{"id":5828,"date":"2019-11-23T06:23:19","date_gmt":"2019-11-23T11:23:19","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.silvercentury.org\/?p=5828"},"modified":"2019-11-23T06:24:20","modified_gmt":"2019-11-23T11:24:20","slug":"when-should-you-take-away-an-older-persons-cell-phone","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"http:\/\/78.142.243.82\/~silvercentury\/2019\/11\/when-should-you-take-away-an-older-persons-cell-phone\/","title":{"rendered":"When Should You Take Away an Older Person\u2019s Cell Phone?"},"content":{"rendered":"

More and more older people are comfortable with technology such as smartphones. But as some develop dementia, families must decide whether to step in and protect them from temptations online. Journalist Judith Graham, writing for <\/span><\/i>Kaiser Health News <\/span><\/a>(KHN)<\/span><\/i>, <\/span>describes problems that can crop up, along with some possible solutions. KHN posted her article on September 26, 2019. Funding from the Silver Century Foundation helps KHN develop articles (like this one) on longevity and related health and social issues.<\/span><\/i>  <\/span><\/i><\/p>\n

At first, Robert Zorowitz, MD, thought his 83-year-old mother was confused. She couldn\u2019t remember passwords to accounts on her computer. She would call and say programs had stopped working.<\/span><\/p>\n

But over time, Zorowitz realized his mother\u2014a highly intelligent woman who was comfortable with technology\u2014was showing early signs of dementia.<\/span><\/p>\n

Increasingly, families will encounter similar concerns as older adults become reliant on computers, cell phones and tablets: with cognitive impairment, these devices become difficult to use and, in some cases, problematic.<\/span><\/p>\n

Computer skills may deteriorate even \u201cbefore [older adults] misplace keys, forget names or display other, more classic signs of early dementia,\u201d Zorowitz wrote recently on a group email list for geriatricians. (He\u2019s based in New York City and [is] senior medical director for Optum, a health services company.) <\/span><\/p>\n

\u201cDeciding whether to block their access to their bank accounts, stocks and other online resources may present the same ethical dilemmas as taking away their car keys,\u201d [he said.] <\/span><\/p>\n

The emergence of this issue tracks the growing popularity of devices that let older adults communicate with friends and family via email, join interest groups on Facebook, visit virtually via Skype or FaceTime, and bank, shop, take courses or read publications online.<\/span><\/p>\n

According to the <\/span>Pew Research Center<\/a>,<\/span> 73 percent of adults 65 and older used the Internet in 2019, up from 43 percent in 2010. And 42 percent of older adults owned smartphones in 2017, the latest year for which <\/span>data is available<\/a>,<\/span> up from 18 percent in 2013.<\/span><\/p>\n

Already, some physicians are adapting to this new digital reality. At Johns Hopkins Medicine, Halima Amjad, MD, an assistant professor of medicine, now asks older patients if they use a computer or smartphone and are having trouble, such as forgetting passwords or getting locked out of accounts.<\/span><\/p>\n

\u201cIf there\u2019s a notable change in how someone is using technology,\u201d she said, \u201cwe would proceed with a more in-depth cognitive evaluation.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n

Safety can become an issue for an older person with dementia who gets emails from scammers. <\/b><\/p><\/blockquote>\n

At Rush University\u2019s Alzheimer\u2019s Disease Center in Chicago, neurologist Neelum Aggarwal, MD, finds that older adults are bringing up problems with technology as a \u201cnon-threatening way to talk about trouble with thinking.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n

\u201cInstead of saying, \u2018I have issues with my memory,\u2019 people will say, \u2018I just can\u2019t figure out my smartphone\u2019 or \u2018I was trying to start that computer program and it took forever to get that done.\u2019\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n

If the person previously used digital devices without difficulty, Aggarwal will try to identify the underlying problem. Does the older adult have problems with vision or coordination? Is she having trouble understanding language? Is memory becoming compromised? Is it hard for her to follow the steps needed to complete a transaction?<\/span><\/p>\n

If using technology has become frustrating, Aggarwal recommends deleting apps on cell phones and programs on computers.<\/span><\/p>\n

\u201cThe anxiety associated with \u2018Oh, my God, I have to use this and I don\u2019t know how\u2019 totally sets people back and undoes any gains that technology might offer,\u201d she said. \u201cIt\u2019s similar to what I do with medications: I\u2019ll help someone get rid of what\u2019s not needed and keep only what\u2019s really essential.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n

Typically, she said, she recommends no more than five to 10 cell phone apps for patients in these circumstances.<\/span><\/p>\n

When safety becomes an issue\u2014say, for an older adult with dementia who\u2019s being approached by scammers on email\u2014family members should first try counseling the person against giving out their Social Security or credit card information, said Cynthia Clyburn, a social worker in the neurology division at Penn Medicine in Philadelphia.<\/span><\/p>\n

If that doesn\u2019t work, try to spend time together at the computer so you can monitor what\u2019s going on. \u201cMake it a group activity,\u201d Clyburn said. If possible, create shared passwords so you have shared access.<\/span><\/p>\n

But beware of appropriating someone\u2019s passwords and using them to check email or online bank or brokerage accounts. \u201cWithout consent, it\u2019s a federal crime to use an individual\u2019s password to access their accounts,\u201d said Catherine Seal, an elder law attorney at Kirtland & Seal in Colorado Springs, CO. Ideally, consent should be granted in writing.<\/span><\/p>\n

Older adults with Alzheimer\u2019s commonly turn away from digital devices as they forget how to use them.<\/b><\/p><\/blockquote>\n

With his mother\u2019s permission, one of Zorowitz\u2019s brothers\u2014a physician in Baltimore\u2014installed GoToMyPC, an application that allowed him to remotely manage her computer. He used it to reset passwords and manage items on her desktop and sometimes to order groceries online from Peapod.<\/span><\/p>\n

Eventually, Selma Zorowitz lost interest in her computer as she slipped further into dementia and spent the end of her life in a nursing home. She died in 2014 at age 87.<\/span><\/p>\n

Older adults with Alzheimer\u2019s disease commonly turn away from digital devices as they forget how to use them, said Lon Schneider, MD, a professor of psychiatry and neurology at the University of Southern California.<\/span><\/p>\n

More difficult, often, are situations faced by people with frontotemporal dementia (FTD), which affects a person\u2019s judgment, self-awareness and ability to assess risk.<\/span><\/p>\n

Sally Balch Hurme\u2019s 75-year-old husband, Arthur, has FTD, diagnosed in 2015. Every day, this elder law attorney and author struggles to keep him safe in a digital world full of threats.<\/span><\/p>\n

Hundreds of emails pour onto Arthur\u2019s cell phone from telemarketers with hard-to-resist offers. His Facebook account is peopled with \u201cfriends\u201d from foreign countries, all strangers. \u201cHe has no idea who they are. Some of them are wearing bandoliers of ammunition, holding their guns,\u201d Hurme said. \u201cIt is horrific.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n

Then, there\u2019s Amazon, a never-ending source of shopping temptation. Recently, Arthur ordered four pocket translators, several watches and a large quantity of maple sugar candies for $1,000. Though returns are possible, Hurme doesn\u2019t always know where Arthur has stored items he\u2019s bought.<\/span><\/p>\n

What steps has she taken to manage the situation? With Arthur\u2019s permission, she unsubscribes him from accounts that send him emails and removes friends from his Facebook account. On his cell phone, she has installed a parental-control app that blocks him from using it between midnight and 6 a.m.\u2014hours when he was most likely to engage in online activities. There\u2019s also a parental-control setting on the TV to prevent access to \u201cadult\u201d channels.<\/span><\/p>\n

Instead of an open-ended credit card, Hurme gives Arthur a stored-value card with a limited amount of money. She manages household finances, and he doesn\u2019t have access to the couple\u2019s online banking account. Credit bureaus have been told not to open any account in Arthur\u2019s name.<\/span><\/p>\n

If Hurme had her way, she said, she\u2019d get rid of Arthur\u2019s cell phone\u2014his primary form of communication. (He has stopped using the computer.) But \u201cI\u2019m very sensitive to respecting his dignity and letting him be as independent and autonomous as possible,\u201d she said. For all the dangers it presents, \u201chis phone is his connection with the outside world, and I can\u2019t take that away from him.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

At first, Robert Zorowitz, MD, thought his 83-year-old mother was confused. She couldn\u2019t remember passwords to accounts on her computer. She would call and say programs had stopped working.<\/span><\/p>\n

Read more When Should You Take Away an Older Person\u2019s Cell Phone?<\/span> ›<\/span><\/a><\/div>\n

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