Sites for Seniors

National Organizations

• AARP

  Offers a wide variety of databases providing information for seniors about all aspects of aging.

• Aging Solutions

  Offers advice for caregivers including daily living solutions, comprehensive checklists, and links to other eldercare sites.

• BenefitsCheckUp

  National Council on Aging offers an online questionnaire to help you determine the benefits you may be eligible for and tells you how to apply for them.

• Caregiving.com

  Offers survival guides, weekly tips, and online support groups for caregivers.

• Eldercare Locator

  Offers referrals to eldercare resources near you.

• Medicare

  Includes a participating physician directory, nursing home compare, prescription drug assistance programs, dialysis facility compare, medigap compare, supplier directory and more.

• Medicare Rights

  Explains Medicare benefits for all Americans. Compares Medicare plan options and provides prescription drug assistance information.

• National Alliance for Caregiving

  The NAC creates reports about caregivers; also fact sheets and tips for caregivers.

• Owl - Older Women's League

  OWL is a grassroots organization that focuses on issues unique to women as they age.  Issues addressed here are diverse and include how the Medicare drug benefit will affect women; how retirement affects women of color; mental health issues for older women; and more.  Includes link to the Minnesota chapter of OWL.

• Social Security Online

  .

General Sites

• Alliance for Aging Research

  Devoted to improving older adults' health and independence through behavioral and medical research, this site covers health topics, research, advocacy, policy, and legislative issues with links to other age-related sites.

• Elderweb

  One of the first sites devoted to older adults, Elderweb contains 6,000 reviewed links to a wide range of articles including finance & law, housing & care, news, statistics, and links to regional resources.

• Infoaging.org

  This site provides the latest research on the biology of aging, age-related health conditions, and healthy aging.

• Minnesota Board on Aging

  Gateway to services for Minnesota seniors. Includes a wide range of services from transportation and housing options to health insurance to internet classes, all with a view toward helping seniors maintain their independence.

Health

• Alzheimers Disease.com

  Provides information about Alzheimers disease for patients, caregivers, and healthcare professionals. Compares normal, age-related forgetfulness with Alzheimers. Gives suggestions for dealing with the disease.

• Arthritis Foundation

  This site offers information about arthritis and over 50 related diseases. Includes information about medications and exercies.

• Healthfinder

  An alphabetical listing of health related topics especially for older adults.

• Merck Manual

  Search for health topics in the full text online version of the Merck Manual.

• National Osteoporosis Foundation

  Offers brief description of the condition, treatment options, and prevention suggestions. Gives tips on finding a doctor to treat osteoporosis, since no such specialty exists. Provides useful tips for living with osteoporosis.

• National Stroke Association

  Explains what you need to know about stroke: prevention, symptoms, emergency treatment, rehabilitation.

• NIHSeniorHealth.gov

  Explores health topics of interest to older adults including a section on medicine: how to take medicines safely, how medicines work, and much more.

• Seniors' Health Topics

  Alphabetical guide to health concerns for older adults.

• Us TOO

  Provides information, counseling and educational meetings to assist men with prostate disease and their spouses/partners in making decisions about their treatment with confidence and support.

Legal Resources

• Elder Law Answers

  Provides information about legal issues facing older adults including retirement and estate planning, grandparents' rights, Social Security, Medicare and Medicaid, long term care planning and nursing home issues. It includes a listing of elder law attorneys.

• Senior Law

  Information for seniors and their advocates and attorneys. Includes links to Senior Law: Elder Law and Legal Resources on the Web.

News

• FirstGov for Seniors

  The latest government news affecting senior citizens. Also provides easy access for seniors to federal government agencies.

• Senior Journal

  "Today's top senior citizen news" including politics, insurance, health, nutrition, and more.

• The U. S. Senate Special Committee on Aging

  Helps older adults track Senate bills and news of interest to them.

Prescription Drugs

• Food and Drug Administration

  Provides information on prescription, generic, and over-the-counter drugs. Discusses Hot Topics, Food , Medical Devices, Biologics (vaccines, blood), Animal Feed and Drugs, and more.

• MedicineNet.com

  Information on prescription drugs. Includes some information on over-the-counter medicines.

• RxList

  Prescription drug information for consumers. Gives description of drug plus side effects and drug interactions. Gives a list of "most prescribed" drugs plus a list of new drug additions to the web site.

Fitness and Exercise

• Go4Life

  Go4Life from the National Institute on Aging at NIH. The website will help you make a plan to get fit and stay healthy. Includes information on the 4 types of exercise, how to get started for beginners and how to keep up the good work. Also includes healthy eating tips. Share your story and record your progress online, if you wish.

• Lifelong Fitness Alliance

  Articles and links to sites encouraging both physical and mental fitness.

• NIH Senior Health - Exercise

  The NIH Senior Health website offers reasons to become active for people who are not already active and reasons to stay active for people who already are.
  For those who are not already active, the NIH offers suggestions on how to start an exercise program and it gives some simple exercises with which to start an exercise program.
  The NIH also offers suggestions on how to remain active for people who already are.
  The site includes short videos that promote active lifestyles

• Seniors Training Advice

  Explains physical changes associated with aging. Discusses benefits of regular physical activity and offers suggestions for getting started with an exercise program. Includes how-to perform exercises with illustrations.

Search Engines

• Good50

  Good50 is an elder-friendly search engine that features larger type on both the home page and results page. Includes the ability to easily limit results to .edu and .gov sites plus Facebook. Offers a low vision search alternative.

Minnesota Organizations

• Meals on Wheels

  Frail, homebound people may get a hot lunch delivered to their door. Special diets are available.

• Metropolitan Area Agency on Aging

  Comprehensive site for Twin Cities residents. Offers overview of aging; housing options, caregiving tips, addresses and phone numbers of service providers including Meals on Wheels, transportation, home repair and more.

• Minnesota Center Against Violence and Abuse

  Fact sheets, articles and links to information about elder abuse.

• Minnesota Department of Human Services

  Offers help on a wide variety of important topics to Minnesotans of all ages. Includes a link to the Office of the Ombudsman for Older Minnesotans.

• Minnesota STAR Program

  A System of Technology to Achieve Results (STAR) was created by the Technology Related Assistance for Individuals with Disabilities Act. Use this site to find or sell previously owned devices, find out who to contact in your area for your assistive technology needs, and locate funding for assistive technology devices.

Transportation

• Metro Mobility

  Metro Mobility is a shared public transportation service for certified riders who are unable to use regular fixed-route buses due to a disability or health condition. Rides are provided for any purpose.

Housing

• Metro Paint-A-Thon

  The Greater Minneapolis Council of Churches will paint your house for free if you meet their guidelines. For disabled people over age 60.

• Minnesota Nursing Home Inspection Reports

  Provides the most recent inspection reports for most nursing homes. Some previous reports also available.

• Nursing Home Compare

  Compares nursing homes in your location according to your selected criteria. Offers explanations of why certain items are important when choosing a nursing home.

• Senior Housing Guide

  The Twin Cities Senior Housing Guide offers information on resources and services that can help you remain in your home or research future housing opportunities." - www.seniorhousingguide.us

• Senior Housing, Incorporated

  Offers information on affordable housing for older adults plus information on related services. The complete listing, Senior Housing Directory, is available from Senior Housing, Inc. and is also available in the library, Ref 363.590846 S47

Education

• Publications for Seniors

  The US Food and Drug Administration makes available articles of interest to older adults. Topics include Arthritis, Cancer, Food Safety, Medical Treatment, Nutrition, Osteoporosis, and more.