The Bethlen Home Messenger, 1992-1993 (1-4. szám)
1992-12-01 / 1. szám
CHRISTMAS EVE OPEN HOUSE Thursday, December 24th, the Activity Department will be sponsoring a Christmas Open House for the families and friends of Bethlen Home. The party will be held in the Solarium from 2 p.m. to 4 p.m. Families are encouraged to stop in for a visit to enjoy the entertainment and refreshments before taking their loved one home for the holidays. Anyone having any questions, please contact Sherry or Ann in the Activity Department. íjjítyístcal Öortter by Jody West Króméi, L.P.T. February is National Hearth Month, and what better time to explain the cardiovascular changes in the elderly and what this in turn causes in their exercise ability. Some of the functions that involve the heart that tend to change with age are: peak heart rate, maximum cardiac output, and the ability of the heart to contract. These functions all decrease with age. There is also thickening of the walls of the heart and narrowing of the arteries as we age. THE MEANING OF CHRISTMAS by Gertrude Rudberg Last night I started thinking What Christmas means to m And in my deep pondering I found these things to be, It wasn’t the excitement, The rushing to and fro, Nor was it all the buying That made my spirit glow. It wasn't all the tinsel, Nor lighted Christmas trees Carols, music, ringing bells, That brought me ecstasies. It wasn’t burning candles Nor wreaths and mistletoe, And sealed up pretty bundles, All tied with fancy bows. It wasn’t stockings hanging From off the mantlepiece, Nor happy children laughing That brought me inner peace. But just the thought of Christmas, A manger drab and poor, With little baby Jesus Holds much for me in store. A star shone from the heavens That cold and wintry night, Where wise men and poor shepherds Walked on beneath its light. Yes, Christmas has a meaning To me and others, too, Beyond the joy of giving, A meaning deep and true. With a decrease in the heart’s ability to contract, the heart rate decreases, and therefore the entire cardiac output decreases. The thickening of the walls of the heart and vessels restrict blood flowand, in turn, also cause a decreased heart rate, decreased cardiac output, and increased blood pressure. Whatdoesthisall mean to the aging individual? Basically, this all affects the intensity and duration of physical activity that an older person can tolerate. Even though an older person can develop the same cardiac output as a younger person, the older individual will reach their peak cardiac output before having done as much work as the young adult. Every adult has a decline in their physical working capacity as they age. This deals with the cardiac and respiratory system operating at its maximum value. What this means for physical therapy is, when we administer exercises and ambulate older individuals, we have to take into consideration this physical work capacity for each patient. We have to look at what isa realistic exercise/ambulation program for this individual patient according to their physical work capacity. For example, one individual may be able to ambulate 80 ft. easily and require only 20% of their maximum working capacity to complete this task. If another patient’s maximum working capacity is decreased, they will use a higher proportion of that capacity (maybe 90%) to complete the task of ambulating only 40 ft., and therefore, this patient will not be able to ambulate as long or as far as the first patient. Each patient has individual needs, and our physical therapy programs are geared towards providing the correct type and duration of exercises and ambulation that a patient can tolerate.
