aging discussion 3-15-14Recently, Tony DiNuzzo, Rebecca Galloway, Bronia Michejenko and myself presented a panel discussion on issues in aging as part of a UTMB President’s Cabinet Award project called the HomeTown Science 3D Seminar Series. The discussion was called Aging and Wellness: Ways Science Can Help.

One interesting aspect of the seminar was that we were in a virtual world when we did it. We used the UTMB island in the virtual world of Second Life®. See the picture on the right.

The panel discussion was recorded and is now available as a one hour video program. You can see it at either of these two locations:

Not only did the four of us interact together but we took comments and questions from the audience. The end result is a rich dialog that we hope you can use with other groups. It is available freely for you to use.

The discussion ranged over these five questions:

  1. Who wants to live forever? – The question of quality of life and when does quality of life trump healthcare interventions?
  2. Why does everyone seem to die from a broken hip? – Strength, balance and rehabilitation and what can elders and their families do to reduce the consequences of loss of strength and balance?
  3. Nobody is taking my car keys away! – Mobility, access and depending on others and what are the options for getting around when driving one’s self is no longer an option?
  4. I don’t want to die in a nursing home. – Where and how to live throughout ones lifespan and what are the options for aging in place?
  5. Why do I have to repeat this every time? – Coordination of care and teamwork and why can’t health providers share information and test results so it does not have to be repeated over and over

Join us for a real-time discussion about the questions raised by this essay on Tuesday at from 12:00 p.m. CST to 12:45 p.m. CST (10 a.m. PST/SLT). See Discussion and SL tabs above for details. Link to the virtual meeting room: http://tinyurl.com/cjfx9ag.