Mental health experts based in the San Francisco Bay Area are exploring the ensuing physical, mental and emotional effects of climate change, particularly on the lives of older adults.
Coronavirus
Nonprofit Brings COVID-19 Vaccines to Seniors
Self-Help for the Elderly, has stepped in not just with advocacy for improved access to vaccines, but by bringing doctors who can administer vaccines to the seniors who need them at community centers they already visit. President and CEO Anni Chung joined “Civic” to share how the organization has been vaccinating the seniors it serves.
Coronavirus
Nursing Homes to Get Vaccines Soon Through Major Pharmacy Chains
Vaccines are arriving in California and doses will be administered at nursing homes soon through a government partnership with pharmacy giants CVS and Walgreens, whose staffs will deliver vaccines to long term care facilities. Eric Dowdy, chief government affairs officer at Leading Age California, an organization representing mostly nonprofit senior care facilities, said the top priority for those planning the vaccine rollout is combating misinformation that fuels mistrust in the vaccine.
Elections
Senior, Disability Advocates Mobilize to Ensure Care Facility Residents Vote
The coronavirus pandemic has transformed elections, and for people who live in residential care facilities like nursing homes, that may be creating barriers to participation. Last week, organizers with Senior and Disability Action called together advocates and experts to lay out what rights these residents have and how to ensure they are able to exercise them.
Arts & Culture
David Talbot Reflects on Recovering From Stroke in Latest Book
In his memoir “Between Heaven and Hell: The Story of my Stroke,” writer and journalist David Talbot reflects on the long journey toward recovery from a stroke that attacked his ability to swallow, care for himself and speak and write.
“Civic” Podcast
With Increased Isolation Comes Increased Risk of Being Scammed
Fear, uncertainty and isolation, pervasive during the coronavirus pandemic, present an opportunity for malicious actors to deceive consumers into revealing private information, buying fake products or falling to fraudulent schemes and sending money.
Aging
Elder Advocates Warn of Coronavirus Scams
Phone and email scams are nothing new, but crises create an opportunity for those who prey on fear, and during the coronavirus pandemic, variations on old scams have cropped up that target the vulnerable.
Neighborhoods
Coronavirus Spurs Neighbors in S.F.’s Sunset District to Create Mutual Aid Society
In less than two weeks,a well-meaning post in a neighborhood Facebook group has evolved into an extremely organized support system for an entire community during the time San Francisco’s COVID-19 shelter-in-place order is in effect.
Coronavirus
Tech Firms Could Keep Seniors Safe in Coronavirus Lockdown by Funding Connectivity
Guest opinion: Low-income San Francisco seniors are facing a connectivity crisis as well as a health crisis. For most Bay Area residents coping with the mandate to shelter in place as the coronavirus spreads, home internet access, devices and software platforms enable us to work from home, communicate with family and friends, use telehealth services and stay informed.
Aging
‘Master Plan on Aging’ Seeks to Provide Dignity for Seniors
Seniors have become an increasingly prevalent demographic in California. For every adult age 65 or older, there were previously five people under the age of 15. Now the ratio is almost 1-to-1. In response to this demographic shift, Gov. Gavin Newsom has called for a “master plan on aging” to ensure elders have the care and support they need to age with dignity. Leading Age California, an organization that represents nonprofit senior living and service providers, has been pushing for such a plan. CEO Jeannee Parker Martin shares some insights into what the plan must consider and what its priorities could be.
Aging
Counting the City’s Homeless: A First-Hand Account From the Streets
Point-in-Time counts are “snapshots” of a city’s homeless population, relying on volunteers’ perceptions of homelessness. As such, the surveys are prone to error. They also fail to gather specifics about age and ethnicity, and don’t provide a full picture of the most vulnerable growing populations: infants and the elderly.