Smart Ageing

Total 59 Posts

Mobility is a Key Lifestyle Planning Factor

A women in a wheelchair looks out a floor to ceiling window, illustrative of consider mobility as a key lifestyle planning factor.

Mobility and being able to move independently is a crucial lifestyle planning factor people often overlook. As families are out enjoying the summer weather and travelling again, we wish more people understood that being able-bodied[1] and independently mobile is a temporary state. Life happens – a car accident or healthcare crisis can instantly change your ability to move and function independently. In estate and lifestyle planning, the focus is often….

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Disability, Elder Management, Smart Ageing

Leveraging the Longevity Dividend – in an Ageing Canada

We are in the midst of a longevity revolution where people live longer and healthier lives. Economists in the US and UK have written about the longevity dividend or the benefits we could realize with this significant societal shift. Canadian institutions such as governments, corporations, and academics are starting to take note. The Longevity Dividend Last week, I attended a conference at the University of Toronto entitled the “Future of….

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Elder Management, Estate Planning, Smart Ageing

The Loneliness & Social Isolation Crisis – Critical Planning Considerations

Some red game markers stand apart from one brown one.

The US Surgeon General made public health headlines in May, declaring that loneliness and social isolation carry the same critical health risks as smoking, obesity, and the opioid crisis. Isolation and loneliness are linked to declining mental health, such as higher rates of depression, anxiety, and suicidal thoughts. Physical health is affected to, with a 50% increased risk of developing dementia, a 59% increased risk of functional decline, and a….

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Elder Management, Geriatric Care Management, Smart Ageing

Loneliness And Social Isolation Declared a Public Health Crisis

a blue wooden chess piece lies on its side amidst similar pieces that are standing up and a different colour

US Surgeon General Vivek Murthy made headlines last week by declaring an “epidemic of loneliness.” He warned that loneliness is associated with “a greater risk of cardiovascular disease, dementia, stroke, depression, anxiety, and premature death.” This statement is the first time a Surgeon General has used their national advocacy platform to raise loneliness to the same warning level as smoking, obesity, and the opioid crisis. Several commentators pointed out that….

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Elder Management, Smart Ageing

Jam Needs a Plan: Estate Planning for Pets

A dog in a red sweater sitting on autumn leaves.

Estate planning for pets has made for some very wealthy animals. Remember the US hotel heiress Leona Hemsley? Known as the Queen of Mean, she left $12 million out of her estimated $5 billion estate to her Maltese lap dog, Trouble. The dog’s inheritance was reduced to $2 million, but still. That was more than enough for the $100,000 spent on Trouble’s care each year. Today’s richest dog is the….

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Elder Care, Elder Management, Estate Planning, Smart Ageing

An Elder Care Planning Framework for Decision Making, Part 2

This blog post on the Elder Care Planning Framework for Decision Making, Part 2, is based on a panel presentation at Elder Law Day in Toronto in March 2023. Participants expressed an interest in using the elder care planning framework to provide context for decision-making and planning. Part 1 proposed the framework as a tool to aid in decision-making for elder care management; read it here. The elder care planning….

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Capacity Law, Elder Care, Elder Management, Geriatric Care Management, Power of Attorney, Smart Ageing
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