Event highlights careers in aging

By Denise Dick

denise_dick@vindy.com

YOUNGSTOWN

Events this week at Youngstown State University highlight the number of careers associated with a growing older population.

YSU is participating in Careers in Aging Week, an event presented by the Gerontological Society of America and the Association for Gerontology in Higher Education.

Daniel Van Dussen, associate professor of sociology and anthropology and graduate director of gerontology at YSU, said there’s a lack of workers with the skills needed to fill jobs in fields that serve the growing aged population, both locally and across the country.

Careers in Aging Week, which began Monday with displays about the diverse careers, aims to provide information about multiple careers that deal with the older population.

“It’s also a networking opportunity for our students,” Van Dussen said.

Activities continue today with an alumni roundtable from 12:30 to 2 p.m. in the Cafaro Suite of the Lincoln Building and a career fair from 11 a.m. to 12:30 p.m. Thursday in the Presidential Suites in Kilcawley Center.

Tiffany Hughes, an assistant professor in YSU’s gerontology program, said many careers across several professions touch the older population.

“We’re trying to highlight that it doesn’t have to be health care,” she said.

Construction-industry jobs deal with older people who may want to modify their homes to meet their needs as they age. Older people also may be looking for new products or services, affecting the business world.

“Boomers also typically have more money and more time than previous generations,” Hughes said.

Sample jobs for someone with a gerontology degree include drama therapist, elder advocate, grant writer, county commission on aging director, gerontological nurse or social worker, fundraiser, speech-language pathologist and state health-insurance coordinator.

Krystal Culler, a gerontology instructor, attended Monday’s kickoff with her therapy dog, Lady. The dog, a 4-year-old black lab, accompanies Culler to her classes, demonstrating the uses of service dogs.

Culler trains puppies for Canine Companions for Independence, a service-dog provider in California, and Pet Partners, a Washington-based service-dog provider.

Service dogs can be used by the older population to help them remember to take medication, for example. An alarm sounds, alerting the dog to bring medication stored in a bite-proof container, to the person, Culler said.

For dementia patients, a service dog can block a door to prevent wandering or taught the “home” command, leading the lost patient safely home.

Lady also offers stress relief to students.

“The foreign language department is right above us,” Culler said. “I’ve had Spanish students come in to pet her before an exam. They say they need a puppy fix.”