Friday, March 14, 2014

Second Educational Session - Arthritis

Hello to all, 

I did my second session of service learning for the Foster grandparents at Central Wisconsin Center. At my last educational session I asked the grandparents what health topic they would like me to help them understand. They had decided they would like to know more about joints as one of the ladies has a "bad knee". I decided to do a presentation on arthritis.
 

I decided to give an overview of both osteoarthritis and rheumatoid arthritis as both could be applicable to this audience. I discussed the difference between the two types of arthritis including x-rays of healthy and diseased joints.
 

I discussed the different treatment modalities, medications and supplements plus the importance of being able to accurately describe joint pain/discomfort. I talked about exercises to keep joints mobile yet not over doing exercise that may stress joints.
 

I outlined proper nutrition for a joint inflammatory condition called gout. The ladies had either themselves had gout or knew someone who has this disease.
 

The general consensus of the group was that they get sufficient exercise pushing wheel chairs for the residents to activities and outings throughout the center. I agree that these ladies are very active for their age. They seem very comfortable asking questions. They are used to my informal teaching style and openly share their medical history. They appear to be a copasetic group of volunteers. The Director of the program joined us and had a few questions of her own.
 

After the first presentation when I met these ladies in the hallway they spoke and call me by name. I find it interesting as some people half their age can't remember names. I really enjoy sharing health topics with these ladies that are providing such a great service for the individuals that live at Central Wisconsin Center.
 

Thanks….Cindy

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