yes please, I would like to know the name of the check-in APP
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Hi Beth I didn’t know that only have a free phone from trac phone that I pay every year about 100 dollars for the little I use it. Since I have a landline and most communication via email or messaging on my iPad I never looked into iPhones although everyone else in the family has one. The watch is a great idea, didn’t know I could buy the watch and that would be my only expense if just have for an emergency call. Will look into that. Thank you!
Beth
#24
I assume it hasn’t changed, and if it hasn’t, this is to give you a head start on your research
They sell a slightly more expensive version of the watch that allows you to pay and sign up for a cellular plan. That plan would have a monthly fee with your phone company, but if this is to use at home, which it is, there is no reason to get that model… that is to use it as a phone when you are not near WiFi.
You would look for the one with no cell capability. So for clarity, not only do you not have to buy the cell plan, but you can buy the watch that has no cell capacity (if they still do it that way) .
Good luck!!!
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I don’t know anything about the progression of Alzheimer’s. Is it possible to “drop off a cliff very quickly” (so to speak), in other words, Hackman could have been ok at 93 but completely gaga at 95? Or is it a steady year-on-year decline? Varies with the person?
As for CVD, I do know about that, and it’s very possible to have a high QOL with severe CVD.
Beth
#26
My father in law, who had Alzheimer’s, had a ‘psychotic break’.
It happened all in one day, and he went from a man who was just gradually becoming less independent but was still fine-ish, to needing a lot of help from that day forward.
If I recall, he probably passed a few months later.
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What do people think of this article?
Hackman Tragedy Reveals Retirement Planning’s Missing Piece: Longevity Preparedness
This tragedy exposes the critical limitations of today’s retirement planning narrative. Society has constructed a storyline defining retirement planning around asset accumulation peppered with images of later life leisure while neglecting what might be best described as the infrastructure necessary to support healthy aging and caregiving. The vision is not altogether incorrect, but it is woefully incomplete. Financial security, while essential, functions much like electricity: you can’t do much without it, but its mere presence doesn’t ensure living well in older age.
The Longevity Preparedness Gap
Instead of traditional retirement planning, we should cultivate a new narrative around longevity preparedness that lays the foundation for establishing various types of support beyond financial security alone. Longevity preparation is the ongoing process of building redundant support systems, cultivating diverse social connections, implementing adaptive housing solutions, and arranging for care contingencies—all complemented by, but not replaced by financial readiness. Similar to earlier life stages where we plan meticulously for education, careers, housing, and family, older age requires awareness of what’s ahead and preparation.
Consider the tools, time, and effort to prepare children for college. There are actions, not just finances, with campus visits, standardized test preparation, application essay coaching, financial aid research, dorm room shopping, roommate coordination, and more. We should approach our later decades with equal thoroughness—or perhaps even more awareness and deliberate action.
Aging Successfully Requires Support Systems
Due to its complexity, older age necessitates even more preparation than previous life stages. A few of the many essential systems and preparations include:
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Coordinated Care Support: Establish reliable coordination systems between older adults and family caregivers to ensure continuous support.
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Social Connection: Deliberately cultivate and maintain friendships to prevent isolation, which poses health risks comparable to smoking.
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Transportation Planning: Identify and arrange transportation alternatives before driving becomes problematic, ensuring continued mobility and independence.
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Adaptive Housing: Implement home modifications that offer both aesthetic appeal and lifelong physical accessibility, enabling aging in place.
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Home Maintenance: Arrange for trusted home services that can respond to both routine and emergency needs.
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Technology Integration: Adopt technology solutions that evolve from providing convenience to becoming essential care tools as needs change.
The Hackman deaths show that the absence of redundant support systems can lead to isolation and tragedy, even with financial resources. When Arakawa became ill, there was no backup system—no one to step in for her or her husband. This vulnerability is exponentially magnified for those with limited financial means, who face a devastating double jeopardy: inadequate financial resources coupled with insufficient support systems for navigating the challenges of older age and caregiving.
Read the full article: Hackman Tragedy Reveals Retirement Planning’s Missing Piece: Longevity Preparedness
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Ambient
#28
Curious to know what you thought about the article 
I’ve been lucky, I now realize, that for my parents I didn’t plan much (neither have they) and we haven’t had any disastrous consequences like the Hackman family did. This article really highlights for me that we need to be thinking and planning for these types of issue much more than we may have been (or at least more than what I’ve typically thought about).
So, I think the article was a good wakeup call on this topic.
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Ambient
#30
Right on.
I thought it was a well written and logical article. A lot goes into planning for retirement and longevity preparedness.
It is not cheap as some of the costs posted in the article - $60k to $100k+.
Beth
#31
The topic of elder care gets me fired up, so I will be brief to spare you my trauma.
My goal is just to give you the heads up that even if you hire a very good team for your loved ones, or even if they go to a very ‘nice’ place, and even if you are involved daily and do everything ‘right’, you can not assume they are getting the right care if their needs are great.
I do not know how to solve the incompetence in how we care for our elderly. It’s a crime.
My suggestion is to use a camera, which all places won’t allow, and make a lot of unannounced visits. This is the case even in the hospital. Even if you hand them lists and meet with management, you can not assume the right medication protocols will be followed. Based on my experience, the aforementioned ideas won’t solve anything, but at least you will have a better chance than just assuming people will do their jobs well.
Perhaps care is better for those with intensive needs outside of the US?
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Health care professional/RN here, agree 
.
I make a point to be a regular spontaneous visitor, ask a ton of questions and bring cookies occasionally so that staff know my person (family or friend), has someone on the outside.
The squeaky wheel will always get attention.
I am a proponent of having what I lovingly call “the hard talk,” about end of life decisions. In general, people are much more receptive to these discussions when you ask permission to have “the hard talk.“ Once they know the talk is coming they’re not afraid to think about it usually, in part because they have given permission to move forward with the discussion.
I also advocate for elective euthanasia, but that’s for another discussion
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Beth
#33
I see you are also a student of SWT
(squeaky wheel theory)
True story:
When our mom was in the hospital, I was on my way there to provide some relief to the local siblings. Things had gotten so bad that my squeaky wheel sister was escorted out of the hospital by security.
While I was on the airplane, my brother was in a meeting with the head of the hospital who said ‘can you please do something about your sister?’ My brother said ‘you will miss this sister when California lands’
Just call me Shirley “GIVE MY DAUGHTER THE SHOT!!!” MacLaine
(If we had only had your cookie idea! 
And yes on having the talk. That is excellent advice. Having it before a crisis is much less threatening. And I’m with you on euthanasia.
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I can tell you how we do it here in Hong Kong. For the richer families, we hire a live-in domestic caregiver or 2 to watch the elderly person. They will take them to Drs. appointments, make sure they get meds, take them for walks, bathe them, dress them, make meals, shop, do all the chores, and are there 24/7 (except for Sunday, the rest day, which is why some families have 2. The 2nd helps the first and has another day other than Sunday off). The family usually lives with the elderly and the helpers in the family home to insure things go as planned. It could be why our elderly live the longest in the world and even 2 full-time live-in helpers only costs about $1,200 USD monthly which is far less than a Western nursing home (I’m assuming).
The poorer families live in elderly homes, which are more or less like nursing homes. However, I think the staff here is more professional and conscientious than their Western counterparts.
My wife and I plan to do the first option. We currently have a live-in helper who babysits the kids, takes them to lessons and picks them up from school, does all the laundry and cleaning, makes meals, and generally does all the chores around the house.
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LaraPo
#35
It’s a very good arrangement! In the States it would be difficult to arrange for that money.
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I suspect the pay there is more commensurate with the rest of society. And the respect for the elders is a more highly regarded social value.
Here, caregiving is scut work and regarded as such by many. The workers are low income, unskilled (often socially dysfunctional and/or physically compromised) and they need the work. They are one of the lowest paid.
Our society is inverse - we don’t want to pay for care and “mothering” but will pay millions to CEOs who make millions for their corporations.
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