Sunday - December 22nd, 2024
Apple News
×

What can we help you find?

Open Menu

How About?

Maybe there is a way to change how we are perceived and treated by identifying ourselves as verbally handicapped or memory-challenged before we speak. The absence of a white cane, walker or wheelchair, dark glasses, or a service dog does not guarantee our acceptance, physical safety, or freedom from exploitation.

How about those “communication cards” that typically contain brief information about an individual’s disability, their specific needs, or how others can assist them. Such tools help reduce misperceptions and misunderstandings to facilitate interactions in public or social settings. A common example is the deaf and hard of hearing community. My card might read:

“My name is Ken. Thank you for reading this. I suffer from an age-related problem with my short-term memory and difficulty in recalling the names of persons and things. If I appear to be lost, confused, or in danger of accidentally hurting myself, I normally have no trouble answering Yes–No questions.

If you remain concerned, kindly call this number: ___-___-____. God bless you and thank you for your assistance.”

Originally Published on https://agingoralzheimers.com/

Kenneth Frumkin, PhD, MD, FACEP studied physiological psychology (the interaction of the body’s basic biologic mechanisms with behavior) in college and graduate school. He earned his Masters and Ph.D. degrees from McGill University for his work on the relative contributions of nature and nurture to the ingrained survival mechanism of poison-avoidance in rats. After two years of research at the U.S. Army’s Biomedical Laboratories, Ken went on to medical school and a residency in emergency medicine. His 36-year medical career was split between community hospital emergency departments and teaching, research, and practice in military academic medical centers.
Board-certified in his specialty, Dr. Frumkin is the author of over three dozen peer-reviewed publications and textbook chapters in psychology and medicine. His article “How to Survive the Emergency Room” published in the AARP Bulletin, was a 2022 National Mature Media Merit Award winner. A complete list of publications and complete resume are at www.linkedin.com/in/KennethFrumkinPhDMD . A Fellow and Life Member of the American College of Emergency Physicians and their Geriatric Emergency Medicine Section, Dr. Frumkin is also an Emeritus member of the Society for Academic Emergency Medicine and their Academy of Geriatric Emergency Medicine. Having retired as a civilian employee of the Department of the Navy in 2017, Dr. Frumkin is currently a volunteer member of the academic faculty at the Emergency Medicine Residency, Naval Medical Center, Portsmouth, Virginia.
Dr. Frumkin writes from the perspective of a practiced author and researcher and, most importantly, as a fellow boomer with “skin in the game.” He, too, is seeking the answers to nearly every older-person’s questions about their fluctuating memories and the possibility of progressive cognitive decline. His book "Aging or Alzheimer’s? A Doctor’s Personal Guide to Memory Loss, Cognitive Decline, and Dementia" comes out November 5, 2024. (AgingOrAlzheimers.com)

Posted in:
Ken Frumkin
Tagged with:

Contributors

Show More

Keep Up To Date With Our Latest Baby Boomer News & Offers!

Sign Up for Our FREE Newsletter

Name(Required)
This field is for validation purposes and should be left unchanged.

(( NEW ))