美国国家公共电台 NPR Hospital Companions Can Ease Isolation For Older People

Hospital Companions Can Ease Isolation¹ For Older People

play pause stop mute unmute max volume 00:0003:52repeat repeat off Update Required To play the media you will need to either update your browser² to a recent version or update your Flash plugin. DAVID GREENE, HOST: 

For the elderly, keeping loneliness at bay can be critical to staying well, especially when they're in the hospital. Their children might have moved away. Spouses³ and friends may themselves be too frail⁴ to visit. So a California hospital is providing companions for patients in the geriatric unit. NPR's Ina Jaffe covers aging, and she tagged along with one of the volunteers.

JULIA TORRANO: Where were you originally from?

ESTELLE DAY: I grew up in New York.

INA JAFFE, BYLINE⁵: Volunteer Julia Torrano and patient Estelle Day have settled in for a long chat. Julia is 24 and hopes to go to medical school. She asks a lot of questions.

TORRANO: What brought you to California?

DAY: I grew up on the East Coast, and...

TORRANO: Where did you meet your husband?

DAY: At a music educators' conference.

TORRANO: Oh, my gosh, OK. Where did you learn to play the harp⁶?

DAY: After I retired⁷.

TORRANO: Where else have you guys traveled?

DAY: I've been to Egypt and Israel three times.

JAFFE: Estelle was happy to answer everything to you.

DAY: Do you not think I'm windbaggy enough?

JAFFE: Estelle is 79, a slender woman with a wild mane of hair that's still mostly red. A lifelong musician and retired music teacher, she plays harp and guitar, but her favorite is the pipe organ.

DAY: I mean, to be able to rock a building under your hands and your feet is exciting.

JAFFE: This was Estelle's fifth day as a patient in the geriatric unit at the UCLA Medical Center in Santa Monica. She says multiple chronic⁸ conditions landed her in the hospital, but she didn't want to name them. Visible were a back brace⁹ she wears for her osteoporosis, an IV drip and a heart monitor...

(SOUNDBITE OF BEEPING)

JAFFE: ...Which suddenly started beeping. Julia was out of the room like a shot. Seconds later, she returned with a nurse, who solved the problem with a push of a button.

TORRANO: That was an easy fix. Sorry.

JAFFE: And just like that, she was gone. Julia knew who to grab to fix the problem because all the volunteers in this program are trained.

DAVID RUBEN: Just because you're willing to do something doesn't mean you know how to do it.

JAFFE: Says Dr. David Ruben, chief of geriatrics at the Geffen School of Medicine at UCLA. He says volunteers learn about medical confidentiality¹⁰, what to do in an emergency and how to interact with patients.

RUBEN: They have to go through a vigorous training process and a vetting¹¹ process before we allow them to be with patients.

JAFFE: The volunteer companion program just started a few months ago. There are nearly three dozen volunteers but plans to expand. While studies show loneliness has negative impacts on health, Ruben says those studies haven't been done in a hospital setting.

RUBEN: But you might suspect that if you are more engaged and more energized¹² that it might promote a speedier recovery.

JAFFE: So the hospital is now designing studies to find out if hospital companionship improves medical outcomes, or at least the patient's experience in the hospital. Estelle Day says she's not especially lonely, but she is alone much of the time, so it helps to have a companion who can spot the little problems that can make life in the hospital such a challenge.

DAY: Somebody who is sensitive and tuned¹³ in is very helpful.

JAFFE: The way Julia ran out when something started beeping.

DAY: Exactly.

JAFFE: Estelle's current dilemma¹⁴ is fixing her hair that's been shoved in a rubber band for the past five days. Julia picks up a comb and gently begins detangling.

DAY: I mean, is it workable or no?

TORRANO: Oh, I think so. I think I may need to part it, though.

JAFFE: Whatever it takes to help Estelle Day look good and feel better.

TORRANO: Good?

DAY: Yeah, you're good.

TORRANO: OK.

DAY: You're great.

JAFFE: Ina Jaffe, NPR News

1 isolation   

n.隔离，孤立，分解，分离

参考例句：

• The millionaire lived in complete isolation from the outside world.这位富翁过着与世隔绝的生活。
• He retired and lived in relative isolation.他退休后，生活比较孤寂。

2 browser   

n.浏览者

参考例句：

• View edits in a web browser.在浏览器中看编辑的效果。
• I think my browser has a list of shareware links.我想在浏览器中会有一系列的共享软件链接。

3 spouses   

n.配偶，夫或妻( spouse的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• Jobs are available for spouses on campus and in the community. 校园里和社区里有配偶可做的工作。 来自辞典例句
• An astonishing number of spouses-most particularly in the upper-income brackets-have no close notion of their husbands'paychecks. 相当大一部分妇女——特别在高收入阶层——并不很了解他们丈夫的薪金。 来自辞典例句

4 frail   

adj.身体虚弱的；易损坏的

参考例句：

• Mrs. Warner is already 96 and too frail to live by herself.华纳太太已经九十六岁了，身体虚弱，不便独居。
• She lay in bed looking particularly frail.她躺在床上，看上去特别虚弱。

5 byline   

n.署名；v.署名

参考例句：

• His byline was absent as well.他的署名也不见了。
• We wish to thank the author of this article which carries no byline.我们要感谢这篇文章的那位没有署名的作者。

6 harp   

n.竖琴；天琴座

参考例句：

• She swept her fingers over the strings of the harp.她用手指划过竖琴的琴弦。
• He played an Irish melody on the harp.他用竖琴演奏了一首爱尔兰曲调。

7 retired   

adj.隐退的，退休的，退役的

参考例句：

• The old man retired to the country for rest.这位老人下乡休息去了。
• Many retired people take up gardening as a hobby.许多退休的人都以从事园艺为嗜好。

8 chronic   

adj.(疾病)长期未愈的，慢性的；极坏的

参考例句：

• Famine differs from chronic malnutrition.饥荒不同于慢性营养不良。
• Chronic poisoning may lead to death from inanition.慢性中毒也可能由虚弱导致死亡。

9 brace   

n. 支柱,曲柄,大括号; v. 绷紧,顶住,(为困难或坏事)做准备

参考例句：

• My daughter has to wear a brace on her teeth. 我的女儿得戴牙套以矫正牙齿。
• You had better brace yourself for some bad news. 有些坏消息,你最好做好准备。

10 confidentiality   

n.秘而不宣，保密

参考例句：

• They signed a confidentiality agreement. 他们签署了一份保守机密的协议。
• Cryptography is the foundation of supporting authentication, integrality and confidentiality. 而密码学是支持认证、完整性和机密性机制的基础。

11 vetting   

n.数据检查[核对，核实]v.审查（某人过去的记录、资格等）( vet的现在分词 )；调查；检查；诊疗

参考例句：

• Scripts had to be submitted to Ministry of Information officials for vetting. 必须把脚本提交给信息部官员审查。 来自互联网
• Their purpose in clicking deeper into a site is one of vetting. 他们深入点击网站的目的是一种诊疗。 来自互联网

12 energized   

v.给予…精力，能量( energize的过去式和过去分词 )；使通电

参考例句：

• We are energized by love if we put our energy into loving. 如果我们付出能量去表现爱意，爱就会使我们充满活力。 来自辞典例句
• I am completely energized and feeling terrific. 我充满了活力，感觉非常好。 来自辞典例句

13 tuned   

adj.调谐的，已调谐的v.调音( tune的过去式和过去分词 )；调整；（给收音机、电视等）调谐；使协调

参考例句：

• The resort is tuned in to the tastes of young and old alike. 这个度假胜地适合各种口味，老少皆宜。
• The instruments should be tuned up before each performance. 每次演出开始前都应将乐器调好音。 来自《简明英汉词典》

14 dilemma   

n.困境，进退两难的局面

参考例句：

• I am on the horns of a dilemma about the matter.这件事使我进退两难。
• He was thrown into a dilemma.他陷入困境。