Tower Health Experts Offer Advice For Seniors In Pandemic

LIMERICK, PA — Fear seems to be everywhere and seniors can be especially vulnerable.

Arcadia at Limerick Pointe, a retirement community in Limerick, this week hosted a panel of experts who've been working with older Pennsylvanians through the coronavirus pandemic. Their goal was to dispel some of the fear that comes by misinformation about the virus, and to bring facts from experts into conversations about senior living.

The coronavirus pandemic hit suddenly and seniors were heavily impacted early on. We know more now, said the panel, and so we all need to pause and catch up.

Lori Lorant-Tobias, D.O. and Chair of the Department of Emergency Medicine at Tower Health described early issues that arose as the pandemic emerged and information was still unclear. Lorant-Tobias said that it became clear people were not seeking emergency care who needed it.

At Pottstown Hospital-Tower Health, there's been a 42 percent drop this year in Emergency Care visits, she said. The drop is even steeper if counted only since last April, showing a 51 percent reduction in Emergency visits, said Lorant-Tobias.

And while present numbers compared to pre-pandemic visits show people are slowly gaining confidence and returning when needed to Emergency Care, there's still a 23 percent decrease.

The doctor explained what was happening as older people avoided coming in. Stroke patients weren't coming in when they had symptoms. When those patients have TIA's, or "mini-strokes," they are more likely to have a stroke in the next few months. She said this was frightening and though Emergency Care visits were becoming more frequent again by May, she still worries there are patients avoiding care.

"Don't be scared to death," said Lorant-Tobias.

Jean Seda-Lopez, M.D. of Pottstown Hospital-Tower Health talked about improvements that have been made since the pandemic began.

He said the same people are working on COVID-19 response, and learning, and the same evidence-base practices that have always been used are revealing more and helping the medical community respond.

"We now have multiple treatment options for COVID-19," he said. "We know more about its transmission than we did at the beginning."

Izzy Porter, PT and DPT added insights about how pandemic life is affecting the health of older people and what might be done to stay well. She pointed out that age increases the risk of being hospitalized, so it is important for seniors to take care of themselves.

Porter, Program Manager for BAYADA Home Health Care, said, "Everyone is gaining weight, and weight gain is harder on seniors' health." She emphasized that people of all ages need to move as much as they can, whether indoors or outdoors. "We just have to move around," she said.

Porter also expressed concern for the secondary effects of the pandemic, saying the emotional and mental health of older people can suffer because they may be more isolated now.

John Hopkins, D.O. added to Porter's remarks, encouraging visits to seniors, and saying that he is seeing the effects of social isolation on older people.

Hopkins, President and Founder of CCS Healthcare, is encouraged at how the rate of deaths has leveled off among older people, after high rates at the pandemic's beginning. "We've learned how to handle the disease" in senior living environments, he said. Hopkins serves as an advisor to the Pennsylvania Department of Health and to senior living communities.

CCS Healthcare partners with Limerick Pointe in looking for ways to make senior living safe and "good again."

Arcadia at Limerick Pointe, in Limerick, combines a faith-based affiliation with St. Teresa of Calcutta Parish with creative thinking about what makes a good life for older people. "Arcadia is a community in every sense of the word - in place and in fellowship," said Rose Anne Klementisz, CDP, Director of Community Relations at Arcadia.

Klementisz said she hoped the panelists and their varied perspectives could help explore how the pandemic has impacted seniors offer resources and tips to fight the secondary effects of the COVID-19 virus.

Arcadia at Limerick Pointe is a partner of Vantage Point Retirement Living headquartered in Exton. For more information about Vantage Point visit vpretirement.com.