Tanum Ollila from Brookdale Place in Ann Arbor joined us on the show this past weekend. She has been busy with many new residents moving to their senior community, located on Ann Arbor-Saline Road. Brookdale Place has two “neighborhoods,” one for assisted living, and one for those receiving memory care.

Tanum talked about Clare Bridge, their memory care community, and how the staff work hard at “meeting someone in their journey, where they are now.” If their resident believes it’s 1941, and they are taking the train here from Kentucky, then that’s where their staff needs to be with them.

Brookdale Place completes a life history form for each of their new residents, to get to know and appreciate the details of his or her background. Knowing residents' interests and what their lives have been like better ensures the residenst receive the appropriate care and attention to optimize their quality of life.

When looking for a facility for your mom or dad, Tanum believes it is super important to visit the community. How do you feel when you walk in the door? Look at the residents, and how they are being treated. Do you see interaction with the staff? Do you see residents engaged?

Tanum’s biggest hurdle is getting families to come see the facility. So many people believe senior facilities are still old-style nursing homes, dreary and depressing. Families are frequently shocked when they see how nice a senior community can be.

To listen to the 13-minute discussion with Tanum click the audio link:

To get in touch with Tanum or Brookdale Place of Ann Arbor, call 734-327-1350 or visit the website brookdaleliving.com.

We were quite privileged to have both Swati Patel and Dennis MacMath from Eminent Home Care next on the show. Eminent Home Care is a Medicare-approved, skilled home care company, with services including registered nurses, physical therapy and occupational therapy.

One of Eminent’s specific focuses is lymphedema therapy. Swati is a certified lymphedema therapist and clearly knows a great deal about lymphedema and how best to treat this condition.

Lymphedema is chronic swelling, usually in the legs, sometimes in the arms. This condition may appear at different times, including post-surgery, or with an obstruction in the lymphatic system. It is more likely to occur in people with kidney problems or congestive heart failure.

Unfortunately the diagnosis of lymphedema is usually quite late. By the time Swati sees her patients, their legs may be very large, with increasing redness of the skin. Doctors will likely have prescribed antibiotics, but that doesn’t solve the problem.

Therapy can solve the problem. Swati says that about ninety percent of her patients respond very positively to therapy. The treatment is a specific type of massage -- manual massage using very light pressure. The massage is provided “with a specific direction, in a U shape”. The lymphedema condition can be very painful, but the massage will likely help alleviate the pain immediately.

The biggest issue that Eminent has with lymphedema therapy is lack of compliance post-therapy. Lymphedema is not a curable problem, but it is manageable. Compression bandages that push fluid in one direction need to be worn for most hours of the day.

To listen to the 13-minute talk with Swati and Dennis please click the audio link:

To contact Swati, Dennis, or Eminent Home Care, you may call 734-451-2221, or visit their website eminenthomecare.com.

Alan Caldwell and Sheila Doeden co-host Everything Elderly every Saturday morning at 8:30 on 1290 WLBY. In their day jobs, Alan and Sheila co-own and co-manage Senior Helpers, providing in-home care services, primarily to the elderly. Both can be contacted at homecareexcellence@seniorhelpers.com, or at 734-927-3111.