It's an interesting question to consider when searching out a potential retirement residence for parents or individuals:
"Where's the bar?"
That question, and others you should ask before choosing a home, are the topics in a new book titled Healthy Retirement Residence Living 鈥� What Does the Doctor Say?, and one of its authors is coming to Vernon.
The book is the 10th from renowned Canadian author Dr. W. Gifford-Jones, whose daughter, and co-author, Diana Gifford-Jones, will be in Vernon to promote the book at the Schubert Centre and Simply Delicious April 16 and 17.
Diana has extensive global experience in health and healthcare policy. She served as a special advisor with the Aga Khan University, and also worked for 10 years in the human development sectors at the World Bank, including health policy and economics, nutrition, and population health. She is the author of No Nonsense Health 鈥� Naturally (2019).
Dr. Gifford-Jones draws on his decades of experience as a medical doctor and health journalist to address the realities and challenges of selection and moving into a retirement home.
Canada, as of 2024, is home to 3.4 million seniors aged 75 and older, and that number is growing quickly.
"As Baby Boomers reach retirement age, choices in senior living are gaining more attention," said the doctor. "How retirement housing and healthcare interact to determine well-being has become one of the leading issues of our times."
Designed to help seniors and their families navigate the life-changing juncture of a move to a retirement residence, each chapter looks at different challenges and potential health risks that are a part of retirement residence living 鈥� a transition typically filled with uncertainty and often health decline.
The authors offer tips in each chapter to make it easier for seniors and their families to adapt to their new environment.
Some key Healthy Retirement Residence Living chapters include:
鈥� Where Is the Bar? 鈥� highlighting the value of a pub-like environment within retirement residences to offset feelings of isolation seniors often experience;
鈥� Can You Be Overweight and Fit? 鈥� tackling the relationship between fitness and 鈥渇atness;"
鈥� I Cannot Get Off The Toilet 鈥� a refreshing look at a common problem and some easy preventative measures aimed at improving the situation;
鈥� Eating Your Way Out of Arthritis 鈥� an examination of some simple dietary changes that can have a substantial impact on arthritis
鈥� Am I Getting Alzheimer鈥檚 Disease? 鈥� a look at current research and theories about preventing the Grey Tsunami and its impact on seniors and their families.
Written to empower seniors and their families with the information needed to make good decisions Healthy Retirement Residence Living is an important tool for anyone considering retirement residence living or who are supporting loved ones through the process.
Packed with health tips, candid humour, and drawing on experience gained over decades of fighting for better health for Canadians, the book is designed to empower seniors and their families with the information needed to make good decisions.
Diana will present a talk at the Schubert Centre (3505-30th Ave.) on Wednesday, April 16, from 6:30-7:30 p.m., followed by a question and answer period from 7:30-8:30 p.m. She will host a meet and greet Thursday, April 17, from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. at Simply Delicious (3419-31st Ave.).
