Apr 02

Diet Fads: Facts and Fiction for Seniors

For National Nutrition Month, Meghan Ostrander, Nutrition Director at Springwell, presented a special program titled, Fad Diets- Pros and Cons at Community Dining sites in Springwell’s service area. Ostrander succinctly laid out claims, as well as potential benefits and risks, of four of the new most popular diet trends. Before starting any new diet plan, [...]

Mar 27

Taking the Mystery Out of Hospice Care & Palliative Care

Mary Crowe, LICSW, ACHP-SW of Care Dimensions visited Springwell to teach a continuing education program for staff about hospice care and palliative care. Crowe kicked off the program by asking what the terms hospice and palliative care mean because she said there are many misconceptions about both words. Hospice care is a philosophy of care [...]

Mar 19

Neurologic Music Therapy

At their March meeting, the Ombudsman volunteers welcomed Kirsten Stockel, MT-BC, NMT, from MedRhythms Therapy for a presentation about the benefits of Neurologic Music Therapy (NMT). NMT is used in the rehabilitation of neurologic injury and disease and has been found to be especially helpful for traumatic brain injury, stroke and Parkinson’s disease.  Some Neurologic [...]

Jan 10

Smiling Woman with her Friendly Visitor volunteer

Thriving through social connection

Social isolation can challenge senior citizens who find it more difficult to get out of the house than when they were younger. A friendly visitor can make a valuable difference in their quality of life. Ruth, an energetic 90 year old artist, relocated to Waltham two years ago to be near medical care and her […]

Nov 21

smiling woman with her medical escort and friendly visitor volunteers

Companionship & Community – Better Together

When you enter the home where 93-year old Tecla has lived since 1973, her welcome is warm, friendly and lively. As you chat and learn about her early widowhood, her determination to raise her two children independently, and her long work life cleaning homes, her resilience is inspiring. Tecla is animated on many topics, but […]

Nov 15

Choose to Share the Love with Vulnerable Seniors

Exciting news! For the eleventh year running, the Meals on Wheels network, including Springwell, is participating in the Subaru Share the Love Event. Over the past ten years, Subaru and its retailers have helped Meals on Wheels to deliver nearly 2 million meals nationwide to seniors in need. Why does Subaru support Meals on Wheels? […]

Nov 01

Tips to stress less during holiday visits

Adult children who spend much of the year coordinating and managing care for parents from afar often face holiday visits with some trepidation. Warm feelings of celebrating with loved ones are tempered with some anxiety about the many tasks of holiday preparation.  Mix in worries about whether parents will be in worse condition than at […]

Sep 27

Senior Isolation Is A Health Issue

September 28 is Good Neighbor Day 2018 and the AARP Foundation has invited us all to make it an opportunity to come together and celebrate our neighbors. According to AARP, “studies show that isolation and loneliness are as bad for your health as smoking or obesity – especially if you’re over 50. Isolation is more […]

Jul 02

Special Delivery: More than a Meal

Beverly looks forward to greeting Chi Wong, a Springwell Home Delivered Meals driver each weekday around noon. Chi delivers a nutritious meal to Beverly who finds it difficult to buy groceries and cook for herself. Beverly lives in the Watertown home that she and her husband, Stuart, bought over 60 years ago. Beverly’s career as […]

Jun 14

Heighten Awareness, Prevent and Stop Abuse

Recently, the federal government has been working to determine how many senior citizens nationwide are victims of abuse, neglect or exploitation. The federal Administration for Community Living estimated that 1.5 million cases were reported to adult protective agencies across the country in 2016. About half of those reports led to further investigation. Additional research also […]