• Simplify your life, manage your energy, and do what really matters to you.
• Enroll in an HMO or Medicare Advantage plan that provides well-coordinated medical care if there is a good one in your area, or find a geriatrician.
• Schedule a medication review with a doctor or pharmacist once a year, and whenever a new medication is added.
• Above all, guard your brain. Stay away from anticholinergics, which increase your risk of dementia. Be equally cautious about drugs that increase fall risk. For a full list of drugs dangerous to older people, consult the updated “Beers List” from the American Geriatrics Society.
• Question and eliminate unnecessary health screenings by checking the Choosing Wisely website.
• Improvise rites of passage to make peace with loss.