OT…authority…doctors…geriatrics…

I’m on a roll. Bear with me. I have one more random story, then an aging in place post, then I need to go shower and prep for tomorrow. I just really wanted this off my to do-list since I have plenty of other things to put in its place. I’m actually feeling slightly overwhelmed right now with our occupational therapy school schedule. I tried to make an Excel spreadsheet of all our assignments and their due dates, but I had a hard time figuring out when stuff was actually due. I feel like right now I don’t fully understand what I should be doing and when. I’m a control freak, so that sucks!

I do know I have plenty to do with the Tai Chi research project, ASD Elections (VOTING STARTS TOMORROW! KAREN DOBYNS AND BROOKE WARD! YES!), Officer stuff, Meals on Wheels, Well Elderly, etc…but just don’t even know where to dive in. Wow.

So. The real point of this post. When my partner and I were collecting Tai Chai baseline data, using a variety of assessments, there were several assessments that required the subject deciding on their own their level of satisfaction in life, or their perception of their health status. It was really interesting to see the generation gap at this point. Almost none of the subjects could handle their life satisfaction question without help. They would say things like “Well…let’s see…I had X children…Y years with my spouse…I was a Z….gosh, what do you think?”. We’d gently remind them that it was their choice and there was no wrong answer, but it was still difficult for them. We found out during a recent lecture that this generation believes firmly in the doctor telling them what to do, and I think this was a similar situation – we were the ones in charge – we see ourselves as little know-nothing OT students, but they see us almost as authority figures in the health arena, who should tell them their answers.

For the health status, it was interesting to see that many of them said they had great health, even if they were on a ton of medication. They’d list all their aches and pains and problems and medications, musing out loud, and then be like “Well…I guess I’m in pretty good health…”…when my partner and I would be thinking they’d say their health was poor. They tend to overestimate.

Just a few things I found interesting!

Jan 14, 2008 | Category: Occupational Therapy | Comments: none