Running head: BARTON CASE STUDY – PART TWO
Barton Case Study – Part Two
Cydney Jones
Western Washington University
BARTON CASE STUDY – PART TWO
For the second module of the Barton Case Study, I have been assigned to focus on the
people that fall into the developmental stage of later adulthood, so anyone who is over 50 years
of age. In the Barton family, the only individual that falls into this developmental category is
Grandma Betty, who is 90 years old. Her health is failing and she is demonstrating some signs
of dementia. Though she rarely leaves her home, she, fortunately, is still able to do many of her
daily activities and functions. Her granddaughter, April (16 years old), does a lot to help and
assist her every night. I believe that there are multiple services offered in Whatcom County that
would be very beneficial to Grandma Betty, as well as to the rest of the Barton family. As I
discuss these services and how they could be of great support for Grandma Betty, I feel that it is
also important to provide some information about the later adulthood developmental stage to
give a broader understanding of what is going on with her and in her life. Though there are
many different aspects of development I could focus on, for this case, I will focus on the aspects
of physical development, development having to do with relationships and human development
in relation to psychopathology.
In Human Development Across the Life Span by Carol K. Sigelman and Elizabeth A.
Rider, almost all people will have something wrong with their bodies by the time they are 65. It
is also stated that “among older adults who live in poverty … health problems and difficulties in
day-to-day functioning are even more common and more severe” (p. 179). Considering that
Grandma Betty is both over 65 years old and living in poverty, it is no surprise that she has
“failing health.” I believe that it would be greatly beneficial for Grandma Betty, as well as
everyone else in the family, to receive medical care. This can be provided through the Medical
Assistance Administration through the Washington State Department of Social and Health
Services (DSHS). Health care assistance is provided to low-income people that meet the
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requirements for eligibility. If the Barton family was to have no means of transportation to the
medical appointments covered by DSHS, they could utilize the Medical Assistance
Transportation (Healthy Communities Institute, 2011). For information on how to contact this
organization for both of these services, please see the Referrals Page.
I believe that Grandma Betty, as well as all of the other members of the Barton family,
would greatly benefit from the usage of the Medical Assistance Administration. However, I see
that they could be faced with a great challenge. It is not clearly stated what health-related
services would be covered, and I worry that some of Grandma Betty’s needs would not be paid
for through this program. Even if not all of her health needs were covered, this program would
still be beneficial by paying for at least some of these important needs.
As stated in the case study, April spends a lot of her time caring for her grandmother due
to her grandmother’s ailing health. It is wonderful that Grandma Betty can still manage many of
her day-to-day functions on her own, but I think it would be of great assistance if someone else
was to provide care in order to relieve April of some of that responsibility. Respite care through
the Northwest Regional Council provides short-term relief to the caregivers of adults that require
constant supervision in their own homes. The charges for these services are on a sliding fee
scale. Other Respite Care services in Whatcom County provided more services, but because
their fees were based on the services provided, I felt that using the Northwest Regional Council
would be the smartest decision financially for the Barton family (Healthy Communities Institute,
2011). For information on how to contact this organization, please see the Referrals Page.
I could see how utilizing Respite Care could be difficult for the Barton family. Because
this service is most likely going to cost money, the family may choose to not pay for the service
and continue to have April provide all the care for Grandma Betty for no cost. Since the Bartons
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are struggling financially, it makes sense that they would want to be more conservative with the
way they spend money. However, I think Respite Care would be beneficial to Grandma Betty so
she could receive professional help and also to April so she could be relieved of the
responsibility of caring for her grandmother.
In the case study, it was mentioned that everyone in the Barton family was worried when
they believed there had been a call about something being wrong with Grandma Betty. Although
it turned out that Grandma Betty had made the call herself and it had not been about her, it shows
that there is a great fear that something could happen to her when no one is around to help. For
this reason, I am recommending that she gets a Lifeline, which is a portable button that an
elderly individual can press in an emergency situation that will link them with the closest
Lifeline Center, through Saint Joseph Hospital (Healthy Communities Institute, 2011). I was
unable to find an exact price for Lifeline, but it should cost just a little more than a dollar a day
depending on the services chosen (Koninklijke Philips Electronics N.V., 2011). I predict that
this cost, because it is unknown, could be difficult for the Barton family to afford. Nevertheless,
I believe that Lifeline could be one of the most important services I recommend for Grandma
Betty because it will allow for Grandma Betty to continue doing many of her day-to-day
functions on her own as she is now and to become more self-reliant. For information on how to
contact this organization, please see the Referrals Page.
Another aspect of development that I feel is necessary to discuss is the development
having to do with friendships. While it may be of popular belief that older people do not want or
need friends, this is not true. “Young adults typically have more friends than older adults do, but
even very old adults usually have one or more close friends and are in frequent contact with their
friends” (Rider & Sigelman, 2011, p. 489). Due to a lack of information in the case study, I am
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not sure of how many close friends Grandma Betty has, but due to the fact that she is unable to
leave the house often, I am making an assumption that she does not have contact with many
people. Since it is important for all people to have friendships, I think it would be valuable for
Grandma Betty to join a senior center to make new friends. The Bellingham Senior Activity
Center offers many different programs to anyone 50 years or older. There is an annual
membership fee of $24.00 (Healthy Communities Institute, 2011). If Grandma Betty needed
transportation to and from the senior center, or any other location, she could use Specialized
Transportation provided by the Washington Transit Authority (WTA). This service is provided
to elderly individuals or those with a disability that are unable to use the transit system, and is
free to anyone over the age of 85 (Healthy Communities Institute, 2011). For information on
how to contact the Bellingham Senior Activity Center or the WTA, please see the Referrals
Page.
I could see Grandma Betty not following through on this service recommendation for a
few reasons. First, it may be too difficult for her to leave her home and participate in the
activities provided at the senior center. Second, the membership fee may be too much for the
Bartons to afford. And, finally, Grandma Betty may simply not be interested in meeting and
socializing with new people. Despite all of these reasons for not following through on my
recommendation, I believe that this service would provide a fun and supportive environment for
her to thrive in.
The final aspect of developmental in the late adulthood stage that I wish to discuss is
human development in relation to psychopathology, focusing on dementia in particular.
“Dementia, the technical term for senility, is a progressive deterioration of neural functioning
associated with cognitive decline – memory impairment, declines in tested intellectual ability,
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poor judgment, difficulty thinking abstractly, and often personality changes as well” (Rider &
Sigelman, 2011, p. 552). Grandma Betty is presenting some signs of dementia so I believe that
she should make use of some services that are provided in Whatcom County for people dealing
with dementia. The Alzheimer Society of Washington provides support for those who have
dementia, as well as their family members, and most of the services are free of charge (Healthy
Communities Institute, 2011). Because it was stated that Grandma Betty is presenting signs of
dementia, I am unsure of whether she has actually been diagnosed or not and if the family is
fully aware of her condition. For this reason, I feel that this recommendation may not be
followed. But if it is followed, the entire family can receive support from the Alzheimer Society
of Washington support groups while they deal with the difficulties of dementia. For information
on how to contact this organization, please see the Referrals Page.
The last recommendation I am going to make is one that I made in the first module of this
case study that the Barton family did not follow through on. There are seven people living in
Grandma Betty’s three-bedroom house that is in poor condition. It has a leaking roof, broken
windowpanes, and gaps in the siding, among other things. Since the Bartons do not have the
financial means to pay for the repairs themselves, they could benefit from using the Home Repair
Program offered by the Opportunity Council. This program does free home repair in order to
make homes safer and more comfortable for low-income families (Opportunity Council, 2011).
Because of the inconvenience this may cause the family, I could see them not following through
on this recommendation. Though it may be inconvenient for the Bartons to have people doing
construction on their home while they are living there, it would be very beneficial in the long run
to use the Home Repair Program in order to live as comfortable as possible. To contact this
organization, please see the Referrals Page.
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BARTON CASE STUDY – PART TWO
I strongly believe that all of the service recommendations I made would be beneficial, not
only to Grandma Betty, but to the entire Barton family as a whole. Unfortunately, some of the
services require payment from the individuals who use them and the Barton family is currently
struggling financially. I also understand that it is unrealistic to believe that it would be possible
to contact and utilize all of these services due to a lack of time. For this reason, I think it is
important to empower Grandma Betty to choose which services she feels would be the most
valuable to her at this time and which ones she would like to have access to.
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Referrals Page
Alzheimer Society of Washington
Address:
1212 Indian Street
Bellingham, WA 98225
Phone:
(360) 671-3316
Website:
http://www.alzsociety.org
Services:
One-on-one support, Support groups
Bellingham Senior Activity Center
Address:
315 Halleck
Bellingham, WA 98225
Phone:
(360) 733-4030
Website:
http://www.co.whatcom.wa.us/parks/seniors/bellingham/bellingham.jsp
Services:
Social, recreational and educational programs
Northwest Regional Council
Address:
600 Lakeway Drive
Bellingham, WA 98225
Phone:
(360) 676-6749
Website:
http://www.nwrcwa.org
Services:
Respite Care
Opportunity Council
Address:
1111 Cornwall Avenue
Bellingham, WA 98225
Phone:
(360) 225-2192
Website:
http://www.oppco.org/services/
Services:
Home Repair Program
Saint Joseph Hospital
Address:
3333 Squalicum Parkway
Bellingham, WA 98225
Phone:
(360) 788-6748
Services:
Lifeline
Washington State Department of Social and Health Services
Address:
4101 Meridian Avenue
Bellingham, WA 98225
Phone:
(360) 714-4136
Services:
Medical Assistance Administration, Medical Assistance Transportation
Washington Transit Authority
Address:
4111 Bakerview Spur
Bellingham, WA 98226
Phone:
(360) 733-1144
Website:
http://www.ridewta.com/node/4
Services:
Specialized Transportation
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REFERENCES
Healthy Communities Institute (2011). Whatcom Counts. Retrieved from:
http://www.whatcomcounts.org/whatcom/index.php
Koninklijke Philips Electronics N.V. (2011). Lifeline. Retrieved from:
http://www.lifelinesys.com
Opportunity Council (2011). Opportunity Council. Retrieved from:
http://www.oppco.org/services/
Rider, Elizabeth A. & Sigelman, Carol K. (2011). Human Development Across the Life Span
(International Edition). China: China Translation & Printing Services Limited.
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