The Survive and Thrive Boomer Guide

‘Brain drain’ predicted – again – as boomers get ready to retire

Before the Great Recession, the Internet and newspapers were abuzz with articles about the bad shape American companies and government agencies would be in when large numbers of baby boomers retired.

With so many people, including boomers, out of work, the topic hasn’t come up much lately. In fact, many articles have been written about boomers working well beyond retirement age.

However, in a recent report, Ithaca College sociologist Stephen Sweet says, as millions of baby boomers prepare to retire, “the inevitable talent drain threatens to alter the national economy.”

The report – "The Pressures of Talent Management" – examined talent management practices at 696 organizations across the 10 leading sectors of the economy.

“Four of every ten employers surveyed anticipate the aging workforce will have a negative impact on their business over the next three years,” said Sweet.

However, 77 percent of employers surveyed had not analyzed projected employee retirement rates or assessed employee career plans.

In 2000, baby boomers represented the largest portion of the U.S. labor force at 48 percent. By 2010, they're projected to shrink to 37 percent of the workforce. As a result, some economists are predicting a shortage of 10 to 15 million workers in the coming decade, with large numbers of inexperienced workers in a dwindling labor pool.

U.S. companies need to start planning for this loss of workers, Sweet said, adding:

Employers should take advantage of programs designed to meet the evolving needs of employees nearing retirement, while at the same time meeting business needs by keeping experienced talent longer and ensuring business continuity.

That’s good advice. Boomers need flexibility, such as being able to work part time, if they stay in their jobs, or if they look for new ones.

Copyright 2009, Rita R. Robison, Consumer Specialist

How to choose a facility for your mammogram screening

Years ago, when I wrote about the possible dangers of radiation doses from mammograms, I followed the consumer recommendations to call facilities that offer mammograms and ask about the age of their equipment, equipment certification, and technician training.

In recent years, I’ve been lax about this important consumer research.

However yesterday, when listening to reports on National Public Radio about the recommendations of the U.S. Preventive Services Task Force, I heard a doctor talk about the importance of selecting the best facility to do your mammogram.

The quality of mammography screening varies widely across the country. It’s important for baby boomer women to call the facilities they’re considering and ask questions.

To make a list of facilities, you can get information about local Food and Drug Administration-certified mammography facilities at the National Cancer Institute’s Cancer Information Service line at 800–4–CANCER or 800–422–6237. Also, a list of these facilities is on the FDA’s Web site at www.accessdata.fda.gov/scripts/cdrh/cfdocs/cfMQSA/mqsa.cfm.

Here are questions to ask the facilities on your list:

• When did you purchase your equipment? Does the FDA certify it? When was the last inspection? Tell me about your maintenance program. Does the equipment produce digital or film images? Digital technology is newer, but it isn’t known yet whether is produces better results than film.

• How skilled are your technicians? Where were they trained and how long was the training? Do your technicians update their training?

• What's the expertise of the radiologist who interprets the films? Where was he or she trained? Do you have a radiologist that spends more than 50 percent of the time working in breast imaging?

• Does your facility specialize in mammograms? How many mammograms do you do a day?

• Does your facility do audit reviews at least twice a year, and is the radiologist routinely given the results of these reviews? Audit reviews are a form of quality control. The facility should compare the mammogram interpretations with the results of the breast biopsies in order to regularly test the accuracy of the radiologists’ decisions.

• What dose of radiation does your equipment emit for a mammogram?

When you get to the facility for your mammogram, ask to see the MQSA certificate and check its expiration date. MQSA means the Mammogram Quality Standards Act. MQSA regulations also require mammography facilities to give patients an easy-to-read report on the results of their mammogram.

If you are satisfied that the facility is of high quality, continue to go there on a regular basis so that your mammograms can be compared from year to year.

For more information, see “Choosing a Mammogram Facility” and “How to Select a Mammography Facility.”

Copyright 2009, Rita R. Robison, Consumer Specialist

New breast cancer recommendations offer helpful advice to baby boomer women on what to do about breast cancer screening

The U.S. Preventive Services Task Force revised guidelines on breast cancer screening recommend against universal screening mammography for women aged 40 to 49, recommend every other year screening for women 50 to 74, rather than annual screening, and recommend against teaching breast self-examination.

I believe the new recommendations provide valuable information for baby boomer women as they access their breast cancer screening needs.

Among the groups that agree is the National Breast Cancer Coalition.
 
For over a decade, the coalition has had the position that over-emphasis on the importance of breast cancer screening, despite a lack of strong evidence, has been elevated to such a degree that some even equate screening with prevention.

The coalition hopes that the task force revised recommendations will put screening and its limitations into proper perspective.

"We hope that policy makers, the public, and the health care community will take the time to carefully analyze the basis of the revised recommendations,” said coalition President, Fran Visco in a statement in response to the task force’s recommendations. “Women have been given different messages for years, but unfortunately those messages were not based on strong evidence."

"Women deserve the truth even when it is complicated,” Visco added. “They can accept it."

Everyone deserves to know the facts and has the right to make informed decisions regarding their health care. The coalition encourages women to make informed decisions regarding screening based on the actual evidence.

To learn more about the myths and truths concerning breast cancer and screening, and to find out how to take action against this disease, visit the coalition’s StopBreastCancer.org.

The coalition is an organization working to ending breast cancer through grassroots action and advocacy.

The Breast Cancer Fund also has raised questions about radiation as being implicated in breast cancer causation. See the articles “Do Chemicals and Radiation Cause Breast Cancer?” and “Preventing Breast Cancer: 20 Risk Factors.”

The Breast Cancer Fund is an organization that works to identify – and advocate for elimination of – the environmental and other preventable causes of breast cancer.

Copyright 2009, Rita R. Robison, Consumer Specialist

Should baby boomers buy an Apple computer or a PC?

My friends Margaret and Jim are in the market for a new computer.

I’ve been offering advice because I bought an Apple desk top in January of 2008.

The Apple has worked pretty well for me. It has a 24-inch screen. I can get a blog post on the screen and look up articles in the space beside it; both are full size.

I’ve only had a few problems with my iMac. When I started blogging, I couldn’t figure out how to make links underneath highlighted words. I struggled and struggled. Finally, I determined it was the Safari browser. You needed to do special steps in the TypePad blog platform if you use Safari.

My biggest problem was the screen intensity of the iMac. It felt like the screen was "frying" my eyes after several hours of computer work. I went to the Apple store in Tukwila, Wash., for two sessions to get the screen brightness turned down beyond the lowest setting for brightness.

When it came time to buy a laptop to use when I’m traveling, I bought a PC. I didn’t want two computers that gave me eye strain.

Now that I have glasses that darken in bright light, the problem has largely disappeared.

I went with my friends today to the Apple store at University Village in Seattle. The store is much larger than the one in Tukwila. The staff was friendly and helpful – much superior to the customer service I received at Verizon Wireless this weekend. I’ll be blogging about that Saturday.

My friends are probably going to buy the 21 inch desktop iMac.

What about you? Do you love Apple computers or is the PC the one for you? Leave me a comment below and let me know how your computer is working for you. Also, what would you advise my friends to buy?

See the article "Should You Upgrade to the Latest Windows or Mac Operating System?" on the Boomer Technophobia Web site for information on the Mac-PC question.

Copyright 2009, Rita R. Robison, Consumer Specialist

Baby boomers may be heavier and more disabled as they get older

Older Americans entering their 70s aren’t functioning as well as the generations that came before them, a new study shows.

That may predict that baby boomers will have higher disability rates in their “golden years.”

The study compared disability measurements, which assess how well an individual can perform daily activities, such as walking up a flight of stairs, managing personal finances, and performing household chores.

The study doesn't explain why more people are becoming disabled as they enter their later years, reports the Los Angeles Times article “Baby Boomers May Face High Disability Rates.” However, Teresa E. Seeman, a professor of medicine and epidemiology at University of California at Los Angeles’ David Geffen School of Medicine, is quoted in the article as saying:

Rising levels of obesity appear to be the major factor; the greatest increases in disabilities were among non-whites and people who were obese or overweight. Normal-weight individuals do not show a trend of increasing disabilities. It does seem to be that the increase is restricted to the groups that are overweight and obese. But part of the problem is that more and more people are overweight and obese.

Baby boomers can improve their chances of being active and healthy as they get older by losing weight.

Here are resources on weight loss:

“Weight Loss for Life” – National Institutes of Health

“Good News for Women Trying to Lose Weight” – About.com

“Resources for People Who Want to Lose Weight” – Diabetes Spectrum

“10 Painless Ways to Lose Weight” – WebMD

“Top 10 Diet and Nutrition Resolutions” – MedicineNet.com

“Dieting on a Budget” – ConsumerReports.org

“Top Diets Reviewed” – ConsumerReports.org

“Rating the Diet Books” – Center for Science in the Public Interest

Copyright 2009, Rita R. Robison, Consumer Specialist

A Veterans Day 2009 look at what veterans need

America has 23.2 million veterans. About 10.9 million of them are baby boomers.

On this day that we stop to remember the contributions of our service men and women, what’s being said about veterans and their needs on Veterans Day?

President Barack Obama said that there have been times in the past when America didn’t stand by its veterans. Obama pledged that this wouldn’t happen again:

That is my message to all veterans today. That is my message to all who serve in harm's way. To the husbands and wives back home doing the parenting of two. To the parents who watch their sons and daughters go off to war, and the children who wonder when mom and dad is coming home. To all our wounded warriors, and to the families who laid a loved one to rest. America will not let you down. We will take care of our own.

And to those who are serving in far-flung places today, when your tour ends, when you see our flag, when you touch our soil, you will be home in an America that is forever here for you just as you've been there for us. That is my promise – our nation's promise – to you.

Veterans for Common Sense, a veterans’ advocacy organization, said that today’s observance offers the opportunity to raise awareness about the mental health needs of service members, veterans, and families:

Of the two million U.S. service members deployed to the two war zones since 2001, researchers at Stanford University estimated 500,000 or more Iraq and Afghanistan war veterans are likely to return home with mental health conditions such as post traumatic stress disorder…

As more and more service members deploy to war and redeploy home, the scope of the health care crisis among our veterans continues to worsen…

Our list of concerns included the need for more military mental health care providers, the need for universal, mandatory medical exams before and after going to war, and the need for a stronger anti-stigma message to encourage our soldiers and veterans to seek care.

An article in the Christian Science Monitor, “Veterans Day Highlights New Efforts to Help Homeless Vets,” said veterans have a high rate of homelessness:

An estimated 131,000 former members of the armed services are homeless – with vets twice as likely as non-vets to be out on the streets. With high unemployment a nationwide problem, vets face higher-than-average jobless rates as well.

New initiatives by President Obama, by Veterans Affairs Secretary Eric Shinseki and by members of Congress focus on improving living standards for veterans.

On Veterans Day and throughout the year, we need to think through and take action on ways the federal government, local and state governments, veterans groups, community groups, foundations, religious organizations, educational institutions, businesses, nonprofit organizations, and Americans citizens can improve the lives veterans.

Copyright 2009, Rita R. Robison, Consumer Specialist 

Injuries up substantially among boomers exercising excessively

Many baby boomers stay fit through rigorous exercise that can strain, injure, and wear out their bodies.

Exercise-related ailments such as sore shoulders, inflamed tendons, and arthritic knees often are the result.

"Baby boomers are the first generation in droves trying to stay active in an aging frame," said Nicholas DiNubile, M.D., 57, in the article "Boomers: Gen Xcessive – Staying Active Can Be a Painful Fountain of Youth" on Philly.com. The Havertown orthopedic surgeon is credited with first using the term "boomeritis" to describe the growing number of middle-age patients with exercise-related ailments.

For its article, the Philadelphia Inquirer asked the U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission to analyze boomer exercise-related injuries through its National Electronic Injury Surveillance System data.

The commission estimated that in 2008, emergency rooms treated 282,476 injuries among baby boomers – ages 44 to 62 – who suffered sports- and exercise-related injuries – a 47 percent increase from a decade earlier.

An example is bicycling. The Centers for Disease Control reported in 2002 that more than a fifth of the men 45 and older with sports- and recreation-related injuries treated in the ER had a biking accident – nearly the same as the portion of boys 5 to 9 – 23 percent – and much more than the 16 percent for 10-to-14-year-olds.

Overuse is one of the main causes of boomeritis. At the same time, the benefits of exercise come from pushing limits.

"It's a fine line," Cathe Friedrich, 45, co-owner of Four Seasons Health Club in Glassboro and an exercise instructor, said in the article. Friedrich has had surgery on an inflamed knee. "As we get older, that fine line gets finer."

Copyright 2009, Rita R. Robison, Consumer Specialist

Baby boomers and skin cancer: What you need to know

Boomers are getting older, and the effects of the sun from their youth and their love of outdoor activities are now beginning to show up.

Little was known when boomers were growing up about the importance of protecting the skin from the sun. And boomers don’t wear sunscreen as often as dermatologists recommend.

In a Harris Poll, 82 percent of baby boomers surveyed said they frequently spent time in the sun during their childhood without protecting their skin from the sun’s dangerous ultraviolet or UV rays, reports DentalPlans.com.

The survey also showed that the majority of older adults who wear sunscreen wear it when in the sun for an extended period of time such at the beach or gardening. However, only one-third are diligent about replying sunscreen at least every two to three hours. The American Academy of Dermatology recommends reapplying sunscreen every one and a half hours when outdoors, even on cloudy days.

Skin cancer is more prevalent today than any other time in history, as this chart from the Centers for Disease Control shows.

More than one million cases of non-melanoma skin cancer diagnosed annually in the United States are considered to be sun related.

Melanoma, the most serious type of skin cancer will account for 68,720 cases of skin cancer in 2009 and most – about 8,650 – of the deaths due to skin cancer each year, reports the American Cancer Society.

What are the types of skin cancer?

Most skin cancers are classified as non-melanoma, usually starting in either basal cells or squamous cells. These cells are located at the base of the outer layer of the skin or cover the internal and external surfaces of the body.

Most non-melanoma skin cancers develop on sun-exposed areas of the body, such as the face, ear, neck, lips, and the backs of the hands, the society reports. Depending on the type, they can be fast or slow growing, but they rarely spread to other parts of the body.

Melanoma is a cancer that begins in the melanocytes – the cells that produce the skin coloring or pigment known as melanin. Melanin helps protect the deeper layers of the skin from the harmful effects of the sun.

Melanoma is almost always curable when it is detected in its early stages, according to the society. Although melanoma accounts for only a small percentage of skin cancer, it’s far more dangerous than other skin cancers and causes most skin cancer deaths.

What are the risk factors for skin cancer?

• Unprotected and/or excessive exposure to UV radiation.

• Fair complexion.

• Occupational exposures to coal tar, pitch, creosote, arsenic compounds, or radium.

• Family history.

• Multiple or atypical moles.

• Severe sunburns as a child.

What are the signs and symptoms of skin cancer?

• Any change on the skin, especially in the size or color of a mole or other darkly pigmented growth or spot, or a new growth.

• Scaliness, oozing, bleeding, or change in the appearance of a bump or nodule.

• The spread of pigmentation beyond its border such as dark coloring that spreads past the edge of a mole or mark.

• A change in sensation, itchiness, tenderness, or pain.

What can you do to avoid skin cancer?

• Avoid the sun between 10 a.m. and 4 p.m.

• Seek shade: Look for shade, especially in the middle of the day when the sun's rays are strongest. Practice the shadow rule and teach it to children. If your shadow is shorter than you, the sun’s rays are at their strongest.

• Slip on a shirt: Cover up with protective clothing to guard as much skin as possible when you are out in the sun. Choose comfortable clothes made of tightly woven fabrics that you cannot see through when held up to a light.

• Slop on sunscreen: Use sunscreen and lip balm with a sun protection factor SPF of 15 or higher. Apply a generous amount of sunscreen – about a palmful – and reapply after swimming, toweling dry, or perspiring. Use sunscreen even on hazy or overcast days.

• Slap on a hat: Cover your head with a wide-brimmed hat, shading your face, ears, and neck. If you choose a baseball cap, remember to protect your ears and neck with sunscreen.

• Wrap on sunglasses: Wear sunglasses with 99 percent to 100 percent UV absorption to provide optimal protection for the eyes and the surrounding skin.

• Follow these practices to protect your skin even on cloudy or overcast days. UV rays travel through clouds.

• Avoid other sources of UV light. Tanning beds and sun lamps are dangerous because they can damage your skin.

The society recommends that you check your skin every month. See "Examining Your Skin for Details."

If you find anything unusual, see your doctor right away.

Copyright 2009, Rita R. Robison, Consumer Specialist

Recall of the Week: Silver, pink, and purple Durabrand DVD players sold by Wal-Mart

The recent recall of the silver Durabrand DVD player is being expanded to include the pink and purple-colored versions of the same DVD player.

About 4.2 million DVD players imported by Wal-Mart Stores Inc., of Bentonville, Ark., are being recalled because the DVD player’s circuit board can overheat, posing a fire and burn hazard to consumers. The recall of 1.5 million silver Durabrand DVD players was previously announced.

Wal-Mart has received 14 reports of DVD players overheating, seven of which have resulted in fires that caused property damage, reports the U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission. No injuries have been reported.

The recall involves a single DVD player with a remote control. The device was sold in three colors – silver, pink, and purple and has a U-shaped opening at the top to insert the DVD.

The DVD players were sold under the following UPC codes and model numbers:

Silver: UPC 1799901002, Model No. 1002

Pink: UPC 1799934100, Model No. 1002 PINK

Purple: UPC 1799932100, Model No. 1002 PUR

Manufactured in China, the DVD players were sold only at Wal-Mart stores nationwide from January 2006 through July 2009 for about $29.

Consumers should immediately stop using the product and return it to the nearest Wal-Mart for a full refund, the commission advises.

For additional information, consumers should contact Wal-Mart Stores at 800-925-6278 between 7 a.m. and 9 p.m. CT Monday through Friday, or visit the firm’s Web site at www.walmartstores.com.

To find about other recalls, see www.recalls.gov.

Copyright 2009, Rita R. Robison, Consumer Specialist

Why we can’t cut federal spending

Bruce Bartlett, Forbes columnist and author of the soon-to-be-released book "The New American Economy: The Failure of Reagonomics and a New Way Forward," says every time he writes about the need to raise revenues to pay for federal spending, some nitwit always demands to know why we don't just cut spending.

Bartlett says in his column, "Why We Can't Cut Spending," that the votes aren’t there.

Congress determines how the federal budget is spent, he says, adding the president has little discretion in the matter. He must spend federal money as the Congress sets out.

Last year, $456 billion was spent on Medicare, and it’s the fastest growing major government program.

Bartlett says in his column:

How likely is it that the people protesting Obama's Medicare cuts will stand with Republicans if they propose cutting that program even more to balance the budget? They will switch sides in an instant. The elderly will fight anyone who tries to cut their benefits even as they hypocritically demand fiscal responsibility and rant about the national debt. The elderly are the reason why we have a national debt.

And the number of older people is growing in number. Bartlett reports:

In 1980, those over age 65 constituted 11.3 percent of the population. Today they represent 13 percent, a figure that will rise to 16 percent in 2020 with the aging of the baby boomers and increasing longevity, 19.3 percent in 2030 and 20 percent in 2040, according to Census Bureau projections.

In addition, older people are a rising portion of the electorate. He says:

Back when Medicare was established, those over 65 constituted 15.8 percent of voters. Last year, they made up 19.5 percent. This is due to the rising percentage of elderly in the population and their increasing propensity to vote. In 2008, 72 percent of those between the ages of 65 and 74 reported voting while only 48.5 percent of those between the ages of 18 and 24 did.

Bartlett says in summary:

In short, there is no evidence that it is politically possible to cut spending enough to make more than a trivial difference in our nation's fiscal problems. The votes aren't there and never will be. Those who continue to insist otherwise are living in a dream world and deserve no attention from serious people.

I found the link to this interesting article on The Boomer Blog.

Copyright 2009, Rita R. Robison, Consumer Specialist