askthedoctor Holiday Visits V

Healthy Visits Don’t visit if you — or any family member — have a cold, the flu, diarrhea, or any other communicable disease. Older people have depressed immune systems and are more susceptible to illness.

50 MILITARY OFFICER NOVEMBER 2015

Rear Adm. Joyce Johnson, D.O., discusses how to help everyone get the most enjoyment out of time spent with friends or family members in assisted-living facilities or nursing homes.

Visits can be more complicated when a friend or family member (let’s use “Aunt Sally” as an example) is in an assisted-living facility or a nursing home. Try to be realistic as you decide whether to bring Aunt Sally to holiday gatherings or celebrate at her residence. Take into account her ability for self-care (including social awareness, mo- bility, eating, and toileting). Overnight stays might involve medication management, changing clothes, getting to the bathroom at night, and nighttime confusion in diff erent surroundings. Consider her ability to get in and out of a car as well as any stairs or fall hazards (e.g., icy sidewalks), space available for a walker or wheelchair, etcetera. Some facilities invite family members to attend holiday events, such as concerts, meals, or puppet shows for grandchildren, scheduled on weekends or a day or two be- fore the actual holiday. You also might ask staff at Aunt Sally’s facility if they have pri- vate dining rooms where family members can be served for a small fee. If out-of-town friends or family members

want to visit Aunt Sally over the holidays, try to keep visits to less than an hour and limit the number of people. Half an hour before lunch or dinner is a good time to visit; you can escort Aunt Sally to her meal as you leave, for an easy transition. Don’t be surprised if she loses track of names — es- pecially of children who have grown since the last visit. If several families want to visit, schedule visits on diff erent days to provide more meaningful interactions.

It can be diffi cult to know what to do during a visit, especially if Aunt Sally has speech, hearing, visual, memory, or other issues. Consider bringing copies of family photos (including older ones that feature her), a piece of tagboard, and some glue, so she can help you make a collage for her to display. Or bring a box of holiday cards and help her address them to family and friends. People in nursing homes or assisted- living facilities have limited use — and even less storage space — for most gifts. Unless Aunt Sally is able to shop independently, cash and checks aren’t appropriate. Expen- sive jewelry presents storage and security challenges. A washable cardigan is a good choice; older people have diffi culty regulat- ing their body temperature. If you confi rm diabetes isn’t an issue, candy is an easy gift — but some might eat an entire 1-pound box at one time, with unfortunate medical con- sequences. Consider, instead, a decorated box with a few chocolates or a seasonally decorated cookie. Artifi cial fl owers in a plastic vase might be easier to care for than live ones in glass. If Aunt Sally doesn’t have the attention span for a book, consider a magazine with lots of photos. Prepare children with an age-appropri- ate discussion of Aunt Sally’s current con- dition to help them enjoy their visit.

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— Rear Adm. Joyce Johnson, USPHS (Ret), D.O., M.A., is a health care consultant in Chevy Chase, Md. Find more health and wellness resources at www.moaa.org/wellness. For sub- mission information, see page 6.

PHOTO: STEVE BARRETT