NPR Broadcasts "Managing Your Elderly Parents' Finances"

On Thursday morning (11:06 AM to Noon), February 27, 2014, The Diane Rehm Show, as broadcast from WAMU through the National Public Radio network, focused on the topic Managing Your Elderly Parents' Finances, with guest host Elise Labott.

The highly-qualified and well-spoken guests were:

Sally Hurme, Project Advisor, Education and Outreach, at AARP

Naomi Karp, Senior Policy Analyst, Office for Older Americans, Consumer Financial Protection Bureau

Elizabeth Loewy, Chief, Elder Abuse Unit, Special Victims/Special Prosecutions Bureau, New York County District Attorney's Office

This is the overview of the program topic:

Millions of elderly Americans suffer from dementia, Alzheimer’s disease and other disabilities that make them unable to make decisions about their finances. 

About a quarter of all people over the age of 65 rely on relatives, often their children, for help managing their money and assets. But the task of caring for elderly parents and managing their bills and property can be overwhelming and time consuming. It can also be filled with ethical and legal pitfalls and a source of family conflict.

Two of these guests were quoted recently in an article by Ann Carrns, in The New York Times published October 30, 2013, entitled New Guidelines Aim to Help Financial Caregivers. So I knew that these guests were experts.

As I listened, I heard accurate information and sound advice, without one error or overstatement. The discussion covered such concerns as:

• Need for reliable and appropriate assistance for elderly relatives by family members who care
• Mental capacity and incapacity 
• Changeability of circumstances faced by elderly relatives
• Nature of services involving banks, businesses, investments, bills, living expenses, and medical costs
• Accountability by, and communications among, persons providing assistance or care
• Fiduciary responsibilities under a power of attorney or trust 
• Conflicts of interest of a family member with an elderly person
• Potentials for personal and financial abuse of a vulnerable adult 
• Roles of family members and assistance by community, government, or church organizations
• Planning processes -- when and how
• Helpful advisors, including attorneys, accountants, bankers, and special service organizations
• Devices for financial management, including direct deposits and payments, online banking, joint bank accounts (including problems with survivorship designations, versus "convenience" accounts), Social Security representative payees, agent appointments under a power of attorney document, voluntary trust arrangements, and court-ordered guardianship
• Scams, such as those involving mortgages, lottery awards, and telemarketing
• Reports of suspected abuse to local law enforcement, abuse hotlines, or special elder abuse investigation units  

During the program, more than twenty comments from listeners accumulated [increased to 37 comments as of March 8, 2014] that shared personal experiences and raised questions.

The program's webpage provided links to accurate, helpful resources:

AARP Guide to Managing Finances

CFPB Guide: Help for Representative Payees and VA Fiduciaries

CFPB Guide: Help for Trustees Under a Revocable Living Trust

CFPB Guide: Help for Agents Under a Power of Attorney

CFPB Guide: Help for Court-Appointed Guardians of Property and Conservators 

Selected broadcasts of The Diane Rehm Show are supplemented with links to a transcript or an audio replay sometime after the broadcast.  If that happens, I will update this posting.

Update:

To read a complete transcript of the broadcast access this link. 

To listen to the recorded broadcast with a multimedia computer, access this link. 

"Older & Wiser" Presentations Planned

After laying off for the Summer (and much of the Spring) as a blogger, I am resuming, coincident with my teaching of "Elder Law & Practice" at Widener University School of Law, beginning this evening.   This is my welcome message to the students.

It is also an announcement about a pro bono project undertaken by the Dauphin County Bar Association, using the template of the Older & Wiser® Program.

This program, conceived and implemented in 2003 by the Neighborhood Legal Services Association, is intended "to deliver important information on legal issues affecting older adults, their care givers and their families."  As a national template, it is "a free program set up in a seminar style where local state legislators and volunteer attorneys give information on these matters of special importance."

The materials for each Older & Wiser® seminar have been developed by Managing Attorney Joseph M. Olimpi and private attorney volunteers.  Each Older & Wiser® seminar is presented by a pro bono attorney who provides an informative overview of a particular legal issue, followed by a question and answer period. 

Current session topics include:

•     Protection through Powers of Attorney and Living Wills

•     Dealing Effectively with a Healthcare Facility

•     Guarding Against Senior Fraud

•     Understanding Retirement Benefits

•     Learning about Last Wills and Living Trusts

•     Avoiding Missteps in Medicaid

•     Predatory Lending and the Elderly

At each presentation, handouts and brochures are available to take home. Appropriate referral information is given if attendees are in need of direct legal services. For those attending who are income eligible, there are reduced fee and free of charge services available to meet your needs.

The goal of the Older & Wiser® Program is to provide information that will assist older adults and their families in making wise decisions that protect them and the things they own. Everyone who is interested is welcome, regardless of age, and the seminars are offered free of charge.

In an announcement to its membership on August 21, 2013, describing "another pro bono opportunity for Dauphin County Bar Association members", implementation in Central Pennsylvania was described:

[W]e are working with MidPenn Legal Services to make Older & Wiser® presentations in the community (see dates below).

The Older & Wiser® Program is a way to deliver important information on legal issues affecting older adults, their care givers and their families. It is a free program set up in a seminar style where local elected officials and volunteer attorneys give information on these matters of special importance. 

Legal services and private attorney volunteers have prepared all the materials for each Older & Wiser® seminar (a Power Point presentation, handouts and brochures) for you.   Each Older & Wiser® Power Point Presentation is presented by a pro bono attorney who provides an informative overview of a particular legal issue, followed by a question and answer period.  

At each seminar, the audience receives handouts to take home. * * *

In particular, Representative Sheryl M. Delozier is hosting three presentations using the "Older & Wiser®” and we are looking for pro bono attorneys to present on:

• Thursday, September 12 from 9:00 am – 10:30 am – Protection through Powers of Attorney and Living Wills

                Bethany Vlg East Comm. Rm (766-0279)

                325 Wesley Drive

                Mechanicsburg, PA 17055

• Thursday, September 26 from 9:00 am – 10:30 am.  – Understanding Retirement Benefits

                Essex House (730-7302)

                20 North 12th Street

                Lemoyne, PA 17043

• Thursday, October 10 from 9:00 am – 10:30 am – Dealing Effectively with a Healthcare Facility

                Simpson Public Library (766-0171)

                16 North Walnut Street

                Mechanicsburg, PA 17055

• Thursday, October 31 from 9:00 am – 10:30 am – Learning about Last Wills and Living Trusts

                The Woods at Cedar Run (737-3373)

                824 Lisburn Road

                Camp Hill, PA 17011

Attorneys interested in presenting can contact  Sandy Ballard, Esq., Public Services Coordinator, Dauphin County Bar Association, 213 North Front Street, Harrisburg, PA 17101 (Ofc: 717-232-7536; Fax: 717-234-4582; Email: sandy@dcba-pa.org.

Members of the public -- Look for such programs in your area, or plan on attending those listed above.

Today is WEAAD

Today, Friday, June 15, 2012, is the seventh annual World Elder Abuse Awareness Day (WEAAD).

The goal of WEAAD is to increase awareness of elder abuse throughout the world and bring attention for the need for prevention and action. Every year, millions of older adults are abused, neglected or exploited, with many cases never being reported. 

WEAAD also supports the United Nations International Plan of Action, which identifies elder abuse as a public health and human rights issue.

Yesterday, the White House Symposium on Elder Abuse was held in recognition of WEAAD. The daylong symposium featured national experts and government officials in presentations and panel discussions that were broadcast live on the White House website from 9-11:30 AM and 1:30-4:00 PM.

In the afternoon, some Pennsylvania attendees commented on the widespread and vicious nature of financial elder abuse, and their efforts to combat it in Eastern Pennsylvania.

On the National Commission on Elder Abuse's “Take a Stand” webpage, you can learn about other WEAAD events occurring across the country, searchable  by state.

Today, in Pennsylvania, in recognition of WEAAD, two organizations from Eastern Pennsylvania -- CARIE and the SeniorLAW Center, of Philadelphia -- hold their Elder Justice: Protection and Advocacy Technical Assistance Regional Conference in State College at The Penn Stater Conference Center.

The [Conference] will provide an enhanced understanding of Elder Justice in Pennsylvania. 

The Conference will also provide an opportunity for victim service providers and allied professionals from the surrounding counties to enhance their skills and network, increase collaboration, share best practices, and learn about emerging victim advocacy trends. 

David R. Hoffman, Esquire will deliver the keynote speech presenting on the State Perspectives of the Adult Protective Services System. 

The remainder of the agenda will include an Elder Abuse Task Force presentation, a leadership panel, direct services panel and break-out exercises involving a case study for each group to problem solve by learning about and utilizing the services of multiple agencies in order to build networks and strengthen victim services in each community. * * *

The professional groups invited to the Conference in State College include: Community Social Services providers (non-aging), Aging Services Providers, Adult Protective Services, Domestic Violence Service Providers, Medical/health Professionals, Faith Community, Law enforcement, Community Legal providers/network, Other Criminal Justice Professionals, Local Government, and Community Leaders. 

You can view or download Mr. Hoffman's 16-slide PowerPoint presentation, posted by CARIE.  His overview provides statistics,  definitions, situations, approaches, resources, and needs.

You may also be interested to view the elder abuse resources posted by the Center for Elders and the Courts, including its Elder Abuse Curriculum for State Judicial Educators and its new Elder Abuse Toolkit, which was promised to be available today, in recognition of WEAAD.

Smart Talk Features PA Aging Secretary

On Friday, January 13, 2012, the Secretary of the Pennsylvania Department of Aging, Brian Duke (accompanied by his Chief of Staff, Kevin Hancock), was interviewed for an hour on WITF-FM Radio's Smart Talk, about the changing and growing needs for the Commonwealth's aged population.

The discussion revolved around the federally-required State Plan for Aging to be prepared by the Department for the four-year period extending to 2016, when 22.5% -- nearly one of four -- of Pennsylvanians will be over the age of 65.

Development of a new State Plan was announced on November 2, 2011, in a Press Release entitled Department of Aging Begins Work on 2012-2016 State Plan on Aging, which noted that "[t]he process will include focus groups, town meetings and public hearings."

There will be changes and expansions beyond the 2008-2012 PA State Plan for Aging, which was explained by the Department in a presentation during its past development.  The successor State Plan likely will address broadened medical concerns, innovative long-term care, growing involvement of private and charitable service providers, and increasing need for elder protective services.

Secretary Duke spoke clearly, knowledgeably, and openly on every concern raised by the host and by various callers.  He demonstrated, through his impromptu responses, that he is highly qualified and experienced to lead the Department, as suggested by his posted biography:

Prior to his nomination by Governor Tom Corbett, Duke served as Director of the Bucks County Area Agency on Aging. Before that he served as Executive Director of the New Jersey Foundation for Aging, a statewide public charity dedicated to improving the quality of life of older persons.

Prior to his work with the Foundation, Duke served as a consultant working with the U.S. Administration on Aging and the AARP Foundation in the development of statewide care giving coalitions in 12 states. He also co-chaired the Caring Community, a coalition of over 100 organizations convened by WHYY, the public broadcasting station serving the greater Philadelphia region. * * * [Linnks added.]

Callers raised issues of real estate property tax relief, costs of long-term care, adequate in-home services, specialized senior housing, accessible transportation, funding and availability of services through the local area agencies on aging, accurate informational and evaluation websites about senior services, coordination of service agencies for efficiencies and effectiveness, and fairness in the rendering of services, among others.

Comments for the new State Plan on Aging can be provided to the Department via telephone (717-783-1550), by email (RA-StatePlanOnAging@state.pa.us), in correspondence mailed to the Department, or through participation in Department-sponsored sessions, such as those already held on November 2-3, 2011, in Hershey, PA or to be held in 2012.

If you are interested in aging issues or elder's concerns, whether professionally or personally, you would benefit by listening to this comfortable, informative interview.  You can listen online by accessing the program's web page.

Penn State/Dickinson Law School and Elder Law

Each monthly issue of the electronic newsletter, Alumni Connection, sent to graduates of The Dickinson School of Law of the Penn State University (generally now known as Penn State Law) includes a link to a legal blog. The September, 2011 issue includes a link to this PA Elder, Estate & Fiduciary Law Blog.  

Such a selection shows consistency between this Blog's focus, and the past and present involvement of PSU/DSL in elder law study, research, and clinic practice.

For example, on Tuesday, September 27, 2011, according to a Press Release entitled "Professor Pearson to speak on preventing elder abuse", Professor Katherine C. Pearson will visit the Penn State School of Nursing (and its Hartford Center of Geriatric Nursing at Penn State) to present a lecture, "Beware of Befrienders: Analyzing Roles for Professionals in Helping Older Adults Avoid Financial Abuse.

When an elderly person is caught in the snares of financial abuse, a professional such as a nurse, physician, banker, or attorney can only provide help if he or she knows what to look for and what to do when elder abuse is suspected. * * *

“This is a rare opportunity to speak with an experienced elder law attorney and better understand this important issue, which has become an enormous problem for older adults in recent years,” said Patricia Webb, project administrator at the Hartford Center of Geriatric Nursing at Penn State, which is sponsoring the event.

“Financial abuse can be a complex interdisciplinary problem. We would shortchange vulnerable people by addressing this problem through the eyes of just one profession,” said Professor Pearson, who is a scholar of legal issues facing older adults and focuses on interdisciplinary and comparative approaches to elder care.

Beyond teaching law school courses on elder law, she is well-qualified to discuss elder abuse. For example:

• She co-wrote a book on financial elder abuse, published early in 2011.  See: "Professors Co-Author Book on the Law of Financial Abuse and Exploitation"; and PA EE&F Law Blog posting New Book: "The Law of Financial Abuse and Exploitation" (01/26/11).
• She testified on July 16, 2010, before the United States Senate Special Committee on Aging about "The Importance of Resident Voices in Regulation of Continuing Care Retirement Communities."
• She discussed financial elder abuse on WITF-TV in a personal interview.  See: Professor Pearson discusses the elderly as targets of fraud on WITF-Smart Talk
• She will work with researchers from Northern Ireland and England and lead a year-long study that examines whether the U.S. legal system is meeting the legal advice needs of older adults.  See:  "Do the elderly get the legal advice they need? Professor Pearson works with researchers from the UK to get answers." (07/13/11).

Beyond such faculty involvement, DSL/PSU law students in Carlisle, PA, support the Wills for Heroes Foundation program locally, providing free basic estate and personal planning for first responders and their families.  See: "Wills for Heroes" (10/11).  Students there also offered legal assistance to local senior citizens.  See: "Students Expand Outreach through “Senior Law Day” (02/08).

Most importantly, the Law School has operated its Elder Protection Clinic continuously since 2001.  See:  "Partners in Outreach and Advocacy: Interdisciplinary Opportunities in University-Based Legal Clinics" by Katherine C. Pearson & Lucy Johnston-Walsh, published and posted by the Journal of Higher Education Outreach and Engagement, Volume 11, Number 4, p. 163, (2006).

I've noted the Elder Protection Clinic's periodic Newsletters previously.  See: PA EE&F Law Blog postings PSU-DSL Publishes Its Elder Law Clinic Newsletter (12/19/07) and "Adventures in Law & Aging" -- Spring, 2009 Issue (04/27/09).

As I've said recently, I'm proud to be an alumnus.

Whether anyone will notice the Law School's posting of a link to this particular blog is not important.  It is the Law School's sensitivity to this area of the law -- demonstrated by including such a link -- that is so important. 

Sandwiched Caregiving

On March 22, 2011, at 9:00 AM, WITF-FM (Harrisburg, PA) presented a Radio Smart Talk program entitled Challenges faced by the "Sandwich Generation."  

The "Sandwich Generation" is the term describing a generation of people who care for their aging parents while supporting their own children.  Merriam-Webster officially added the term to its dictionary in July 2006.

The term describes "three generations bound by caring", as described on the official website of the Sandwich Generation, which notes its annual commemorative month:

The annual recognition of Sandwich Generation Month is every July, with organizations and communities throughout the United States holding events to raise awareness of and provide support for members of the sandwich generation.

Free Planner’s Toolkits are available for download, so hospitals, advocacy groups, etc. can plan their own events. * * *

Wikipedia notes that Carol Abaya, the subject of a New York Times article entitled "A Survival Course for the Sandwich Generation" (01/17/1999), had categorized different scenarios involved in being a part of the "Sandwich Generation":

• Traditional: those sandwiched between aging parents who need care and/or help and their own children.
• Club Sandwich: those in their 50s or 60s sandwiched between aging parents, adult children and grandchildren, or those in their 30s and 40s, with young children, aging parents and grandparents.
• Open Faced: anyone else involved in elder care.

The Smart Talk radio program featured three panelists, who each reflected on the personal aspects of such multi-generational caregiving:

• Dr. Linda Rhodes, a former Pennsylvania Secretary of Aging -- author of Finding Your Way: A Practical Guide for Family Caregivers, and recipient of two National Mature Media Awards for her book and weekly newspaper column, Our Parents, Ourselves, appearing every Monday in The Patriot-News. 
• Lesley Davis, Licensed Professional Counselor -- a licensed professional counselor at Pinnacle Health, and
• Eliza Booth, 33, of Lancaster, PA -- a woman caring for three generations, including her own children at home, and also a disabled brother and an elderly mother in another house.

The topic was expanded on WITF-TV on Thursday, March 24, 2011, in a Smart Talk TV broadcast program entitled Balancing Work, Family & Life, when Lesley Davis was interviewed again.

I listened to the radio program, and highly recommend it to others involved in the personal challenges of caregiving.

You can listen to this Radio Smart Talk program by clicking the LISTEN TO PROGRAM link on the episode's web page.

Dec. 31 Deadline for PA Tax Rebate Applications

This is a year-end message: December 31, 2010 is the deadline to file Property Tax/Rent Rebate claim forms (PA-1000) for those who are eligible to receive a rebate from the PA Department of Revenue based upon income and status. 

The Program is described at www.PaPropertyTaxRelief.com.  An application form can be downloaded from the PA Department of Revenue website.  Again, completed applications must be postmarked by Friday, December 31st to be considered.

For some Pennsylvania seniors, this is an important tax relief benefit, but one that must be sought through an application.  The Pennsylvania Property Tax / Rent Relief Program provides rebates up to $975 for PA homeowners, and up to $650 for PA renters, who meet its criteria.

The Property Tax/Rent Rebate program benefits eligible Pennsylvanians age 65 and older; widows and widowers age 50 and older; and people with disabilities age 18 and older.

The program expansion increased the income limit from $15,000 to $35,000 (which excludes half of Social Security income) for homeowners and raises the maximum rebate for both homeowners and renters from $500 to $650. The income limit for renters is $15,000.

The Program's recent expansion provides additional benefits to certain residents:

The program expansion also provides for supplemental property tax rebates of up to $325 – on top of the standard rebates – to homeowners in Philadelphia, Pittsburgh and Scranton; and to those in other parts of the state who pay more than 15 percent of income on property taxes. The Revenue Department automatically calculates supplemental rebates for qualifying homeowners.

The Program is described in a brochure available online.

On December 8, 2010, Governor Ed Rendell issued a Press Release entitled Governor Rendell Reminds Residents Of Dec. 31 Property Tax/rent Rebate Deadline, Free Application Assistance Available, urging those qualified for the rebates to apply by the deadline.  

The Press Release subtitle noted "Nearly 88,000 Eligible Older Adults, People with Disabilities Have Not Yet Applied."

“Nearly 619,000 seniors already applied for rebates this year, but we know there are about 88,000 more people who qualify but have not yet applied,” Governor Rendell said. “I encourage all Pennsylvanians to review the program’s criteria to consider if anyone they know may qualify for a rebate, and help those loved ones apply before the Dec. 31 deadline.”

In response to recent inquiries and complaints regarding fee-based Property Tax/Rent Rebate program application filing services offered privately, Governor Rendell reminded residents that free assistance is available at hundreds of locations across the state.

“It’s unfortunate that some companies charge fees to provide a service that the government and other agencies provide for free. Application forms and assistance are available at no cost from Department of Revenue district offices, local Area Agencies on Aging, senior centers and state legislators’ offices.”

Pennsylvania is providing a total of $772.5 million in property tax relief this year, including expanded rebates from the state’s Property Tax/Rent Rebate program for seniors and residents with disabilities and general property tax relief for all homeowners that was distributed through school districts this past summer.

“So far, these rebates helped to eliminate school property taxes for about 120,000 residents this year,” said Governor Rendell. “I don’t want any eligible person to miss out on this help to pay property taxes or rent.” * * *

The provided forms relate to the tax year 2009.  If past operations of the Department of Revenue predict the future, forms for the tax year 2010 will be mailed during the first quarter of 2011.  See: When will the 2009 Property Tax/Rent Rebate form be available? (Updated 09/15/2010), posted by the PA Department of Revenue.

An answer posted by the Department to another question -- Can I file a Property Tax/Rent Rebate for previous years? (Updated 09/15/2010) -- emphasizes the firmness of the coming deadline: "No. Once the deadline for filing has passed, you cannot file for a Property Tax/Rent Rebate for that year."

"Aging in America" on HealthSmart

The half-hour program, HealthSmart: Aging in America, broadcast initially on WITF-TV (Public Television; Harrisburg, PA) on November 24, 2010, asks the question: "What does a senior citizen look like in today's world?"

This program's response:  "We all know someone who is over the age of 65 and living life to the fullest."  The program examines the demographic wave of new 65+ citizens, and then considers their lifestyles and challenges.

The HealthSmart series of broadcasts is produced and hosted by Keira McGuire:

WITF's Mid-Atlantic Emmy nominated, in-studio, locally produced 30-minute health show features the medical topics that are on everyone's mind.

Local experts give practical advice on how to beat the odds and live healthier and happier, everyday. And local survivors share their touching stories to help our audience understand various diseases and conditions. 

Intended to appeal to health-conscious viewers, HealthSmart targets anyone who is looking for practical "real life" ways to live healthier every day. The focus of the series is on useful information that can be incorporated into daily life. * * *

This episode about Aging in America highlighted the expanding class of new seniors:

Soon, the first of over 75 million baby boomers will begin to earn senior citizen status.  On the next episode of HealthSmart we'll talk to baby boomers about the future.  Are they planning to slow down?  How can they stay sharp as they age?  What should they know about Medicare? * * *

If you are interested in learning why the "baby boomers" comprise "one generation that seems to be redefining the rules of aging," then watch the program online.  The graphics are pleasing, the hostess is attractive, the factual background is simply presented, the interviews of professionals (like Penn State Professor Melissa Hardy and PA Department of Aging Secretary John Michael Hall) are insightful, and the glimpses into individual lifestyles of new-age seniors are inspiring.

The theme that I derive from the program -- consistent with the Baby Boomer generation's earlier theme sung by Bob Dylan -- could be "The Times They Are a-Changin'.  The program addresses emerging challenges and opportunities, magnified due to the size of the new Senior Class.

The program is now available online for post-broadcast viewing.  The series is underwritten by Capitol Blue Cross.

Come senators, congressmen,
Please heed the call.
Don't stand in the doorway.
Don't block up the hall.
For he that gets hurt
Will be he who has stalled . . . .

-- Bob Dylan

in The Times They Are a-Changin'

(January, 1964)

Mediation for Elderly

Today I enjoyed participating in a seminar presented in Pittsburgh by the Pennsylvania Bar Institute entitled "Using Mediation to Resolve Disputes Involving the Elderly".

This is the description of the course:

A variety of conflicts involving elderly persons call for effective resolutions that take into consideration a multitude of varying interests and often delicate relationships. ADR, and particularly, mediation often provides the structure and process for that to occur.

This course will provide anyone -- lawyers (general practitioners, as well as elder, healthcare, estates, trusts & probate and business law specialists) and members of the other helping professions -- with the tools they need:

• to decide whether and when it is likely to be appropriate and helpful to use mediation or another type of ADR to resolve disputes in which that elderly person is involved,
• to represent a client effectively in preparation for and during an ADR process to resolve such a dispute, and
• to educate the family members of an elderly person about the conflict resolution options available to support them in maintaining positive relationships with their elderly relative.

Disputes involving the elderly arise in a variety of situations: estate planning and administration; addressing an elderly person`s changing needs or the care they are receiving (whether in a private or institutional setting); deciding on the appointment of a guardian; managing conflicts between elderly people and (of course) resolving intra-family conflicts; and conflicts within institutional settings which, if not resolved, can affect and elder's care and the liability that can accompany errors that arise when conflict is protracted.

In any of these situations, questions may arise about the ability of the elderly person to participate meaningfully in the ADR process due to his or her diminished mental capacity, and how to compensate for this condition. Sometimes, abuse of the elderly person is a factor, and almost always there are multiple parties to the conflict.

Addressing these challenges, in addition to those that typically arise in any mediation, calls for experienced and specially trained ADR practitioners. 

The course was presented previously, on October 13, 2010, in Philadelphia, where it was videotaped.

The interaction among the panel members and those in the audience today -- many with extensive mediation experiences -- set this four-hour session apart from other "lectures" I have heard (or delivered!). 

As a co-planner of the course from its inception, my contribution to written materials involved a new website hosted on Google Sites, which I entitled "Mediation for Elderly."  It remains available as a teaching tool supplementing the printed book.

On its web page entitled Article & Reports, I listed good resources to learn about mediation involving an elderly person.  One of those references is a recent article posted by the AARP Bulletin entitled "Oh, Brother! With Parents Aging, Squabbling Siblings Turn to Elder Mediation" (09/20/10), by Sally Abrahms.

Also on that web page, I referenced previous PA EE&F Law Blog postings regarding alternative dispute resolution, including mediation:

• PA ADR: A Newsletter & an OC Case (05/08/07)
• Symposium on Ethical Standards for Elder Mediation (02/01/07).
• PA Superior Court Announces New Appellate Mediation Program (10/09/06).

Key course planners Jim Rosenstein and Ann Begler, with the other Philadephia and Pittsburgh panelists, compiled a useful printed resource regarding mediation as one form of alternative dispute resolution well-suited to many seniors encountering problem settings.

Ageing in Ireland: "Older, Louder, Stronger"

In early March, 2010, a friend of mine, Katherine C. Pearson, sent me an email message from Belfast, Northern Ireland, where she conducts her sabbatical from her position as a Professor of Law at Penn State - Dickinson School of Law, in Carlisle, PA.

In the fall of 2009, Professor Pearson was the Petersen Visiting Scholar in Gerontology and Family Studies at Oregon State University.

During the spring of 2010, she will be a scholar in residence at Queen's University Belfast, in Northern Ireland on a Fulbright grant, conducting interdisciplinary research on policies related to protection and care for older adults, with an international perspective. * * *

After relaying kind personal thoughts, she made an offer that only now -- belatedly, but gratefully -- I accept:

In case you might want a "different" sort of aging article for your blog, I'm attaching something I put together on the train while coming home for an interesting conference in Dublin.

But regardless of the attachment, I hope this email finds you -- and finds you well. I'm sending good wishes and a pot of Irish luck your way!

I note the purpose of that Irish partnership, which promotes its work under the banner "Older, Louder, Stronger":

Changing Ageing Partnership (Cap) funded by The Atlantic Philanthropies seeks to develop a robust evidence base to inform policy development with respect to older people. Research is being developed across a range of areas including: law; economics; politics; sociology; environmental planning, consequently a diverse range of methods will be used. * * *

By her participation, she is gathering ideas from the Continent and considering how we, under our American systems, might better address the concerns raised by our aging population. We will need such ideas to address our growing senior needs creatively!

The Business of Aging – or Ageing – in Ireland
Copyright © by Katherine C. Pearson
[Links added by NEH]

I have long been involved with legal professionals engaged in the business of aging, while also watching students begin their careers in Penn State Law’s Elder Law and Consumer Protection Clinic. With that background, I decided to attend a conference on “The Business of Ageing” in Dublin, Ireland on March 3, 2010. (“Aging” in the U.S. is spelled with an “e” in Ireland and the U.K.)

The conference was sponsored in major part by technology powerhouse Intel, which has a center of health product research in Ireland. My spring sabbatical residence is in Northern Ireland, where I am working at Queen’s University Belfast’s Changing Ageing Partnership, and that made it easy to take advantage of this opportunity.

The motto of the conference was “Turning Silver into Gold” and frankly that phrase gave me a few worries. Students in Penn State’s Elder Law and Consumer Protection Clinic have had a few too many opportunities to see the consequences of home repair “experts,” home lenders, hearing aid companies and insurance companies that tried to tap into the presumed riches held by older persons. Fortunately, I encountered no one trying to market financial products such as deferred pay-off annuities or reverse mortgages that have often have high commissions or hidden transaction costs.

Over 300 people attended. It was standing room only for speakers ranging from the political leader of Ireland, Taoiseach Brian Cowen, to a Harvard professor giving the latest economic and demographical profile for Europe and Ireland.

Unlike the U.S. and U.K., Ireland is still a few years away from hitting the inverted population pyramid created when older persons substantially outnumber younger workers. The extra time is the result of a longer period of high birth rates among its younger families. [See: Irish Times article, State pension age to be set at 68 by 2028 in radical overhaul of qualification structure (03/04/10).]

However, despite the grace period, the economic downturn of the last several years has hit Ireland hard. Even as Ireland’s governing head was trying to put a good face on opportunities for innovation in Ireland, the government was also announcing the need to increase the pensionable retirement age and predicting that future workers would be expected to pay a significant portion of earnings into Ireland’s pension system.

The energy in the room was substantial. I spoke to a young woman working on a PhD that capitalizes on a recent project at Intel where she matched older adults with college age students to provide one-on-one computer training. This project virtually eliminated the drop out-rate from previous efforts to bring older adults fully into the computer age. I met seasoned business people in health and technology fields who were looking to adapt U.S. models for home health and monitoring systems for the population of Ireland.

Speakers included advertising executives and the head of a venture capital company. A few speakers seemed to struggle with political correctness in the language of aging, and some admitted this was the first time they had consciously considered how to market to older adults.

Occasionally I had a renewed shiver of fear, as when one speaker compared marketing for older adults to Robin Hood’s reason for targeting the rich for his thievery, wholly ignoring the fact that at least the fictional Robin Hood was giving the money to the poor rather than lining his own pockets.

Far more impressive was the speaker from B & Q, a home and garden product retailer that has made a conscious effort in Ireland to recruit older employees. B & Q provides the same training and promotion opportunities for all employees, and its older worker profile has helped to ensure a reliable workforce.

Who was missing from the conference – at least as far as I could tell?

I did not encounter any attorneys. Although one accountant assured me, with a smile, that was a good thing.