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Resource Spotlight: Older Americans Month

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The U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, Administration for Community Living (ACL) designated May as Older Americans Month. The theme for 2022 is Age My Way encouraging independent living for older adults. To help promote aging in place, ACL recommends helping older adults stay connected to their communities and supporting them with the necessary resources to help them thrive. The National Institute on Aging, a division of the U.S. National Institutes of Health, provides information and resources on their Aging in Place: Growing Older at Home page. While these federal agencies look to the practical ways we can help our older adult community members and adults with disabilities, the Office of Disease and Prevention and Health Promotion (ODPHP) spotlights an alarming health concern for aging Americans, the very real problem of elder abuse in its many forms. Explore this and other elder justice issues on ACL’s Elder Justice website.

UW Resources for Students and Health Providers

Northwest Geriatrics Workforce Enhancement Center strives to improve the primary care of older adults in the Pacific Northwest by educating patients and their families on dementias and other gerontological health issues and by offering inter-professional training programs for health providers, faculty, and students.  
Health Sciences Library’s Gerontology eBooks list.  

Environmental Gerontology Making Meaningful Places in Old Age (2013) discusses environmental design of both public and private spaces for older adults.

 

Elder Abuse (2020), a short video discussing signs of abuse physicians should look for when conducting exams of older adult patients.

 

Local Resources for Older Adults

Frye Art Museum’s Creative Aging Programs present both in-person and online art-centered activities for older adults such as Alzheimer’s Café at UW Memory and Brain Wellness Center’s The Memory Hub.  
Age Wise King County offers a library of articles with older adult-centered topics including fall prevention, memory issues, Medicare & Medicaid, and older adult centers.

Seattle Public Library’s Resources for Adults 50+ lists local organizations aiding older adults in a variety of areas including consumer protection, LGBTQIA, assistive technology, and lifelong learning.

 

Aging and Disability Services provides information for veterans, caregivers, and older adults with disabilities, including population data, area plans, a video portal, and a calendar of local events for older Seattleites and King County community members.

 

Read online article: The Cities Designing Playgrounds for the Elderly (Oct. 28, 2019)

 

Image credit: U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, Administration for Community Living. (2022). Older Americans Month. Retrieved from ACL.  

Resource Spotlight: National Children’s Mental Health Awareness Day

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May 7th is National Children’s Mental Health Awareness Day  The Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration (SAMHSA), a U.S. Department of Health & Human Services agency, created this awareness day to highlight the importance of children’s mental health to their overall development and well-being. Childhood mental health issues have increased since 2010 and pediatric health experts warn that the COVID-19 pandemic has exacerbated these issues, creating a youth mental health crisis as detailed in the U.S. Surgeon General’s Protecting Youth Mental Health advisory issued in 2021. Also this past year, the American Academy of Pediatrics, American Academy of Child & Adolescent Psychiatry, and Children’s Hospital Association declared a national emergency in child and adolescent mental health advocating for governmental policy changes that support families with evidence-based interventions in healthcare, school, and community settings. Recognizing that changes are needed at every level, one of SAMHSA’s awareness day goals include supporting communities and organizations in efforts to educate the public on childhood mental health issues and offer resources for those in need.

Public Resources

Logo of the Seattle Public Library
Seattle Public Library’s Exploration Guides for youth offer a collection of free educational online resources such as videos, podcasts, and eBooks on a variety of topics including mental health. Children and teens may select subjects of interest from their particular grade level. Elementary school children will find mental health videos chosen especially for them in the 'We All Have Mental Health' collection. Middle and high school students will also find age-appropriate mental health content within their respective exploration guides, middle school’s 'Emotional Wellness' & high school’s 'Name It to Tame It – Understanding Mental Health'.  
Logo of youth.gov

The U.S. government’s website youth.GOV supports youth programs and includes information pages on a variety of topics pertaining to children and adolescents. Many of these subjects are mental health-focused and target specific groups such as children of incarcerated parents, noting issues commonly experienced by these unique groups and offering resources.

 
Logo of the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration
SAMHSA’s Native Connections webinars help American Indian and Native Alaskan communities in managing behavioral health issues that plague Indigenous youth such as substance abuse and suicide.  
Cover of the Young Caregivers in the U.S. report
Young Caregivers in the U.S. Report of Findings September 2005. A report on children and teens who are caregivers to their siblings, parents, and other family members and the impact of this role on their emotional and mental health.  

UW Resources

Logo of University of Washington MedicinePediatric Health Library – Child and Adolescent Mental Health  

Read about UW’s Ecological Momentary Assessment Robot (EMAR) project, a social robot designed to interact with teens, assess their stress levels, and provide mental health support.

Cover of Handbook of Infant Mental HealthHandbook of Infant Mental Health (2019) Request through Summit. From the title summary: Grounded in a relational view of infancy, the volume offers a broad interdisciplinary analysis of the developmental, clinical and social aspects of mental health from birth to age three.  

Cover of Latina and Latino Children's Mental HealthLatina and Latino Children's Mental Health (2011). This text examines the various factors that shape the social and behavioral development of Latinx youth and explores how their identity as ethnic minorities and sometimes immigrants may differ from the experience of African-American and European-American children.

 

Cover of Technology OveruseTechnology Overuse : A Step-by-Step Guide to Assessment and Treatment for Children, Adolescents, and Families (2020). In this instructional film, Dr. Melissa Westendorf discusses the relationship between technology overuse and psychological issues in children and teens and offers suggestions for treatment.

 

Cover of Children and the Dark Side of Human ExperienceChildren and the Dark Side of Human Experience: Confronting Global Realities and Rethinking Child Development (2008). Dr. James Garbarino details stories of children in war zones and refugee camps and how the trauma of these experiences negatively effect both their physical and emotional development.

 

Image credit: Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration. (2022). National Children’s Mental Health Awareness Day. Retrieved from Samsa

Resource Spotlight: World Health Day – April 7

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World Health Organization's 2022 World Health Day is 2022
World Health Organization's 2022 World Health Day is 2022

This year’s theme is Our Planet, Our Health: Clean our Air, Water, and Food. The World Health Organization (WHO) sponsors this annual awareness day to draw attention to specific global health issues. They chose April 7th because it marks the founding of WHO in 1948.

This year, the campaign has a multipronged focus exploring how pollution (in its many forms) and the climate crisis negatively impact the planet and human health. They urge leaders, corporations, and individuals to promote and practice healthful eating, energy conservation, and anti-pollutive habits. Acknowledging the interconnectedness of the health of our planet to human well-being, this year’s message encourages a holistic approach to health at every level—from societies, governments, and health facilities to the individuals that populate them.

 

UW Resources

Environmental Health in the 21st Century: From Air Pollution to Zoonotic Diseases (2018). This text provides encyclopedic entries on environmental health topics.

   
From Flint: Voices of a Poisoned City (2017). This documentary details the water contamination crisis in Flint, Michigan and the devastating impact on the families living there.    
Risk on the Table: Food Production, Health, and the Environment (2021). This text covers the history of food safety with respect to environmental issues and consumer health.    
India Inhales (2017): A documentary on tobacco use in children in India and the rise in cancer cases as a result of this use. While harmful to human health, tobacco use is also an environmental issue.    
All We can Save: Truth, Courage, and Solutions for the Climate Crisis (2020). Editors Dr. Ayana Elizabeth Johnson and Dr. Katharine Wilkinson present a collection of essays from women environmental activists, lawyers, and scientists. Also lending their voices to this anthology are various feminist poets and artists who are passionate about the climate movement.    

Cover image credit:

World Health Organization. (2022). Our Planet, Our Health. Retrieved from https://www.who.int/campaigns/world-health-day/2022/

Resource Spotlight: National Kidney Month

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March is National Kidney Month! The campaign for 2022 is Building Paths to Better Kidney Care. The National Institute of Diabetes and Digestive and Kidney Diseases reports that an estimated 37 million people in the U.S. have chronic kidney disease, but many don’t know it. Diabetics and those with high blood pressure have a greater risk of developing kidney disease. Because American Indian, African American, and Hispanic communities have higher rates of diabetes and high blood pressure, they are also at greater risk for kidney disease. NIDDK suggests three ways to help care for your kidneys including actively participating in your care with your health care team; following your care plan and staying up to date on your vaccinations; and building a kidney healthy lifestyle by eating healthily, staying active, and maintaining a quality sleep routine.

UW Resources

 

HSL Anatomical Models

Anatomical Kidney Model (library use only)

Anatomical Urinary Organs Model (library use only)

Image credit:

National Institute of Diabetes and Digestive and Kidney Diseases. (2022). National Kidney Month 2022. Retrieved March 10, 2022 from https://www.niddk.nih.gov/health-information/community-health-outreach/national-kidney-month

International Day of Women and Girls in Science

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February 11th is International Day of Women and Girls in Science.

This year’s theme is Equity, Diversity, and Inclusion: Water Unites Us.

UW Organizations & Programs

Global WACh: Three UW departments—Obstetrics and Gynecology, Pediatrics, and Global Health—pool their expertise to promote health education, reduce health inequities, and develop strategies to improve the health of women, adolescents, and children across the globe.

Burke Museum’s Girls in Science program: The UW Girls in Science program connects middle and high school students with womxn scientists, Indigenous Knowledge Holders, and real UW lab experiences.

Women in Science & Engineering (WiSE): WiSE recruits and supports women of all ethnic backgrounds in science and engineering (S&E) and fosters a healthy academic and social environment for men and women in engineering at all levels of study.

Multimedia Resources

Picture a Scientist is a documentary on sex discrimination in science. Women scientists recount their experiences studying and working in scientific fields.  
Women in Science : 50 Fearless Pioneers Who Changed the World is a book for young readers (10-17) briefly detailing the biographies of fifty women scientists.
Lost Women of Science is a podcast offering stories of important women who made significant contributions to various fields of science but remain virtually unknown.  
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