Humboldt Deputy Fire Chief Darrell Wickenhauser and Community Safety Officer Justin Tarrant demonstrated how to help someone up after a fall during the 2023 Senior Symposium on Oct. 12. (Submitted photo/Becky Zimmer)

By Becky Zimmer

Safety for Seniors

Information session brings senior issues out into the open

Oct 13, 2023 | 5:00 PM

Even in the digital world with information at our fingertips, seniors are getting left behind.

The 2023 Senior Symposium brought the information to them with presenters and trade booths all in one convenient and accessible location, The Elizabeth Retirement Community.

Even with mobility and digital accessibility issues causing some barriers for Humboldt seniors, they do not have to feel alone, said Cori Norman with the seniors-focused housing centre and Age-Friendly Humboldt, who partnered with Safe Communities to host the event.

Seniors are scared, Norman told northeastNOW, scared to ask questions or just admit when they don’t have the means to get up and go to Shoppers to ask questions about vaccines or Connexus about fraudulent phone calls. Hosting an event that focused on information for seniors not only provided valuable information right where they live but also encouraged them to ask questions and gain valuable partnerships they can call on later. Important information bares repeating, she said.

“They need someone who has the time and patience to reinforce, to reintroduce and plainly repeat at a slow motion,” said Norman. “Things like this are perfect. They need more and more opportunities like that.”

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Seven presenters gave detailed information on fall recovery and calling 911, vaccinations, fire safety, community bylaws, and fraud prevention, as well as community groups and organizations were also given time to speak about what they offer.

One of these presenters was Renee Zimmerman from Shoppers Drug Mart. Besides talking about the flu and COVID vaccines, she also spoke about vaccinating against pneumonia, RSV and shingles, some of which aren’t covered by Canadian health care but can help protect this vulnerable sector of the population. Making sure seniors have this information is an important first step.

“A lot of them aren’t on social media and just having an event come to them like this is really great,” she told northeastNOW. “They are able to gather that information that they need to stay healthy and safe.”

The number of people with dementia is increasing by 10 people every day across the province, said Connie Snider, first link coordinator with the Alzheimer Society of Saskatchewan, and that daily total is predicted to go even higher in the coming years.

Knowing the warning signs means that seniors can have that conversation with their doctor or pharmacist and rule out anything that’s treatable, she said. People also need to know that a diagnosis is not a death sentence, she told northeastNOW, and when seniors can start having those conversations early, they can still be active participants in planning for their future.

“Maybe it’s looking at your bucket list and what becomes more important; planning for driving cessation; do you have a power of attorney in place; do you have an advanced care directive, so that you have as much input into your future plan as possible?”

Living wills and medical directives were part of Russel Weber’s presentation. Even during a life-altering illness or during their end-of-life care, people have the power to decide who is going to make important medical and estate-based decisions when they cannot, the lawyer and partner at Weber and Gasper Law Office in Humboldt told northeastNOW.

“There are two parts to the health care directive; one is to appoint a proxy, a decision maker; the other is to set out what you would or would not want in terms of medical treatment,” he said, but those discussions have to take place early with family and friends, especially those who will be making those final health care decisions, and it has to be put into writing.

While government legislation regulates medical proxies if one hasn’t been appointed, this is not the same for a power of attorney. If one hasn’t been chosen and the person isn’t about to appoint one, it can take $3,000 and up to four months to get one appointed.

Amanda Hauber with Safe Communities told northeastNOW the community support for the event was greatly appreciated with numerous businesses stepping up with monetary donations and most of the presenters being from local organizations. These are now people within the community who can continue to offer help and assistance whenever seniors need it.

Norman said seniors need that list of people they can trust within the community.

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becky.zimmer@pattisonmedia.com

On Twitter: @bex_zim