Fatally flawed proposal

We’ve been hearing for a while about the terrible and unprecedented number of suicides occurring at France Telecom (25 since 2008 apparently). According to a recent story in the Times, the organisation is now to make part-time jobs available on a voluntary basis to employees aged over 57 who feel that full time work is endangering their health. My money’s on the fact that those making this decision are nowhere near 57 themselves. The (potentially fatal) flaw in the argument is that these poor beleaguered older workers who are already feeling highly stressed and threatened would be doing the equivalent of throwing themselves to the wolves, the very act of admitting that they could no longer take the pace being tantamount to lying on their backs with their legs in the air waiting to be ripped asunder. As anyone who’s spoken to older workers knows, a common driver of those who still want to see themselves as contributing value in a competitive situation is not wanting to admit they’re ‘not up to it’ or ‘not as good’ as younger competitors. BT proved this when they found that few of their older workers actually wanted to take advantage of reduced hours working for just this reason.

 Okay, some older workers do want to wind down and reduce their hours, but those at France Telecom are unlikely to fit the bill as they’re not being offered the choice to do it for positive reasons (either their own or their employer’s) in a supportive environment. As a comment on the Times site said, they should at least offer the option to all workers, to single out older workers in this instance is both inappropriate and insulting – and unfortunately not likely to solve the problem. Let’s hope they call in the occupational psychologists without delay.

Read the Times story at http://business.timesonline.co.uk/tol/business/industry_sectors/telecoms/article6895790.ece

Dumb, depressed and drunk?

An interesting piece of research floated past the radar this morning. Apparently a recent University of Michigan study of several thousand “seniors” found that those in the US performed significantly better than their counterparts in England on standard tests of memory and cognitive function. The study is the first known international comparison of cognitive function in nationally representative samples of older adults in the United States and England. It revealed that the overall difference in cognitive performance between the two countries was quite large – approaching the magnitude associated with about 10 years of ageing. In other words, the cognitive performance of 75-year-olds in the U.S. was as good, on average, as that of 65-year-olds in England.

The reasons why this may be are numerous and require further investigation. However the indicators are that a number of factors may play a part: First, higher levels of education and net worth in the United States accounted for some of the better cognitive performance; second, U.S. adults reported significantly lower levels of depressive symptoms than English adults (unlike Brits, they seek medication if they are depressed), and this may have accounted for some of the U.S. advantage in brain health since depression is linked with worse cognitive functioning; and third, significant differences in alcohol consumption between the U.S. and English seniors may play a role with more than 50 percent of U.S. seniors reporting no alcohol use, compared to only 15.5 percent of English seniors. Previous research has shown that moderate alcohol consumption, compared to abstinence, is linked with better cognition among those aged 50 and over.

Interesting links and interesting messages. Okay, maybe we can’t do much about our existing levels of education and net worth in later years, but keeping the brain active, keeping involved, interested and in the mainstream to stave off depression (and perhaps seeking treatment if it does occur), and cutting back on alcohol are all things which are possible and achievable. If it helps keep the brain ticking over that much better in later old age surely it’s got to be worth the effort.

More about the study at http://www.newswise.com/articles/view/553659/

Maybe there’s no “I” in team….

My daughter suggested this blog topic to me.

As I pass away the hours researching for in my prime, my mind is occasionally apt to take a five minute break. During one of these breaks I designed a small poster which is now pinned on my office wall.

My daughter, a doctor working in general practice, on seeing this commented that it would be ideal advice for the many archetypal women in their forties, fifties and sixties who come to see her. These overstressed and overstretched women with their tanks running on empty come to her for some attempt at respite from their depression and mental and physical exhaustion. If it is not children or grandchildren they are caring for it is elderly parents who demand their attention and these while they are trying to juggle a job, the house, being a good partner etc etc.

The advice which is given, “give yourself some space”, “take some time out for yourself” is met with “I haven’t time for that, I’ve so much to do”. And so the vicious circle continues. Nevertheless the advice remains valid and vital.

What does the poster say?

Maybe there’s no “I” in team – but there is “I” twice, together with “my” and “me” in “in my prime”.

Over 50 but not overly happy

“Over 50″ represents a huge spectrum – from wealthy and carefree at one end to lonely and impoverished at the other. Most of the bad news tends to be about the old, sick and helpless. But it’s by no means an automatic bed of roses for all of those who are younger and probably better off.

A report this week reveals that more middle-aged women (45- 54)  have depression or anxiety than ever before – up a fifth from 1993. And according to the survey, conducted by the NHS Information Centre, female pensioners are more than twice as likely to have mental problems than men

Experts believe the stresses of balancing home and work, caring for sick relatives, or feelings of loneliness after children leave home, can all contribute to the ‘crisis’.  On top of this, those who grew up in the Sixties are more likely than previous generations to feel they haven’t made enough of their life and to be unhappy with their looks.

Women are finding it increasingly difficult to balance home and work – and many are being put under stress because they have to care for parents with dementia. We also live in a society in which the relentless bombardment of youth can make even the most sophisticated woman feel depressed. Finally, this is the age when people question what they have achieved. But standards have never been higher for women who can be more unhappy than previous generations, not because they are worse off, but because their expectations are higher.

So there you go. Understandable. Perhaps inevitable. And hopefully for many, treatable. But we do need to keep it in mind when making broad brush statements about the over 50s. Who exactly are we talking about?