Medical Center, Santa Monica Strives to Make Hospital Stays Less Lonely for Elderly Patients

Newswise, June 17, 2016– Fridays are Julia Torrano’s favorite day of the week. There’s the TGIF thing, of course, but that’s not the main reason. What she enjoys most is her weekly, four-hour volunteer shift visiting older patients as part of the Companion Care Program at UCLA Medical Center, Santa Monica.

There, she enjoys spending time with patients who have few – if any – visitors, helping to ease the loneliness and isolation that can accompany hospital stays.

I love talking to these older patients who share their wisdom and life experiences,” explains Torrano, a 24-year-old from Santa Monica who’s planning to attend medical school.

According to Valerie Yeo, RN, director of the hospital’s inpatient Geriatrics Unit, volunteers like Torrano are important because many elderly patients feel very isolated.

Some don’t have family in the area, while others’ family members are unable to spend much time at the hospital because of work or other commitments.

“Hospitalization is never fun, but for patients who don’t have visitors, it can be very lonely,” said Yeo.

That’s one reason the UCLA Geriatrics Program launched its Companion Care Program at the hospital a year ago. The program now provides 45 companions, with a goal of having 200 volunteers who can donate at least one four-hour shift each week.

Yeo said poor nutrition and feelings of loneliness, depression and isolation are prevalent in the geriatric population, and the program seeks to counter these and reduce patient stress by providing one-on-one companionship, assistance and access to activities.

These companions, identifiable by their bright green polo shirts, often read to patients, play games with them, assist with feeding and perform other tasks, such as accompanying patients on walks under a nurse’s supervision.

David Reuben, MD, chief of the UCLA Geriatrics Program in Santa Monica and Westwood, said companions also help interested patients tell their life story through the “Living History Program,” a process designed to improve the connection between caregivers and patients by encouraging patients to share life experiences.

“Volunteers provide individualized social interaction and attention – engaging patients in a more personal way than might otherwise be possible. Most of the patients on the unit are sick, and a significant number have dementia, so levels of ability to participate in activities will vary,” Reuben said.

He added that volunteers must acquire CPR certification, receive specialized training in the needs and care of the geriatric population and attend a two-hour orientation program. Even with their training and skills, volunteers are not assigned to high-risk patients.

Lonely patients aren’t the only beneficiaries of companion care, according to Pedro Jimenez, program manager.

“Sometimes volunteers are assigned to patients who actually do have family members and friends, but those visitors may need a break – maybe just an hour to grab lunch or run home and take a shower,” Jimenez said.

“They may be reluctant to leave their loved one even for that amount of time. A volunteer can step in and provide a bit of respite.”

As important as the program is to the patients, Torrano feels that it also has a positive impact on her own life.

“This is the most rewarding volunteer program in which I’ve ever participated,” she said.

“Most of the patients just crave talking to people. They love talking about their lives, and I love hearing about them. For example, I was sitting one day with an older gentleman who had no family, and he began talking about his passion for music and ballroom dancing. He explained that it had gotten him through a divorce and other bumpy patches in his life. He was so enthusiastic and animated that it got me wanting to learn ballroom dancing, myself.”

The Companion Care Program is currently available only at UCLA’s Santa Monica campus. Anyone interested in volunteering may learn more by contacting Jimenez at 310-351-2527, emailing him at pdjimenez@mednet.ucla.edu or visitinghttp://geronet.ucla.edu/companioncare.

Getting Forgetful with Age? Clinical Trial to Test Ways to Combat Mental Decline

Cognitive effects of exercise, stress reduction and education to be measured in seniors

Newswise, December 18, 2015 — Some decline in memory and cognitive function is a normal part of aging, but what if it could be prevented? Researchers at University of California, San Diego School of Medicine and Washington University in St. Louis have launched a major clinical trial to investigate whether mental decline in seniors can be slowed or halted through exercise and other health-related interventions.

Funded by the McKnight Brain Research Foundation and a $15 million grant from the National Institutes of Health, the trial will explore how Mindfulness Based Stress Reduction (MBSR), physical exercise and health education influence cognitive processes, such as attention and memory in older adults. 

Approximately 580 seniors in San Diego and St. Louis will be recruited for the trial.

“This will be one of the largest and most comprehensive studies of its kind,” said Julie Wetherell, PhD, co-principal investigator and professor in UC San Diego School of Medicine’s Department of Psychiatry. 

“Our overall goal is to find out how to improve memory and concentration in older people.”

The researchers note that the trial is timely given the rising numbers of elderly. Currently, 10,000 Baby Boomers turn 65 every day and in the next few decades the country’s population aged 65 and older will almost double, from 43 million in 2012 to nearly 84 million by 2050.

“As our society ages, we want to preserve cognitive function and enhance it if possible,” said Wetherell. 

“We know the brain is capable of growing new connections into old age. If we demonstrate that one, two or all three of these interventions work, it will be good news for older people who want to maintain and improve their cognitive abilities.”

Earlier research conducted by Wetherell and Washington University researchers suggests there is room for optimism. 

In two smaller studies looking at the effects of Mindfulness Based Stress Reduction and health education on cognitive function in the elderly, they found improvements in the participants’ memory and thinking, with the stress reduction group showing greater gains.

The current clinical trial will add exercise to the mix and will place participants into one of four groups. Three of the groups will test the interventions individually and a fourth group will test a combination of exercise plus Mindfulness Based Stress Reduction.

“We’ll be doing a huge battery of tests looking at memory and executive functions, such as planning and sequential switching between tasks,” said Wetherell. 

Participants will undergo baseline MRI brain scans and will be retested at intervals. The scans will assess brain size, neural activity and other standard measures of cognitive function.

“We’re also looking at certain physiological indicators, such as glucose tolerance,” said Wetherell. Impaired glucose tolerance, which plays havoc with blood sugar levels, can damage parts of the brain. 

In addition, diabetes is a known risk factor for vascular dementia.

Wetherell said levels of cortisol, a stress hormone, will also be tracked. “Elevated levels of cortisol have been shown to have a malign influence on the hippocampus and frontal lobes, which are areas associated with memory and executive function,” she said.

The researchers hope that the trial’s stress reduction, exercise and education measures will improve both physiological indicators and the brain. “We hope we’ll be able to tell a causal story showing that the trial’s interventions will lead to improvements in these risk factors and changes in actual brain function,” she said.

The trial is in its early stages and participants are sought. Qualifying individuals must be 65 to 84 years old and not currently engaged in regular physical activity, but healthy enough to start an exercise program. 

Excluded health conditions include diabetes, cardiac issues or dementia. Each participant’s involvement will last 18 months; the study will run over the next five years.

To learn more about the trial, call 858-534-8118, email medexstudy@ucsd.edu or view the study website at medexstudy.com