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May 29, 2018
AARP Study Finds Increase in Antipsychotic Use Among Older Adults with Dementia Living in the Community
AARP Public Policy Institute has published an article entitled "Off-label Antipsychotic Use in Older Adults with Dementia: Not Just a Nursing Home Problem." Despite known health risks, antipsychotic medications continue to be prescribed off-label to treat the behavioral symptoms of dementia. Efforts to reduce antipsychotic use in nursing homes have shown some success. Yet, very little attention has been paid to the use of antipsychotic drugs outside of nursing homes. AARP Public Policy Institute analyzed insurance claims data from 2012-2015 and found that rates of anitpyschotic use among older adults with dementia who live in the community have increased since 2012. The study's findings confirm the 2015 Government Accountability Office (GAO) report stating that the Department of Health and Human Services has taken little action to reduce antipsychotic use among older adults living in the community. Read the full AARP article here.
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US Senate Special Committee on Aging Holds Hearing on Opioid Misuse Among Older Adults
On Wednesday May 23, the U.S. Senate Special Committee on Aging held a hearing, "Preventing and Treating Opioid Misuse Among Older Americans." The hearing was led by Chairwoman Susan M. Collins (R-ME) and Ranking Member Bob Casey (D-PA). Panelists included: (1) Gary Cantrell, Deputy Inspector General For Investigations, Office of the Inspector General, Department of Health and Human Services, (2) Charles Pattavina, MD, FACEP, Medical Director aAnd Chief of Emergency Medicine, St. Joseph Hospital, (3) William Stauffer, Executive Director, Pennsylvania Recovery Organizations Alliance, (4) Nicolas P. Terry, Professor of Law And Executive Director of the William S. And Christine S. Hall Center For Law And Health, Indiana University.
Panelists highlighted the importance of finding the right balance between over-treating and under-treating chronic pain in older adults with opioids. While over-treatment can lead to opioid addiction, under-treatment can lead to individuals seeking out opioids from other sources, which are inherently more dangerous. Dr. Charles Pattavina highlighted a specific situation in which a nursing home resident was under-treated for her pain and was found to have signs and symptoms of an opioid overdose, possibly from street drugs. William Stauffer highlighted that older adults are at risk for medication misuse due to conditions like pain, sleep disorders/insomnia, and anxiety that commonly occur in this population. Deputy Inspector Cantrell noted approximately 500,000 Medicare beneficiaries received high amounts of opioids, and OIG had identified nearly 90,000 beneficiaries at serious risk of opioid misuse or overdose. In addition, Cantrell identified several opioid-related audits and evaluations the OIG is currently conducting, including questionable prescribing patterns and Medicaid/Medicare program integrity controls. Panelists also emphasized treatment and recovery from opioid addiction should involve the whole person and consider the unique needs of this population in our society.
To view the full hearing and read each panelist's testimony, click here.
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Financial Exploitation Resources for AAPI Older Adults
May is National Asian Pacific American Heritage Month. The National Center on Elder Abuse and National Asian Pacific Center on Aging have several resources on financial exploitation available in English, Chinese, Vietnamese, Korean, Tagalog, and Samoan. Guidelines for Professionals are also provided and include instructions on utilizing the in-language fact sheets and best practices when working with Asian American and Pacific Islander (AAPI) older adults who may be a victim of, or vulnerable to, financial exploitation. Access the resources here.
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World Elder Abuse Awareness Day Webinar
Join the Elder Justice Initiative (EJI) Wednesday, June 13th at 4:00pm ET for a webinar commemorating World Elder Abuse Awareness Day (WEAAD). A presenter from the Social Security Administration will share the latest on representative payees; an EJI representative will talk about the Elder Abuse Prevention and Prosecution Act and new resources being developed to better respond to elder abuse; an expert from the Administration for Community Living will describe their guardianship grant programs and the importance of data collection for policy and programmatic enhancement; and the Deputy Director of the National Center on Elder Abuse will present on some of the latest trends and resources that will help you to better respond to elder abuse. Register here.
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NORC Webinar on Resident-to-Resident Mistreatment
Join the National Long-Term Care Ombudsman Resource Center (NORC) for a webinar on Tuesday, June 26th at 3:00pm ET entitled "Ending Nursing Home Violence Between Residents: Prevention, Intervention, and Advocacy." This webinar will examine the widespread problem of physical violence (resident-to-resident mistreatment) in nursing homes and argue that a large-scale public health initiative is needed to end nursing home violence.
Dr. Karl Pillemer, Director, Bronfenbrenner Center for Translational Research, Hazel E. Reed Professor in the Department of Human Development, Professor of Gerontology in Medicine at the Weill Cornell Medical College, will review the research evidence on the prevalence of violence in nursing homes and discuss why intervention in this area has lagged other forms of violence. Options for eliminating violence in nursing home settings, with special attention to transferring knowledge from successful public health campaigns to combat violent behavior, will be presented.
Also, Sara Gusler, Michigan Ombudsman program representative, will describe the "Senior-to-Senior Bullying Reduction" training program her agency developed. Following these presentations, information will be shared regarding resources and training for facility staff and long-term care Ombudsman programs. Register here.
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Spotlight on Resources
The Consumer Voice and the National Ombudsman Resource Center (NORC) have a multitude of resources available online covering a wide range of long-term care topics. Visit the Consumer Voice website and the NORC website to explore all the available resources. Take a look at this week's highlighted resource:
Financial Exploitation - This Consumer Voice issue page discusses financial exploitation in long-term care settings and provides tips and resources for preventing, detecting and reporting financial abuse.
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In this Issue
AARP Study Finds Increase in Antipsychotic Use Among Older Adults with Dementia Living in the Community
US Senate Special Committee on Aging Holds Hearing on Opioid Misuse Among Older Adults
Financial Exploitation Resources for AAPI Older Adults
World Elder Abuse Awareness Day Webinar
NORC Webinar on Resident-to-Resident Mistreatment
Spotlight on Resources
Calendar of Events
May: Older Americans Month
Wednesday, June 13: World Elder Abuse Awareness Day Celebration: Leveraging National Resources to Build Strong Support for Older Adults, 4:00pm ET, Webinar from Elder Justice Initiative
Friday, June 15: World Elder Abuse Awareness Day
Tuesday, June 26: Ending Nursing Home Violence Between Residents: Prevention, Intervention, and Advocacy, 3:00pm ET, NORC Webinar
October: Residents' Rights Month, Speak Up: Know Your Rights and How to Use Them
October 22-24: Consumer Voice Annual Conference, Alexandria, Virginia
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Thursday, May 24:
Quality is what we seek for people receiving long-term care, no matter what the setting, but how will we work to advocate for quality?
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Thursday, May 24:
Materials from our webinar with experts from the University of Massachusetts - Boston on the principles of consumer satisfaction in nursing homes
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