The Sebastopol and Gravenstein Community Health Centers in Sebastopol are part of the West County Health Centers network. With the large number of ‘baby boomers’ and their elders in the west county, we are busy working to promote good health in the senior population.
Good health enables more independence and less suffering as people age, and those are the underlying goals of our care.
Modern medicine includes amazing and helpful tests, medications and treatments, but recent studies in geriatrics, the medical care of seniors, show that basic self-care is the most powerful preventative action and also a very important adjunct to treatment of medical conditions.
At our clinics, we work with seniors to incorporate a healthy lifestyle into their medical care. This article is addressed to senior readers, but all can benefit from this information.
For seniors, we strongly recommend discussing what you do, or do not do, to take care of your health with your health provider or other member of your care team, then making a plan together to help you stay healthy, or to become healthier.
Medicare agrees, and now recommends an Annual Wellness Visit, at which blood pressure and weight, health habits, home safety, balance and memory are checked and appropriate screening tests and referrals are made.
As you would imagine, there are a lot of things that can be discussed. I suggest that if you have Medicare, you should plan one of these yearly visits with your medical provider, wherever you get your health care, if not done already.
In Sebastopol, we are now starting to offer our senior patients this Medicare Annual Wellness Visit in two parts so that there is enough time to discuss self-care in enough detail.
Part One is a one hour group visit/class covering health habits, home safety, fall prevention including how to maintain or improve balance and memory, nutrition, advance health care directives, and an overview of preventative testing, with time for discussion.
Part Two is an individual visit with one’s primary care provider, to go over health and self-care history, create individual health recommendations and order appropriate tests or referrals.
Here is a sneak peek at some included self-care topics. If needed, referrals are available within our community to help with any problems identified.
In general, seniors, and everyone, should take in to their bodies things that are health promoting and avoiding taking in toxins.
Most people are aware of the recommendations for eating more fruits and vegetables and less sugar, processed and fried foods than in the usual American diet, but many find them hard to follow.
Adequate dental care is also important for proper nutrition, as we do need to chew many healthy foods. Avoiding or minimizing one’s intake of poisons, such as tobacco and alcohol, is also important.
Why mention alcohol? Many do not know that as we age, the body does not break down alcohol as well, thus causing an increased risk of side effects such as liver injury, depression, memory loss or decreased balance.
Nutrition education is available from many sources. For our patients, we often refer to classes conducted by the Ceres project at our agency’s Forestville Wellness Center.
Exercise is another health recommendation, for all seniors. Studies show that, life expectancy and the ability to get out and enjoy life are improved for seniors who exercise, even if they only started in midlife.
Even starting late, when already having difficulty walking, exercise can prevent falls and may improve memory and fatigue. There are many community resources to help get started. There are even senior exercise videos on YouTube.
Home safety is also important. As we age, our sense of balance decreases. The risk of falling after tripping increases as does the risk of breaking a bone in a fall, which can make the difference between independence and dependence.
Most falls happen at home, many are preventable. Adding grab bars for stairs and in the bathroom and removing items that can be tripped over such as throw rugs can make a difference. Getting appropriate vision care and having adequate lighting also help.
Proper use of prescription and nonprescription medications and supplements is also important for health. We physicians see the risk of medications increase as people age, and also as people take more medicines at the same time.
One should avoid possibly unnecessary medications and take the lowest effective dose of needed ones. Sleeping pills are especially risky.
For routine medications, a weekly pill dispenser or setting a daily reminder can help you avoid forgetting or over-taking pills. Always tell your health provider about all of the over-the-counter medications and supplements you are taking, including quantity so they can check for side effects or interactions. Better yet, bring all the medicines or a list to each office visit.
Lastly, and importantly, depression, stress or social isolation can worsen a person’s general health. Each makes it harder to do the other health promoting behaviors just discussed, and stress induced changes in hormones badly affect body’s chemical processes.
These types of suffering can be helped, which is why we screen for them at the Annual Wellness Visit. If these are an issue though, one should not wait, but seek help as soon as possible.
More information about the Medicare Annual Wellness Visit is available at www.medicare.gov/coverage/preventive-visit-and-yearly-wellness-exams.html
West County Health Centers is a private, non-profit Federally Qualified Health Center providing medical, dental, and mental health services for 15,000 patients in a 750 square mile service area in western Sonoma County.
It operates seven sites in western Sonoma County including: Sebastopol Community Health Center, Gravenstein Community Health Center, Occidental Area Health Center, Russian River Health Center, Forestville Wellness Center, Forestville Teen Clinic and Russian River Dental Clinic.
West County Health Centers’ mission is to provide comprehensive, quality, and accessible health care services to the communities of western Sonoma County.
We are a cohesive team of health care providers, support staff, and volunteers dedicated to wellness, compassion, affordability and excellence of care. We believe in non-judgmental and equal care for all members of our diverse community.
West County Health Centers envisions healthy communities building relationships and partnerships that support health and wellbeing for all people.
In the north county, Alliance Medical Center (clinics in Windsor and Healdsburg) and Alexander Valley Healthcare (Cloverdale) are also Federally Qualified Health Centers and offer similar services.
