This event was such a feast of fascinating perspectives on research projects, biographical approaches, and their contribution to challenging understandings and changing practice. I loved what all the different speakers said and I've just been catching up by reviewing the videos on http://stadium.open.ac.uk/stadia/preview.php?whichevent=1583&s=1
I was particularly fascinated by the audio extract played to us by Joanna Bornat from one of the South Asian doctors who came to the UK to work in the NHS and found a future in geriatric medicine. He was interviewed by Parvati of Joanna's team, and he told of his transformation of a centre for 'incurables' - where he was supposed to just keep an eye on hopeless cases in a ward which no one had ever left - into a rehabilitation mode that gave people the opportunity to do physiotherapy and improve. His first quadriplegic man who had been written off progressed to the point where he was able to walk and return to his business as a butcher!
This took place in the 1970s and I remember my first job as a medical social worker at an orthopaedic hospital at that time - I don't recall the patients I saw ever being given the terminology of incurable but I do remember thinking that orthopaedic surgeons were at a bit of a loss if they couldn't find an operation to do.
Well done CABS - as well as many other virtues, biographical approaches give us the opportunity to revisit our own biographies and understand a little better the unfolding of history in our time.
Jill Reynolds
Friday 19 November 2010
Friday 24 September 2010
Are biographical methods still relevant?
CABS is 15 years old this year.
Since 1995 members of the research group have used biographical methods to investigate issues relating to ageing and later life including; new family forms, housing and care homes, sexuality, end-of-life issues, age discrimination, and medication in everyday life.
Our 15th anniversary event will be held on Tuesday 2nd November, from 2-6pm in the Berrill Lecture Theatre at The Open University campus in Milton Keynes. Speakers will include Professor Mim Bernard, the President of the British Society of Gerontology: and founder members of CABS - Professors Malcolm Johnson and Joanna Bornat, Dr Bill Bytheway and others tbc. There will be an opportunity to view posters about the current research projects of CABS members, as well as to think about the challenges and opportunities of using biographical methods in research. Drinks and nibbles from 5pm onwards. There is no charge for this event.
If you would like to attend, please contact Katherine Perry k.d.perry@open.ac.ukmailto:k.d.perry@open.ac.uk
Since 1995 members of the research group have used biographical methods to investigate issues relating to ageing and later life including; new family forms, housing and care homes, sexuality, end-of-life issues, age discrimination, and medication in everyday life.
Our 15th anniversary event will be held on Tuesday 2nd November, from 2-6pm in the Berrill Lecture Theatre at The Open University campus in Milton Keynes. Speakers will include Professor Mim Bernard, the President of the British Society of Gerontology: and founder members of CABS - Professors Malcolm Johnson and Joanna Bornat, Dr Bill Bytheway and others tbc. There will be an opportunity to view posters about the current research projects of CABS members, as well as to think about the challenges and opportunities of using biographical methods in research. Drinks and nibbles from 5pm onwards. There is no charge for this event.
If you would like to attend, please contact Katherine Perry k.d.perry@open.ac.ukmailto:k.d.perry@open.ac.uk
Monday 20 September 2010
The Young Ones
CABS Blog
Did any one else see The Young Ones (14, 15 and 16 September 2010)?
The show featured Dickie Bird (former cricket umpire), Lionel Blair (actor, dancer, choeograher), Derek Jamieson (newspaper editor and broadcaster), Sylvia Sims, Liz Smith (both actors – although Sylvia Sims is described as an actress on the website and Liz Smith as best know for playing Nana in the Royal family)and Kenneth Kendall (newsreader).
The Young Ones had the six in a house decorated and furnished to make it look as it might have been in 1975 when, apparently the 6 of them were in ‘their prime’. We were told that some of the wall paper had to be specially made. They even arrived at the house in cars from the period playing music of the time. We were told that part of the experiment was to show how positive thinking and particularly imagining themselves back to their ‘heydays’ could improve physical and cognitive functioning.
While in the house they were under constant CCTV observation from BBC One’s ‘resident man of science’ Dr. Michael Mosley and Ellen Langer from Harvard University. The audience were told that the ‘show’ planned to replicate work done by Ellen in the 1970s. Gerontologist Ian Phelps appeared at the beginning of the first programme and at the end of the third to test what progress the six older celebrities had made of the course of the week long experiment.
In the control room the lead seemed to be taken by Mosley who would from time to time pronounce on what was revealed by the observation cameras and attempt to get assent from the slightly bemused Langer. Any one who has seen Mosley’s antics on The One Show will know is he has penchant for organising small scale experiments. These are often the basis of claims that men and women are completely different from each other. I may be biased – I know a colleague was quite impressed by his History of Science series. I’m afraid my prejudices were reinforced by Mosley telling one of ‘victims’ that he was there “to teach you independence”.
So I approached The Young Ones with a number of reservations. I think the whole notion of ‘positive thinking ‘as a panacea is questionable (see Barbara Ehrenreich, Smile or die: How positive thinking fooled America and the World). Equally questionable was the idea that all six of the celebrities would be in their prime (in 1975) just because they happened to be aged between 41 (Dickie Bird) and 53 (Liz Smith) was. I also thought that the notion that putting people in ‘the 1975 house’ would be of dubious benefit. As this was not something that I could find in Langer’s original research I assume if was to make the series more visually appealing
Despite everything some interesting things did come out of The Young Ones
It was clear that most of the participants did benefit by having the chance to make decisions, have some level of control over their lives and to be able to do the things that they had enjoyed when they were younger. For example as a result of falls Kenneth Kendall had decided he would not have a dog again. However the programme gave him a chance to look after dogs and he subsequently decided he wanted to be a dog-owner. Much the same could be said of Liz Smith taking up painting again and Dickie Bird resuming pub lunches with cricket ‘chums’. In a similar vein, Derek Jameson gave a lecture to journalism students while Lionel Blair joined with cast members from the West End show Tap Dogs.
At one level the show was inherently ageist – thinking as they had when younger selves was argued to be the reason why improvement had occured. I think this rather missed the point of what was actually happening. Each of the six had retired from work that had been hugely meaningful to them. Added to this had been physical problems including strokes, falls and diabetes (to name but a few). This had made it increasingly difficult to resist offers of care which (although well meant) had contributed to them seeing themselves just as someone to be cared for.
To its credit these programmes did challenge that and provided a space in which people could have fun, express themselves and wonder what their choices really were and how they could be exercised. Maybe there are messages here for how old people are perceived and how services that are supposed to help them are provided.
Jonathan Hughes 20/09-10
Did any one else see The Young Ones (14, 15 and 16 September 2010)?
The show featured Dickie Bird (former cricket umpire), Lionel Blair (actor, dancer, choeograher), Derek Jamieson (newspaper editor and broadcaster), Sylvia Sims, Liz Smith (both actors – although Sylvia Sims is described as an actress on the website and Liz Smith as best know for playing Nana in the Royal family)and Kenneth Kendall (newsreader).
The Young Ones had the six in a house decorated and furnished to make it look as it might have been in 1975 when, apparently the 6 of them were in ‘their prime’. We were told that some of the wall paper had to be specially made. They even arrived at the house in cars from the period playing music of the time. We were told that part of the experiment was to show how positive thinking and particularly imagining themselves back to their ‘heydays’ could improve physical and cognitive functioning.
While in the house they were under constant CCTV observation from BBC One’s ‘resident man of science’ Dr. Michael Mosley and Ellen Langer from Harvard University. The audience were told that the ‘show’ planned to replicate work done by Ellen in the 1970s. Gerontologist Ian Phelps appeared at the beginning of the first programme and at the end of the third to test what progress the six older celebrities had made of the course of the week long experiment.
In the control room the lead seemed to be taken by Mosley who would from time to time pronounce on what was revealed by the observation cameras and attempt to get assent from the slightly bemused Langer. Any one who has seen Mosley’s antics on The One Show will know is he has penchant for organising small scale experiments. These are often the basis of claims that men and women are completely different from each other. I may be biased – I know a colleague was quite impressed by his History of Science series. I’m afraid my prejudices were reinforced by Mosley telling one of ‘victims’ that he was there “to teach you independence”.
So I approached The Young Ones with a number of reservations. I think the whole notion of ‘positive thinking ‘as a panacea is questionable (see Barbara Ehrenreich, Smile or die: How positive thinking fooled America and the World). Equally questionable was the idea that all six of the celebrities would be in their prime (in 1975) just because they happened to be aged between 41 (Dickie Bird) and 53 (Liz Smith) was. I also thought that the notion that putting people in ‘the 1975 house’ would be of dubious benefit. As this was not something that I could find in Langer’s original research I assume if was to make the series more visually appealing
Despite everything some interesting things did come out of The Young Ones
It was clear that most of the participants did benefit by having the chance to make decisions, have some level of control over their lives and to be able to do the things that they had enjoyed when they were younger. For example as a result of falls Kenneth Kendall had decided he would not have a dog again. However the programme gave him a chance to look after dogs and he subsequently decided he wanted to be a dog-owner. Much the same could be said of Liz Smith taking up painting again and Dickie Bird resuming pub lunches with cricket ‘chums’. In a similar vein, Derek Jameson gave a lecture to journalism students while Lionel Blair joined with cast members from the West End show Tap Dogs.
At one level the show was inherently ageist – thinking as they had when younger selves was argued to be the reason why improvement had occured. I think this rather missed the point of what was actually happening. Each of the six had retired from work that had been hugely meaningful to them. Added to this had been physical problems including strokes, falls and diabetes (to name but a few). This had made it increasingly difficult to resist offers of care which (although well meant) had contributed to them seeing themselves just as someone to be cared for.
To its credit these programmes did challenge that and provided a space in which people could have fun, express themselves and wonder what their choices really were and how they could be exercised. Maybe there are messages here for how old people are perceived and how services that are supposed to help them are provided.
Jonathan Hughes 20/09-10
Tuesday 31 August 2010
Ageing and gay
Recently a Radio 4 programme highlighted the issues of identity in relation to older gay and lesbian people finding suitable accommodation in care homes and sheltered housing schemes. The programme included a broad discussion of the difficulties gay and lesbian people face in being open about their sexuality in predominantly heterosexual care settimgs. Contributors to the programme spoke about their concerns around being accepted and how, for some, this in fact meant they had to camouflage or deny their sexuality. This is a 'hidden' issue and I was struck by the way in which some older gay and lesbian people would feel they were trapped and excluded by being different to the majority. The potential for social isolation came across strongly and I was left feeling a sense of sadness that being gay in old age is something that might have to be covered up.
Wednesday 16 June 2010
3 Counties Radio Launch 'Who Cares?' Campaign
3 Counties Radio have launched a 'Who Cares?' campaign, see http://news.bbc.co.uk/local/threecounties/hi/people_and_places/newsid_8558000/8558229.stm
Part of this campaign involves a joint initaitive with Action on Elder Abuse, who are campaigning for changes in the law to improve older peoples rights with regards to protection from abuse, harm and neglect. The need to promote high quality care that respects individual choice, privacy and dignity is also recognised as part of this campaign.
This 1 year campaign was launched last night at The Open University. Members of CABS took part in this launch, with Caroline Holland giving an impressive contribution to a Question and Answer session with Ronnie Barbour, the morning DJ from 3 Counties Radio.
Part of this campaign involves a joint initaitive with Action on Elder Abuse, who are campaigning for changes in the law to improve older peoples rights with regards to protection from abuse, harm and neglect. The need to promote high quality care that respects individual choice, privacy and dignity is also recognised as part of this campaign.
This 1 year campaign was launched last night at The Open University. Members of CABS took part in this launch, with Caroline Holland giving an impressive contribution to a Question and Answer session with Ronnie Barbour, the morning DJ from 3 Counties Radio.
Sunday 13 June 2010
Postgraduate Student Poster Competition Winner!
CABS member Caroline Moore has been awarded the prize for Best of Category (Social Sciences) in the Open University's annual poster competition for postgraduate students. Caroline is in her second year of study, working on her thesis about the experiences of being a woman caring for both children and older relatives. Caroline's poster explains her study and quotes some of the participants that she has interviewed so far.
Exploring the experiences of female multi-generational carers
Exploring the experiences of female multi-generational carers
Wednesday 9 June 2010
“The Last Refuge Revisited”
OPAN Seminar - Friday 25th June 2010
Julia Johnson
Time: 3.30pm
Venue: Open University Regional Office
18 Custom House Street, Cardiff, CF10 1AP
This seminar is hosted jointly by OPAN and the Open University in Wales, and focuses on findings from the new publication Residential Care Transformed by Julia Johnson, Sheena Rolph and Randall Smith (Palgrave Macmillan) which revisits Peter Townsend's classic study of residential care for older people conducted in the late 1950s.
To confirm attendance, contact Sarah Cole at: S.Cole@swansea.ac.uk
Julia Johnson
Time: 3.30pm
Venue: Open University Regional Office
18 Custom House Street, Cardiff, CF10 1AP
This seminar is hosted jointly by OPAN and the Open University in Wales, and focuses on findings from the new publication Residential Care Transformed by Julia Johnson, Sheena Rolph and Randall Smith (Palgrave Macmillan) which revisits Peter Townsend's classic study of residential care for older people conducted in the late 1950s.
To confirm attendance, contact Sarah Cole at: S.Cole@swansea.ac.uk
Thursday 3 June 2010
The CABS/CPA Book Series
In the second of our 'home-made' podcasts, Rebecca Jones chats to Joyce Cavaye about our book series published by the Centre for Policy on Ageing.
Tuesday 4 May 2010
What do we know about being old and childless?
The advertisement from John Lewis that is also on YouTube has attracted much comment in the media.
Never Knowingly Undersold shows, to the tune of Billy Joel's 'Always a woman', a life course from babyhood to old age – she finally strides across the field with husband and grandchildren. I would show you the video here, but it seems the British Democracy Forum –said by some to be 'a far right web forum' – had the ad on their website, apparently promoting their politics until someone reported it to the store, who immediately had the ad removed. I expect you've seen it already anyway: 100,000 people have looked at it on YouTube and no doubt many more on TV.
Most of the comment is positive, and it is strangely moving. The Guardian's Libby Brooks
agrees that it prompts a visceral response, but demurs that it hasn't moved with developments for women in terms of career and other kinds of recognition:
I've seen nothing that points out that the normative life course it portrays shows ageing as something only done by people deep in the heart of their families.
Perhaps the ad can remind us that the life course is almost always thought of as involving, particularly for women, an ageing process that includes marriage, childbearing, childrearing, children leave home, grandchildren come to visit, and finally death brings that life to an end. So no wonder that this single track normative portrayal hasn't aroused critical comment. It simply shows what we all imagine life stages to be about.
We don't often hear about those who are old and childless. See my recent post for discussion of ideas from Joanna Lumley and Diana Athill on what this experience might involve.
What can we do if we're not grannies?
I'm interested in finding out more about the experience of ageing for those who don't have children. I'd like to hear from people in a range of ages over 60 years. And to start myself off, I've made contact with my future self, and carried out an interview with this future Jill. Have a look and let me know what you think.
Never Knowingly Undersold shows, to the tune of Billy Joel's 'Always a woman', a life course from babyhood to old age – she finally strides across the field with husband and grandchildren. I would show you the video here, but it seems the British Democracy Forum –said by some to be 'a far right web forum' – had the ad on their website, apparently promoting their politics until someone reported it to the store, who immediately had the ad removed. I expect you've seen it already anyway: 100,000 people have looked at it on YouTube and no doubt many more on TV.
Most of the comment is positive, and it is strangely moving. The Guardian's Libby Brooks
agrees that it prompts a visceral response, but demurs that it hasn't moved with developments for women in terms of career and other kinds of recognition:
'In many ways, it proffers a terribly old-fashioned take on modern womanhood: pair-bonding and breeding are the significant milestones, not making CEO of the company. At no point is there any suggestion our heroine might enjoy an existence without her beautifully decorated four walls – in one segment she is seen attending to a laptop but, who knows, she was probably just browsing the John Lewis website.'Genius of John Lewis's everywoman ad wins female vote
I've seen nothing that points out that the normative life course it portrays shows ageing as something only done by people deep in the heart of their families.
Perhaps the ad can remind us that the life course is almost always thought of as involving, particularly for women, an ageing process that includes marriage, childbearing, childrearing, children leave home, grandchildren come to visit, and finally death brings that life to an end. So no wonder that this single track normative portrayal hasn't aroused critical comment. It simply shows what we all imagine life stages to be about.
We don't often hear about those who are old and childless. See my recent post for discussion of ideas from Joanna Lumley and Diana Athill on what this experience might involve.
What can we do if we're not grannies?
I'm interested in finding out more about the experience of ageing for those who don't have children. I'd like to hear from people in a range of ages over 60 years. And to start myself off, I've made contact with my future self, and carried out an interview with this future Jill. Have a look and let me know what you think.
Thursday 29 April 2010
Solidarity between Generations
Today is apparently the Second European Day on Solidarity between Generations.
You can see the press release here but in summary, it comes from a coalition of European NGOs who see solidarity between generations as a key way of society becoming more inclusive and equal.
I'm interested to see the language of 'solidarity' reappearing in 2010.
More frivolously, thinking about how I might express solidarity between generations in my own life, I wondered whether that meant I should give in to my 3 year old's constant desire to play on the computer, since he's a digital native and I'm not.
Monday 26 April 2010
Thursday 22 April 2010
Interviews at Age Concern MK
Yesterday Josie Tetley, Caroline Holland and I held a number of interviews with people who are involved with the Opt-In (Grundtvig funded) Project which is looking at how older people interact with technology.
I did two of the interviews. It was fascinating to see how some older people (and I accept that they might be a minority) use technology extensively. Both the two people I talked to had been involved with changing technologies throughtout their (paid) working lives. In 'retirement' technology is centrally involved in enabled them to engage in a wide range of activity - technologies were clearly underpining and make possible all sorts of things.
Jonathan Hughes
I did two of the interviews. It was fascinating to see how some older people (and I accept that they might be a minority) use technology extensively. Both the two people I talked to had been involved with changing technologies throughtout their (paid) working lives. In 'retirement' technology is centrally involved in enabled them to engage in a wide range of activity - technologies were clearly underpining and make possible all sorts of things.
Jonathan Hughes
Wednesday 21 April 2010
Oral History and Ageing
Just out: a new book from CABS/CPA:
'Oral History and Ageing' edited by Joanna Bornat and Josie Tetley
No 9 The Representation of Older People in Ageing Research Series. £10.00
For both gerontology and oral history, the interview is a key research tool, both focus on remembering and both show concern for issues raised by participation, ownership and the presentation of the outcomes of their engagement with the lives of older people.
The authors, all leading UK oral historians, illustrate four very different approaches within an oral history tradition, yet each has resonance and relevance for gerontologists. The aim in presenting this collection is to stimulate further discussions and opportunities to share research approaches and findings amongst oral historians and gerontologists in the hope that creative research partnerships may ensue in the future.
Contents: Introduction, Joanna Bornat and Josie Tetley. Transnational families, ageing and realising dreams of home, Paul Thompson. Remembering in later life: Some lessons from oral history, Al Thomson. Sex, lives and videotape: Oral history group work and older adult education groups, Graham Smith. Experience shared and valued: Current development of personal and community memory, Pam Schweitzer.
The book is on sale at the Centre for Policy on Ageing and at Central Books.
'Oral History and Ageing' edited by Joanna Bornat and Josie Tetley
No 9 The Representation of Older People in Ageing Research Series. £10.00
For both gerontology and oral history, the interview is a key research tool, both focus on remembering and both show concern for issues raised by participation, ownership and the presentation of the outcomes of their engagement with the lives of older people.
The authors, all leading UK oral historians, illustrate four very different approaches within an oral history tradition, yet each has resonance and relevance for gerontologists. The aim in presenting this collection is to stimulate further discussions and opportunities to share research approaches and findings amongst oral historians and gerontologists in the hope that creative research partnerships may ensue in the future.
Contents: Introduction, Joanna Bornat and Josie Tetley. Transnational families, ageing and realising dreams of home, Paul Thompson. Remembering in later life: Some lessons from oral history, Al Thomson. Sex, lives and videotape: Oral history group work and older adult education groups, Graham Smith. Experience shared and valued: Current development of personal and community memory, Pam Schweitzer.
The book is on sale at the Centre for Policy on Ageing and at Central Books.
Tuesday 20 April 2010
What can we do if we're not grannies?
If we've never had children, it's unlikely we'll have grandchildren. Is not being a granny a deficit identity these days? Several papers have picked up a comment from Joanna Lumley recently on the usefulness of old people. Apparently she has suggested older people could provide a care system for children coming home from school:
See Bell, IoS Diary 11 April for more detail, online:
http://www.independent.co.uk/opinion/commentators/matthew-bell-the-iiosi-diary-110410-1941242.html
Matthew Bell also mentions that there is a comedy currently running at the National Really Old, Like Forty Five: the elderly are expected to adopt a grandchild as a way of deferring death. Black humour indeed.
Lumley probably sees this adoptive granny proposal as a way of helping older people feel purposeful and valued, as well as part of the community. While this might work for some, I'd hate to see it becoming a widely shared expectation that this is what you do to earn your place as a fully paid-up member of the community. I understand from friends that having children is the best experience that life has to offer, but personally I'm rather happy to have avoided all those chores, all those times of feeling a dimwit because I've spoken to no one but a three year old all day, all that anxiety on behalf of children who I'd (no doubt) continue to think of as children even as they themselves approach middle age.
How terrific then, in the same week to see an article by Diana Athill on moving herself into an old people's home (Guardian Weekend 17.04.10, online: http://www.guardian.co.uk/books/2010/apr/17/diana-athill-move-old-peoples-home). Athill has always forged her way through challenging events, surviving what are widely regarded as deficit identities, for instance giving uncompromisingly honest and reflective accounts of what it is like to be single, and how she came through after the loss of an early love and accepted her role as career woman, having never held any ambition other than that first articulated at twelve years 'To marry a man I love and who loves me'.
So Athill continues in the same vein of having things happen and dealing with them, and her decision to move into an old people's home was brought about through her recognition that in her 90s, dealing with a bout of flu left her without energy and feeling a need to be looked after. She had been part of a team of friends supporting an old friend, just three months younger than herself, as she wrestled with breast cancer and a broken hip following a fall. Athill knew she didn't want to be a burden to her friends if she became dependent in a similar way. She made her plans in a rational way, but still experienced moments of complete rejection of 'an act of what amounted to self-destruction...I won't, I'd rather die'. Now she has moved into a 'snug little nest' she can think of it as a life free of worries, doing everything she's capable of and knowing she'll be beautifully looked after if need be. 'What could be better?' she says.
We need people like Athill to go before us and point the way to surviving dispreferred options in life. Yet I'm puzzled by her belief that she might have reluctantly accepted being looked after by her children, if she'd had them, but determination that she could not allow herself to become dependent on her friends. There is, after all, a greater possibility of reciprocity with friends, and the acts of mutual helping might be less distant than those enacted as a parent; we choose our friends while we don't choose our family; and it's always possible that children called on in times of great need may have other agendas on their minds. But at the same time as being puzzled, I do have some empathy with Athill's perspective. Having been part of my mother's supportive network, even though at a distance, as well as a first-line advocate for her with the health and social care services, I have often wondered whether there might be anyone available to do similar things for me should I reach a time of great need. Inspired by Athill's example, I plan to think more positively about the option of deciding I need to be looked after and choosing the caring environment that I'm comfortable with. And while I'll hope for some people I'm close to continuing to be around and be affectionate, I will also hope to avoid becoming a number one worry in their lives.
Jill Reynolds
'They could be adoptive grannies, they would be the most wonderful care system for children when the school day is ended – before their parents have come home from work, how lovely to have a million grannies making them apple pie and sitting with them doing their homework'.
See Bell, IoS Diary 11 April for more detail, online:
http://www.independent.co.uk/opinion/commentators/matthew-bell-the-iiosi-diary-110410-1941242.html
Matthew Bell also mentions that there is a comedy currently running at the National Really Old, Like Forty Five: the elderly are expected to adopt a grandchild as a way of deferring death. Black humour indeed.
Lumley probably sees this adoptive granny proposal as a way of helping older people feel purposeful and valued, as well as part of the community. While this might work for some, I'd hate to see it becoming a widely shared expectation that this is what you do to earn your place as a fully paid-up member of the community. I understand from friends that having children is the best experience that life has to offer, but personally I'm rather happy to have avoided all those chores, all those times of feeling a dimwit because I've spoken to no one but a three year old all day, all that anxiety on behalf of children who I'd (no doubt) continue to think of as children even as they themselves approach middle age.
How terrific then, in the same week to see an article by Diana Athill on moving herself into an old people's home (Guardian Weekend 17.04.10, online: http://www.guardian.co.uk/books/2010/apr/17/diana-athill-move-old-peoples-home). Athill has always forged her way through challenging events, surviving what are widely regarded as deficit identities, for instance giving uncompromisingly honest and reflective accounts of what it is like to be single, and how she came through after the loss of an early love and accepted her role as career woman, having never held any ambition other than that first articulated at twelve years 'To marry a man I love and who loves me'.
So Athill continues in the same vein of having things happen and dealing with them, and her decision to move into an old people's home was brought about through her recognition that in her 90s, dealing with a bout of flu left her without energy and feeling a need to be looked after. She had been part of a team of friends supporting an old friend, just three months younger than herself, as she wrestled with breast cancer and a broken hip following a fall. Athill knew she didn't want to be a burden to her friends if she became dependent in a similar way. She made her plans in a rational way, but still experienced moments of complete rejection of 'an act of what amounted to self-destruction...I won't, I'd rather die'. Now she has moved into a 'snug little nest' she can think of it as a life free of worries, doing everything she's capable of and knowing she'll be beautifully looked after if need be. 'What could be better?' she says.
We need people like Athill to go before us and point the way to surviving dispreferred options in life. Yet I'm puzzled by her belief that she might have reluctantly accepted being looked after by her children, if she'd had them, but determination that she could not allow herself to become dependent on her friends. There is, after all, a greater possibility of reciprocity with friends, and the acts of mutual helping might be less distant than those enacted as a parent; we choose our friends while we don't choose our family; and it's always possible that children called on in times of great need may have other agendas on their minds. But at the same time as being puzzled, I do have some empathy with Athill's perspective. Having been part of my mother's supportive network, even though at a distance, as well as a first-line advocate for her with the health and social care services, I have often wondered whether there might be anyone available to do similar things for me should I reach a time of great need. Inspired by Athill's example, I plan to think more positively about the option of deciding I need to be looked after and choosing the caring environment that I'm comfortable with. And while I'll hope for some people I'm close to continuing to be around and be affectionate, I will also hope to avoid becoming a number one worry in their lives.
Jill Reynolds
Thursday 18 March 2010
I'm afraid we need to talk
The King’s Fund has just published ‘Securing Good Care for More People’, its update to the 2006 ‘Wanless’ review - taking the opportunity at the same time to comment on the options described in the UK government’s 2009 Green Paper on the future funding of care for older people. Between the politically unpalatable options of keeping the status quo and introducing free personal care to all, there lies the minefield of determining who should pay what in a reformed system, and thereby deciding who will be the ‘winners’ and who the ‘losers’? The King’s Fund Partnership Model proposed here, a more modest version of that suggested in 2006, would see everyone entitled to 50% of their eligible care costs. The remaining 50% would be met by the individual or their family, but with some matched funding from the state – £1 for every £2 spent is suggested here. Or else the need would be unmet, with all that that implies.
Our survey on this issue (Price of Old Age) shows that while most people want to accept joint responsibility between individuals and the state, there is little consensus on the details of how the responsibility should be divided. This is hardly surprising given a general lack of knowledge about the real costs of long-term care, the uncertainties caused by the current economic crisis, the weight of debt felt by many younger people, and the pressures on providers of care. In the run-up to an election, serious and measured political discussion of this very serious issue is being lost, and I’ll be very surprised if the King’s Fund proposal is greeted with cross-party approval, let alone implemented. Agreement in the House of Commons about a timetable to introduce free personal care for ‘the most vulnerable’ has already failed several times to get through the Lords because of concerns about how local authorities can actually meet the costs.
The all-party commission on 2020 public services led by Sir Andrew Foster, former CE of the Audit Commission, gave a stark warning this week that the real debate about rising costs has not yet really started, and that the British public is unprepared for what must be major changes; ‘If citizens refuse to pay more, they have to contribute more’. This implies, of course, that if families or communities don’t or can’t provide care themselves, then individuals’ needs may not be met at all. The King’s Fund report, aside from suggesting their costing model, also makes some good points about the reform of delivery as not a once-and–for-all event, but as a measured, staged process, taking on board the bigger picture: a process that will take many years, transcend the lifetime of any parliament, and require proper political consensus to achieve fairness within and between generations. As a country we are already coming very late to this, so let’s not drop the ball now.
Our survey on this issue (Price of Old Age) shows that while most people want to accept joint responsibility between individuals and the state, there is little consensus on the details of how the responsibility should be divided. This is hardly surprising given a general lack of knowledge about the real costs of long-term care, the uncertainties caused by the current economic crisis, the weight of debt felt by many younger people, and the pressures on providers of care. In the run-up to an election, serious and measured political discussion of this very serious issue is being lost, and I’ll be very surprised if the King’s Fund proposal is greeted with cross-party approval, let alone implemented. Agreement in the House of Commons about a timetable to introduce free personal care for ‘the most vulnerable’ has already failed several times to get through the Lords because of concerns about how local authorities can actually meet the costs.
The all-party commission on 2020 public services led by Sir Andrew Foster, former CE of the Audit Commission, gave a stark warning this week that the real debate about rising costs has not yet really started, and that the British public is unprepared for what must be major changes; ‘If citizens refuse to pay more, they have to contribute more’. This implies, of course, that if families or communities don’t or can’t provide care themselves, then individuals’ needs may not be met at all. The King’s Fund report, aside from suggesting their costing model, also makes some good points about the reform of delivery as not a once-and–for-all event, but as a measured, staged process, taking on board the bigger picture: a process that will take many years, transcend the lifetime of any parliament, and require proper political consensus to achieve fairness within and between generations. As a country we are already coming very late to this, so let’s not drop the ball now.
Friday 19 February 2010
How do we pay for care?
The debate about the future of social care in England has reached a (another?) critical place this week with high-level discussion between care providers and charities, the Labour party and the Lib Dems. The Conservatives are currently refusing to take part, apparently over the issue of having the option of a compulsory fee on the table - what a pity, when we so desperately need an honest and wide-thinking discussion right now, before political and media interest moves on.
I believe that people generally do want to find a better way to provide and pay for care, especially if they have been involved in trying to give it or organise it. We are currently analysing data from an on-line survey about the 'price of old age', from which it is already clear that most of the people who took part in that survey think there is a middle ground between state organised and private provision where a fair balance of responsibility can be negotiated. But it's also clear that many people have too little information about what help is available and what care might be needed in certain conditions, so it's hard to get a consensus view on where that fair balance lies.
I think that we are just beginning this national conversation and there will have to be changes and adjustments in the years ahead, but we need two things now: better access to information for people who find themselves needing care services, and more direct routes for people to raise problems when the services on offer don't match what people actually want.
I believe that people generally do want to find a better way to provide and pay for care, especially if they have been involved in trying to give it or organise it. We are currently analysing data from an on-line survey about the 'price of old age', from which it is already clear that most of the people who took part in that survey think there is a middle ground between state organised and private provision where a fair balance of responsibility can be negotiated. But it's also clear that many people have too little information about what help is available and what care might be needed in certain conditions, so it's hard to get a consensus view on where that fair balance lies.
I think that we are just beginning this national conversation and there will have to be changes and adjustments in the years ahead, but we need two things now: better access to information for people who find themselves needing care services, and more direct routes for people to raise problems when the services on offer don't match what people actually want.
Wednesday 3 February 2010
Raising the profile of LGBT ageing and later life
LGBT Lives
Symposium on Ageing
Raising the Profile of LGBT Ageing and Later Life
As part of the seminar LGBT lives: The biographies and life course of sexual/gender dissidents, the organisers would like to invite papers for a parallel session devoted to exploring issues of LGBT ageing and later life. The session will include up to 10 short (ten minutes) papers that directly address LGBT ageing and later life. Contributors will be asked to provide written versions of their papers and these will be compiled in the form of a briefing to be circulated to relevant stakeholders in Scotland. Papers may take any form including:
• Case-studies from practice or research
• ‘Think-pieces’ on how LGBT ageing is understood and responded to
• Summaries of research
• Reviews of the literature
• Methods used to investigate LGBT ageing and the challenges faced
Papers detailing work from across the UK (and beyond) are invited, however the organisers particularly welcome contributions detailing work undertaken in Scotland or with direct relevance to the Scottish context. Deadline for submission is Monday 29 March 2010.
This event is free to attend.
Further details here
Symposium on Ageing
Raising the Profile of LGBT Ageing and Later Life
As part of the seminar LGBT lives: The biographies and life course of sexual/gender dissidents, the organisers would like to invite papers for a parallel session devoted to exploring issues of LGBT ageing and later life. The session will include up to 10 short (ten minutes) papers that directly address LGBT ageing and later life. Contributors will be asked to provide written versions of their papers and these will be compiled in the form of a briefing to be circulated to relevant stakeholders in Scotland. Papers may take any form including:
• Case-studies from practice or research
• ‘Think-pieces’ on how LGBT ageing is understood and responded to
• Summaries of research
• Reviews of the literature
• Methods used to investigate LGBT ageing and the challenges faced
Papers detailing work from across the UK (and beyond) are invited, however the organisers particularly welcome contributions detailing work undertaken in Scotland or with direct relevance to the Scottish context. Deadline for submission is Monday 29 March 2010.
This event is free to attend.
Further details here
Tuesday 2 February 2010
Ageing issues and end of life care
There has been a lot of activity in the press of late about care and treatment in later life. It was interesting to hear Terry Pratchett's views about assisted death/suicide, see for example:
http://blogs.telegraph.co.uk/news/michaeldeacon/100024694/sir-terry-pratchett-is-right-lets-legalise-assisted-death/
http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/uk/8490062.stm
Assisted suicide/death is very topical, but of greater concern to me is how we work towards improving care in later life. It was interesting to read recent press reports and the Royal College of Physicians report on oral feeding difficulties towards the end of life. See:
http://www.rcplondon.ac.uk/media/Press-releases/Pages/06-Jan-2010-Nil-by-mouth-should-be-last-resort-according-to-RCP-report.aspx
http://www.guardian.co.uk/society/2010/jan/06/care-homes-elderly-feeding-tubes
http://www.telegraph.co.uk/comment/personal-view/6944814/Those-with-dementia-are-people-not-objects.html
This would not seem to be a new challenge as Florence Nightingale in her Notes on Nursing wrote:
‘Every careful observer of the sick will agree in this that thousands of patients are annually starved in the midst of plenty, from want of attention to the ways which alone make it possible for them to take food. This want of attention is as remarkable in those who urge upon the sick to do what is quite impossible to them, as in the sick themselves who will not make the effort to do what is perfectly possible to them.’ (Nightingale 1860, p. 63)
It will be interesting to see whether the recent press interest in ageing issues in anyway impacts on quality of care.
http://blogs.telegraph.co.uk/news/michaeldeacon/100024694/sir-terry-pratchett-is-right-lets-legalise-assisted-death/
http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/uk/8490062.stm
Assisted suicide/death is very topical, but of greater concern to me is how we work towards improving care in later life. It was interesting to read recent press reports and the Royal College of Physicians report on oral feeding difficulties towards the end of life. See:
http://www.rcplondon.ac.uk/media/Press-releases/Pages/06-Jan-2010-Nil-by-mouth-should-be-last-resort-according-to-RCP-report.aspx
http://www.guardian.co.uk/society/2010/jan/06/care-homes-elderly-feeding-tubes
http://www.telegraph.co.uk/comment/personal-view/6944814/Those-with-dementia-are-people-not-objects.html
This would not seem to be a new challenge as Florence Nightingale in her Notes on Nursing wrote:
‘Every careful observer of the sick will agree in this that thousands of patients are annually starved in the midst of plenty, from want of attention to the ways which alone make it possible for them to take food. This want of attention is as remarkable in those who urge upon the sick to do what is quite impossible to them, as in the sick themselves who will not make the effort to do what is perfectly possible to them.’ (Nightingale 1860, p. 63)
It will be interesting to see whether the recent press interest in ageing issues in anyway impacts on quality of care.
Lifelong learning and technology project
Members of CABS are currently leading a lifelong learning and technology project. The OPT-in project (Older People and Technological innovations) is funded by Grundtvig through the European Union Lifelong Learning Programme.
The project is led by a team from The Open University including: Nursing, Health & Social Care and the Centre for Widening Participation and involves collaboration with Age Concern Milton Keynes and colleagues from the Faculty of Maths, Computing and Technology. The other project partners are:
The Department of Nursing and Midwifery University of Stirling (Highland campus) - Scotland
The Institute of Gerontology at The Technical University of Dortmund - Germany
The Verwey Jonker Institute - The Netherlands
The Faculty of Health Sciences at The University of Maribor - Slovenia
Our project website is:
http://www.opt-in.si/
The project is led by a team from The Open University including: Nursing, Health & Social Care and the Centre for Widening Participation and involves collaboration with Age Concern Milton Keynes and colleagues from the Faculty of Maths, Computing and Technology. The other project partners are:
The Department of Nursing and Midwifery University of Stirling (Highland campus) - Scotland
The Institute of Gerontology at The Technical University of Dortmund - Germany
The Verwey Jonker Institute - The Netherlands
The Faculty of Health Sciences at The University of Maribor - Slovenia
Our project website is:
http://www.opt-in.si/
Wednesday 13 January 2010
The Centre for Ageing and Biographical Studies at The Open University and the Centre for Policy on Ageing invite you to the 13th seminar in the Representation of Older People in Ageing Research series
on Thursday, 11 February 2010
IMAGINING FUTURES
At the Centre for Policy on Ageing, 19-23 Ironmonger Row, London EC1V 3QP, from 10.30 to 4.30
Fee of £30 (£25 for registered students) payable to Centre for Policy on Ageing, refreshments and sandwich lunch included.
Email Angela Clark aclark@cpa.org.uk to reserve a place and request a booking form or access programme/form at http://www.cpa.org.uk/events/events.html
‘Imagining Futures’ will look at methodological issues in asking people to imagine the future and their own ageing. Speakers will address issues such as:
· What research methods can be used to help people think about the future?
· How has the future been conceptualised and articulated in research targeted at older people?
· Is it possible to move people beyond stereotyped and negative expectations of their own ageing and of later life?
· Do particular types of research methods affect how people tend to envisage the future and their own older age?
· What are the ethical issues in asking people to think about their own ageing?
The aim of the day is to explore both practical and theoretical issues in asking people to think about their own ageing, in order to improve practice in both research and practice/policy contexts. Seminar participants will be invited to share their views and experiences throughout the day. The seminar will be of relevance to practitioners, policy makers, academics and students.
10.30 Registration and Coffee
10.45 INTRODUCTION
Morning Chair, Dr Rebecca Jones, CABS, The Open University
11.00 RESEARCHING THE FUTURE WITH OLDER PEOPLE: EXPERIENCES WITH
‘THE OLDEST GENERATION’
Professor Joanna Bornat and Dr Bill Bytheway, The Open University
12.05 FUTURE MATTERS FOR AGEING RESEARCH
Professor Barbara Adam, Cardiff University
1.05 lunch
Afternoon Chair, Professor Joanna Bornat
2.00 ‘Erm, I don't know... It's not something that I really think about’: Facing the Fear in research on ageing
Dr Cassandra Phoenix, Exeter University
3.05 GUIDED DISCUSSION INVITING VIEWS AND EXPERIENCES OF RESEARCHING THE FUTURE
Seminar participants are invited to bring along examples of their own or other people's research where the future has been a focus. We will use these examples, in combination with the day's papers, to further examine the seminar themes.
4.10 CLOSING REMARKS
Abstracts
Researching the future with older people: experiences with ‘The Oldest Generation’
Professor Joanna Bornat and Dr Bill Bytheway
'The Oldest Generation', one of seven projects in the Timescapes programme, has been researching the everyday lives of 12 people over the age of 75. Our methods are qualitative and longitudinal. We have used life history interviews, followed by a second interview eighteen months later, and diaries covering the intervening period. While time past and time being experienced was built into data collection we realised that the future was a missing feature. In this paper we reflect on some of the reasons why the future was not included in our research design and then go on to discuss how we re-focused our attention, by direct and indirect means. In so doing we came to recognise the extent to which future time is immanent in talk and how in research with older people, the social meanings of time have a complexity which challenges assumptions of finitude.
Future matters for ageing research
Professor Barbara Adam
The futurity of action is a challenging domain for social inquiry; it necessitates an openness to rethink the subject matter of sociology, its epistemology and its methodology. For ageing research the difficulty is intensified. To gain some anchorage points for study, the paper outlines past and present approaches to the future, maps the complexities involved, identifies some of the sensitive issues associated with studying approaches to the future in older people, and seeks to identify some openings for investigation.
‘Erm, I don't know... It's not something that I really think about’: facing the fear in research on ageing
Dr Cassandra Phoenix
Over the last decade I have been inviting people to tell me stories about their perceptions and experiences of ageing. This has involved speaking with the young, and old, about their past, present and anticipated future body-selves. My ‘qualitative tool kit’ has included life history interviews, longitudinal interviews, the use of biographical objects, ethnography, focus groups and more recently, visual methods. With a particular interest in narrative research, I have interpreted these stories using multiple forms of analyses to explore the ‘hows’, and ‘whats’ of storytelling, identity construction through the use of big and small stories, and the ways in which such ageing identities are contextually situated through examining ‘where’, ‘when’, and by ‘who’ cultural context is produced. Central to all of this has been the notion of ‘facing a fear’ – for the participants, and indeed myself as a researcher.
I use this presentation as a welcomed opportunity to reflect upon, and share with the audience what has worked well… what less so… and how I have attempted to negotiate some of the issues that have arisen throughout this journey.
on Thursday, 11 February 2010
IMAGINING FUTURES
At the Centre for Policy on Ageing, 19-23 Ironmonger Row, London EC1V 3QP, from 10.30 to 4.30
Fee of £30 (£25 for registered students) payable to Centre for Policy on Ageing, refreshments and sandwich lunch included.
Email Angela Clark aclark@cpa.org.uk to reserve a place and request a booking form or access programme/form at http://www.cpa.org.uk/events/events.html
‘Imagining Futures’ will look at methodological issues in asking people to imagine the future and their own ageing. Speakers will address issues such as:
· What research methods can be used to help people think about the future?
· How has the future been conceptualised and articulated in research targeted at older people?
· Is it possible to move people beyond stereotyped and negative expectations of their own ageing and of later life?
· Do particular types of research methods affect how people tend to envisage the future and their own older age?
· What are the ethical issues in asking people to think about their own ageing?
The aim of the day is to explore both practical and theoretical issues in asking people to think about their own ageing, in order to improve practice in both research and practice/policy contexts. Seminar participants will be invited to share their views and experiences throughout the day. The seminar will be of relevance to practitioners, policy makers, academics and students.
10.30 Registration and Coffee
10.45 INTRODUCTION
Morning Chair, Dr Rebecca Jones, CABS, The Open University
11.00 RESEARCHING THE FUTURE WITH OLDER PEOPLE: EXPERIENCES WITH
‘THE OLDEST GENERATION’
Professor Joanna Bornat and Dr Bill Bytheway, The Open University
12.05 FUTURE MATTERS FOR AGEING RESEARCH
Professor Barbara Adam, Cardiff University
1.05 lunch
Afternoon Chair, Professor Joanna Bornat
2.00 ‘Erm, I don't know... It's not something that I really think about’: Facing the Fear in research on ageing
Dr Cassandra Phoenix, Exeter University
3.05 GUIDED DISCUSSION INVITING VIEWS AND EXPERIENCES OF RESEARCHING THE FUTURE
Seminar participants are invited to bring along examples of their own or other people's research where the future has been a focus. We will use these examples, in combination with the day's papers, to further examine the seminar themes.
4.10 CLOSING REMARKS
Abstracts
Researching the future with older people: experiences with ‘The Oldest Generation’
Professor Joanna Bornat and Dr Bill Bytheway
'The Oldest Generation', one of seven projects in the Timescapes programme, has been researching the everyday lives of 12 people over the age of 75. Our methods are qualitative and longitudinal. We have used life history interviews, followed by a second interview eighteen months later, and diaries covering the intervening period. While time past and time being experienced was built into data collection we realised that the future was a missing feature. In this paper we reflect on some of the reasons why the future was not included in our research design and then go on to discuss how we re-focused our attention, by direct and indirect means. In so doing we came to recognise the extent to which future time is immanent in talk and how in research with older people, the social meanings of time have a complexity which challenges assumptions of finitude.
Future matters for ageing research
Professor Barbara Adam
The futurity of action is a challenging domain for social inquiry; it necessitates an openness to rethink the subject matter of sociology, its epistemology and its methodology. For ageing research the difficulty is intensified. To gain some anchorage points for study, the paper outlines past and present approaches to the future, maps the complexities involved, identifies some of the sensitive issues associated with studying approaches to the future in older people, and seeks to identify some openings for investigation.
‘Erm, I don't know... It's not something that I really think about’: facing the fear in research on ageing
Dr Cassandra Phoenix
Over the last decade I have been inviting people to tell me stories about their perceptions and experiences of ageing. This has involved speaking with the young, and old, about their past, present and anticipated future body-selves. My ‘qualitative tool kit’ has included life history interviews, longitudinal interviews, the use of biographical objects, ethnography, focus groups and more recently, visual methods. With a particular interest in narrative research, I have interpreted these stories using multiple forms of analyses to explore the ‘hows’, and ‘whats’ of storytelling, identity construction through the use of big and small stories, and the ways in which such ageing identities are contextually situated through examining ‘where’, ‘when’, and by ‘who’ cultural context is produced. Central to all of this has been the notion of ‘facing a fear’ – for the participants, and indeed myself as a researcher.
I use this presentation as a welcomed opportunity to reflect upon, and share with the audience what has worked well… what less so… and how I have attempted to negotiate some of the issues that have arisen throughout this journey.
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