Australia that was published in 2007, called Lessons From Three Nations. What do these two countries have in common with the United States?

A. Israel has an intense history with immigration because it actively sought out Jewish refugees from around the world. All refugees who come to Israel are entitled to a universal system of health, long-term care, and social benefits, thereby reducing the burden on the private sector. Israel addresses the needs of their immigrant elderly far better than the U.S. or Australia.

Australia created a very generous multicultural policy in the 1970s that welcomed immigrants from around the Pacific Basin. It gave that country tremendous economic vitality. Now however, they have a large influx of immigrant elders, and do not have the national policies to respond. So they are trying to find a balance.

The U.S. has a longer history of absorbing immigrants and a successful record of assimilating second- and third-generation immigrants. What we lack is universal health, long-term care and social services. We are still very much an individualistic society and in conflict over reforming immigration policies. The three countries have different experiences. What we have in common is that our populations are getting older and each one of our countries needs immigrants and minorities to replace our aging workforce.

Q. Do you have any final thoughts about how we can prepare for our aging population?

A. We have to accept the reality that we are growing old and becoming more diverse. Furthermore, we should see these two situations as an opportunity to keep the elderly in the community. We must find ways to make cities and municipalities user-friendly and accessible, so individuals can age in place. I would encourage our public officials to do all they can to invest in the younger immigrant and minority communities because they will be our next generation of taxpayers. I would also encourage everyone to look at aging and diversity as a tremendous asset.

Reprinted with permission from THE LINK, the official newsletter of the Los Angeles Commission on Aging.

Barbara Meltzer is the founder and principal of the Los Angeles-based Public Relations and Marketing Agency, Barbara Meltzer & Associates. Her personal experience as a family caregiver sparked an interest in aging issues and advocacy. In 2007, she was appointed by Supervisor Zev Yaroslavsky to serve as a Commissioner on the Los Angeles County Commission on Aging. Barbara Meltzer can be reached at Barbara@meltzerpr.com.

Labels: Aging, Alzheimer's, Baby Boomers, Dementia, Feature Articles, Meltzer, Policy, Retirement, Torres-Gil