May is Older Americans Month. To commemorate this, the Administration of Community Living's 2024 theme is the power of connection and the profound impact that meaningful relationships and social connections have on our health and well-being. The world experienced the downside of social distancing during the recent pandemic and the resulting grief, loneliness and isolation. Since then, we have an increased awareness of the human need for connection. There are a multitude of ways we can connect through our families, friends, employment, volunteer work, social groups, hobbies, places of worship, schools and daily interactions.
The benefits of social connectedness include longer life span, improved health, well-being and community trust and resilience. Ways to improve social connectedness in older adults include volunteer work such as tutoring students, volunteering as an ombudsman for long-term care, continuing care retirement community or assisted living facilities, handing out programs at a local theater, joining a hiking club or taking a class at a local university. If persons are less mobile, technology can be helpful to have virtual visual and auditory visits through FaceTime or other platforms. In the greater Washington DC area, the nearby counties have a friendly visitor program for individuals and/or caregivers with some in person and others virtual. To research services in your residential county, search “friendly visitor program" to assess if these services are available. Every Mind organization in Montgomery County, for example, has a Friendly Visitor Program for individuals over 60 who are homebound where the volunteer visits weekly. Here's a list of CDC suggestions to improve connectedness that include pet therapy, schools, intergenerational programs, and built environments (senior residential villages).
NIH Resource and Referral Services 1-800-777-1720 can be an additional resource to identify classes or volunteer opportunities in your community. A recent study funded by NIA showed that having regular conversations that arouse regions of the brain that stimulate executive functioning, memory and abstract thought by video chat favorably impacts older individuals' cognition and executive functioning scores compared to those receiving a shorter unstructured phone call If sensory deficits impact one's ability to interact, consider getting hearing aids or glasses to maximize one's sensory input to be able to communicate. Consider a quieter environment where the person can process the information more readily. The Elder Coach resource is available at 1-800-777-1720 to provide further advice on aging specific needs you or family members may have.
A March 2024 NIH Music and Mental Well-Being Expert Panel Webinar with Renée Fleming and Daniel Levitin spotlighted various beneficial properties of music research including connectedness. NIH's partnership with the Kennedy Center, Sound Health, creates public awareness about how the brain functions and interacts with music, identifies future research opportunities and obtains a better understanding of the association of music on brain circuitry. Dr. Collins recently presented on the instrumental role music has on his well-being. Let's Talk Resilience Through Music .mp4 (sharepoint.com)[MB([1]
A recent study by the University of Michigan showed the positive effects of music on older persons ages 50-80. Three-fourths reported music helped them relieve stress or relax and 65% report it helped their mental health or mood. Playing music with a faster tempo can help when motivation is needed and a slower tempo to reduce stimuli and calm down. The rhythms of drumming, strumming and singing have been studied with individuals with Parkinson's disease and helped with their gait, balance, fine motor skills, social connections, mood, vocal tone and involuntary movements.
There are opportunities at NIH as a musician to join the NIH Community Orchestra or NIH Philharmonic Orchestra. Employees can attend these orchestras' concerts and the regular music offerings in the Clinical Center. Check out this list of NIH clubs and organizations for ways to connect on campus and just have fun: Clubs & Organizations Recreation & Welfare Association. Numerous volunteer opportunities at the NIH Bethesda campus exist. Consider serving as a committee member such as the Aging and Adult Dependent Care Committee, be a research participant or help with an annual event like Take a Hike Day. Every summer, NIH participates in the Feds Feed Families campaign, Camp Fantastic, and in the winter, the Combined Federal Campaign. There are multiple listservs you can join (adult dependent care, life management, parenting, healthy eating), Employee Resource Groups, Recreation & Welfare, Wellness Program, Employee Assistance Programs, Office of Intramural Training and Education to connect with others and be engaged.
[MB([1]Waiting on better link here from DATS
