The Baby-Boomer generation has been the catalyst for dramatic change in American lifestyle, politics, and music during the past half-century. As the Baby-Boomers continue to age they are also having a significant impact on healthcare in the U.S. According to the statistics, 2011 is the year that the first of the Baby-Boomer generation will reach retirement age.

The expanded demand created by aging Baby-Boomers is creating an increase in the need for health care services, pharmaceuticals, and skilled health care workers. In order to meet the demand for a larger health care workforce, much of the training and even services that were traditionally only conducted in a face-to-face environment are now available online.

Many healthcare providers throughout the country are a part of the national Telehealth/Telemed system. This system links local healthcare providers with healthcare experts throughout the country. For example a small rural hospital that does not have a trained neurologist may be able to conduct an emergency consulation for a stroke patient with a neurologist hundreds of miles away.

Many healthcare professionals are being trained in an online environment. Clark College Corporate and Continuing Education is currently offering a variety of self-paced and instructor supported courses to meet the training needs of pharmacy technicians, medical coders, healthcare managers, and patient support specialists. Our online courses provide students with the latest information and skills in healthcare management, patient management, medical coding, and other healtcare related topics.

In a fascinating new study from New York’s Albert Einstein College of Medicine of Yeshiva University, it was found that people who live to 95 or older are no more virtuous than the rest of us in terms of their diet, exercise routine or smoking and drinking habits. This is due to the presence of “longevity genes”, a helpmate long suspected by both scientists and casual observers.
Researchers at Albert Einstein College of Medicine interviewed 477 persons aged 95 and older, all living independently, to seek to understand why centenarians live as long as they do.The elderly subjects were asked to describe their lifestyles at age 70, to determine what kind of healthy or what kinds of higher risk lifestyles they had lived during their lives. Answering questions about their weight and height so that their body mass index (BMI) could be calculated, they also provided information about their alcohol consumption, smoking habits, physical activity, and whether they ate a low-calorie, low-fat or low-salt diet. These answers were compared to 3,164 people born around the same time who were examined between 1971 and 1975 while participating in a highly regarded national health survey.
Overall, people with exceptional longevity did not have healthier habits than the comparison group in terms of BMI, smoking, physical activity, or diet. Researchers also asked study participants why they believed they had lived so long. One-third reported a history of family longevity.
Nir Barzilai, M.D., director of the Institute for Aging Research at Einstein, noted that while the healthier centenarians did also have known health related factors like higher than average HDL (“good cholesterol”), that "This study suggests that centenarians may possess additional longevity genes that help to buffer them against the harmful effects of an unhealthy lifestyle."
Does this study indicate that we can throw up our hands and forget about hard to maintain optimum health habits? Sorry! The 425,000 people aged 95 and older living in the U.S. in 2010 – represent only .01% of the 40 million U.S. adults 65 and over. And, living a healthy lifestyle in addition to just surviving confers greater vitality and reduces suffering from physical pain as one ages, not a small consideration.
Wish you could socialize with interesting people who like to talk about studies and what they mean? Check out the Mature Learning program – keep that lifestyle going with fitness classes and exercise your mind with Afternoon Academics!