The Social Construction of "Emerging Elders": Implications for Age-Friendly Community Assessments.

The term "emerging elders" has surfaced in age-friendly community assessment tools to denote a subset of older adults; however, limited guidance is provided on its application to aging populations. The goal of this study was to develop a data-driven conceptualization of "emerging elders" as part of an age-friendly community assessment. Adults, aged 55 years and above, were asked about their subjective meaning of "emerging elder" within the context of a larger study of aging well in a large U.S. metropolitan city. Using inductive and deductive methods, the researchers analyzed qualitative data (N = 38) collected from individual interviews with homebound older adults (n = 15) and participants of three focus groups (n = 23). Four themes suggest that emerging elderhood is related to chronological age, functional ability, transitions, and self-identity. Findings suggest that the term emerging elderhood may foster negative images of older adults consistent with Western cultural discourse, despite the positive connotations associated with "emerging elder" in indigenous and spiritual communities. Findings underscore the need to further refine age-friendly community assessments that take into account the social constructions ascribed to older adults and need for strategies to engage emerging elders in future research of age-friendly communities.

Danger zone: battered mothers and their families in supervised visitation.

Supervised visitation centers (SVCs) have developed rapidly across the United States. Increasingly, courts are restricting contact between abusive intimate partners and their children by ordering visitation or exchanges to occur at SVCs. This article describes some of the key lessons the authors learned over 18 months of planning and then another 18 months of implementation at a SVC developed specifically to serve families for whom domestic violence was their primary reason for referral. The authors have organized their experiences around five major themes: (a) battered women in supervised visitation, (b) how battering continues during supervised visitation, (c) how rules at the SVC evolved over the first 18 months of implementation, (d) the importance of well-trained visit monitors, and (e) the need to embed SVCs within a larger context of coordinated community responses to domestic violence.

Extracorporeal membrane oxygenation to cardiopulmonary bypass with a single circuit exposure.

Due to the short supply of donor organs available, many patients decompensate or die while waiting for transplantation. Options for mechanical support for infants and pediatrics with congenital heart disease are limited because of the patient's size and device availability. Extracorporeal membrane oxygenation (ECMO) is the most common means of cardiac and respiratory support for these patients. One of the many indications for ECMO use in cardiac patients is as a bridge to transplantation, with patients being transported to the operating room (OR) on ECMO support. Converting the ECMO circuit to an open cardiopulmonary bypass system in the OR minimizes the patient's exposure to new circuitry, decreases further donor exposures and provides continuous support for patients in cardiac and/or respiratory failure. In addition, the ability to use modified ultrafiltration post-bypass aids in reducing extracellular fluid, increasing the hematocrit and improving hemodynamic stability following an extended duration of ECMO and bypass support. The integrity of the ECMO circuit is maintained and can be converted back to ECMO for support postoperatively if needed.

Alleviating heat loss associated with modified ultrafiltration.

Modified ultrafiltration (MUF) has been described and utilized for the removal of extracellular water in the immediate postcardiopulmonary bypass (CPB) period. This technique has been associated with improved hematological status and hemodynamic stability post cardiopulmonary bypass. Hypothermia during the MUF period has been described as a complication associated with this technique. Decreased patient temperature may be associated with increased bleeding causing an increase in time to sternal re-approximation, OR time, decreases in cardiac function, peripheral vascular perfusion, and an increase in blood product utilization. These complications may reduce some of the benefits described with the use of MUF. The purpose of this study was to evaluate the use of a heated MUF infusion line to reduce the heat loss associated with this technique in a pediatric population. After obtaining Committee for Protection of Human Subjects exemption, a retrospective review to evaluate the efficiency of the hot MUF infusion line was undertaken. Twenty patients under 10 kg who underwent MUF before the change to a heated infusion line were retrospectively identified and matched to patients undergoing MUF with a heated infusion line with regard to weight, lesion, procedure, surgical staff and technique, and disposable equipment. Groups were evaluated for temperature and hematocrit change during the MUF period, blood loss and transfusion postprotamine in the OR and 24 h, and time to sternal re-approximation postprotamine. Statistical significance was seen between the two groups in temperature (-0.24 +/- 0.72 vs. - 1.58 +/- 0.89 degrees C; p < .0001) with the HotLine group having little change post MUF. Significance was also seen in the last OR temperature recorded (37.0 +/- 1.2 vs. 36.0 +/- 1.0 degrees C; p = .01) with the HotLine group having the higher temperature. There were no significant differences in hematocrit levels at 24 hours, last in the OR, or the change after the MUF period. No significant difference was found in blood transfused postprotamine in the OR, 24-h blood transfused, 24-h chest tube loss, or sternal closure. The study suggests that the use of a heated MUF infusion line safely reduces the heat loss associated with MUF in the immediate post-operative period.