Seniors groups provided their patrons with wide-ranging advice on aging through a brand new workshop entitled Bridging the Gap Sept. 27.
Aging Well Haliburton County and CARP Chapter 54 brought in medical professionals, emergency responders and a lawyer to the Royal Canadian Legion Branch 129 to discuss the challenges of aging.
Aging Well chair Doreen Boville said she was pleased by how the event went and the more than 50-person turnout.
“Sometimes people, they are trying to navigate through things themselves,” Boville said. “We wanted to offer a workshop that brought a lot of speakers together, brought a lot of topics together so people could come here and they could get a lot of information at one time to help them as they navigate that journey.”
Crystal Morrissey of the Canadian Hearing Society presented about hearing loss and the challenges associated with it. She said there is no easy solution to hearing loss, but a variety of measures such as hearing aids, communication strategies, support groups, education and other specialty devices can help.
“Together, all of these things can help you to have a successful communication experience with your care partners, your loved ones and your community,” Morrissey said.
Optician Elsie Deocampo presented on vision loss for seniors. She said the workshop format was good to help spread important information.
“A lot of old people don’t have internet or don’t have use of computers,” Deocampo said. “Word of mouth is a better way of sending all the messages.”
Aging Well member Heather May offered a presentation on housing, which will be followed by a workshop Oct. 18. She said it is vitally important for seniors to sort out their housing plans as they age.
“Please, pay attention to your housing issues. Don’t assume it’s there for you. Write your politicians,” she said.
Other presentations centered on when to call 911 and the legal and financial concerns of aging. Attendee Julie Tolentino said it was an informative event.
“I’m not getting any younger and some things change very quickly and so it’s always better to know what sort of things to do, rather than find yourself in a situation where you don’t know,” Tolentino said. “Finding out what all the resources are is really important.”
The Haliburton County Development Corporation helped fund the event. Boville said Aging Well and CARP are open to hosting a workshop like this again based on feedback.
She added people should reach out to services they think they might need.
“Just start putting that plan in place so they can be as healthy as possible for as long as possible.”
