Signpost Book Reviews Vol 11.3 February 2007

This page shows books which Signpost has reviewed. If you would like to become a Signpost book reviewer, please contact Signpost. For guidelines click here.

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The Futures of Old Age

Edited by: Vincent JA, Phillipson CR, and Downs, M
Publisher: Sage Publications 2006
ISBN:1-4129-0108-1
255 pages
Price: £18.99

Having established that this book is published in association with the British Society of Gerontology, the title makes more sense: under consideration here are the futures (plural), as opposed to the commodities or other financial products bought or sold at an agreed price for delivery at a specified future date. Once over that relatively clumsy hurdle, the remainder of the book makes its position clear. Admittedly it is also concerned with the development of social and economic policy, but not in a privatisation by stealth governmental way.

As Phillipson asserts in his foreword, this volume was commissioned to "provide a major assessment of the different changes involved in the future of old age and to reflect upon options for key areas affecting older people". The stand-alone nature of many of the twenty-one chapters is indicated by each one being separately copyrighted by Sage. The core concern is that of how to effectively manage and maintain the aspirations of the individual alongside societal expectations.

Comprehensive figures and tables are clearly explained, and key factors are highlighted. It has never been more evident that education affects health and mortality, where life expectancies vary significantly by socioeconomic class. Some truths are less palatable – retirement is not a homogenizing experience, as Walker and Foster remind us. Minns assessment of the future of stock market pensions is also a sobering read.

Of particular interest to Signpost readers, parts five and six each house three chapters. Here the future of health and well being, and family and living arrangements are discussed. It might appear churlish to cherry-pick specific pieces, but it should come as no surprise that the seven pages allotted to Downs and Bruce are amongst the most concisely written here.

Their chapter asks ‘Is there a better future for people with dementia and their families?’ From the plethora of statistics available, they move on to concede that dementia currently "represents one of the most stigmatised of the chronic conditions of old age" (after Graham et al, cited on page 147). Evident progress has to be acknowledged, wherein those previously considered most vulnerable experienced the post-war warehousing of ‘senile dements’, as it was tellingly termed by the Seebohm Rowntree report in 1947. Individuals born at that time are now approaching retirement, so it is probably appropriate to echo those two Bradford Dementia Group stalwarts when they conclude that "we have the opportunity to ensure that our communities are optimally dementia-friendly" (page 152).

The task, as we are regularly reminded by politicians and social commentators, will not be easy, but it is owed to the many. This scholarly book raises justifiable concerns, answers many questions and deserves to be studied at length.

Stephen Weeks BA (Hons), RMN, is a CPN based at Ossett CMHT, South West Yorkshire NHS Trust.

Communication Activities with Adults

Authors: Comins, J, Llewellyn, F, Offiler, J
Publisher: Speechmark publishing Ltd, 2005, Oxford
ISBN: 0863883435
112 pp
Price: £14.95

For anyone working with the elderly in a day-care or residential setting this book has a wealth of ideas for stimulating activities. The book is an update of Activities and Ideas, originally published in 1983 by three speech and language therapists, and is a valuable resource for people working with dysphasia, the elderly and day-care clients.

It provides over 100 ideas for verbal games and group activities, many of which need no preparation. Others can be made quickly and cheaply from basic materials such as paper, card or magazine cuttings. Most can be adapted to suit varying client needs and will also trigger other ideas.

This book is excellent for care providers needing some fresh inspiration or wanting something ready to hand to fill an odd five minutes or so. A favourite with the clients with whom I work is completing the sayings and proverbs. Even those with severe memory problems could usually join in.

The items are arranged in five sections such as Cued Responses and Non-verbal Activities with 18 topics in each, making it quite easy to select something suitable.

This book will also be of benefit to students on practical assignments, seeking to familiarise themselves with the clients’ capabilities.

Activity resources for this client group can be quite costly but very often it is the things that cost little or nothing that provide the most stimulation for the client.

A most useful book for anyone whose role it is to provide activities in a day care or residential setting.

Kathryn M Scott
Day Care Assistant
Alzheimer’s Society Cardiff