Kim Kratz with Packard Health

Everything Elderly is on Saturday mornings at 8:30, on 1290 am WLBY, sponsored by Senior Helpers. This past weekend we enjoyed two good discussions, about Packard Health and about Alzheimer’s disease.

Our first guest was Kim Kratz, the executive director for Packard Health. Packard Health is a primary care practice with offices on Packard Road, and at Dexter and Maple Roads. Their practice model is taking care of those with and without insurance, and those in between. Their mission is to serve the entire community. They are not a charity; they have a sliding fee scale. They expect those with some ability to pay to pay something toward their care.

We talked about health care reform, and Packard Health is pleased that more people will be covered by health insurance. For seniors, the new legislation will provide for more preventive services and will close the ‘donut hole’ which is a gap in Medicare coverage for prescription medications. Health care reform will eliminate lifetime maximums and exclusion for pre-existing conditions.

The AARP website, aarp.org, has a lot of useful information about health care reform, including the timeline and specific policy details. Kim sees success stories at their practice every day. She loves seeing the relief on people’s faces when they get the care they need. She is most proud of the inch by inch, step by step progress their patients make — taking off five pounds or controlling their blood sugar levels.

Packard Health is accepting new patients. To get in touch with Kim or Packard Health, please call 734-971-1073, or go to the website packardhealth.org. If you’d like to listen to the full 12-minute segment click the audio link below:

Alan Caldwell and Sheila Doeden co-hosting Everything Elderly

Sheila Doeden (our co-host) and I then had a good talk about Alzheimer’s disease. I am on the Alzheimer’s Association board of directors. The Executive Director is Jennifer Howard, and Bruno Giordani is the board chair, and they are both terrific.

The big news is the National Alzheimer’s Project Act was passed earlier this month. This will create a strategic national plan to better focus efforts on Alzheimer’s research, as well as providing support for those dealing with the disease. While the act itself does not provide any funding, it makes it very likely significant incremental government funds will be available. Alzheimer’s disease is now a national priority, like cancer and heart disease.

Other recent news is the FDA approval two weeks ago of a new test to better diagnosis the disease. A new chemical, Amyvid, is used in combination with a PET scan. The results provide physicians with a much better tool to diagnose Alzheimer’s.

We also spoke about good, effective communication when talking with a loved one with Alzheimer’s disease. It’s is so important to slow down and be patient. Try hard to not say “don’t you remember?” or “I just told you that”. The sad truth is they don’t remember, and for them it’s the first time.

The annual Memory Walk has been renamed the Walk to End Alzheimer’s. The Ann Arbor walk will be Sunday, Oct. 2 at Gallup Park. This is a wonderful family event to provide support, increase awareness, and raise funds. If you would like to contact the Alzheimer’s Association, the 24/7 Hotline is 800-272-3900, or call the Chelsea office at 734-475-7043, or you may go to website alz.org/mglc. To listen to the full 12-minute discussion click:

Alan Caldwell is the owner of Senior Helpers, providing in-home care services, primarily to the elderly. He can be contacted at acaldwell@seniorhelpers.com, or at 734-927-3111.