Among people over age 65, just four types of medications are responsible for 2/3 of all emergency hospitalizations. That’s right: 4 drugs = 67% of hospitalizations due to accidental overdoses or because the medication had a more powerful effect than intended. Wow. According to an article in The New York Times, the drug classes are: […]
Four Most Dangerous Medications Read More »
Pain is pain, right? Not according to a new study by researchers from the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill. The study, published in the Annals of Emergency Medicine and reported in The New York Times, examined pain-related visits to Emergency Departments (ED) in the United States for 7 years. The goal was to
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Halloween is over, but for some nursing home residents, scary stories are a way a life. Here are some reports we’ve gathered from newspapers across the country, as well as Canada and Great Britain: Patient Didn’t Die “Peacefully” When 88-year-old Eldon Mooney died in his North Vancouver (Canada) nursing home bed, his daughter, Gail Nelson,
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Typically, when we think of nursing home abuse cases, the first thing that comes to mind is elderly folks being neglected in retirement homes and assisted living facilities. What we tend to forget though, is that many of the same regulations in place for elderly-care facilities apply equally for the place of care our youngest family members attend.
Durham Daycare Shut Down For Operating Without a License Read More »
Yesterday, we told you more nursing home horror stories. (To read that blog, click here: More Nursing Home Tragedies.) These tragic tales always serve to highlight the importance of caring for those who are the most vulnerable…and preventing abuse whenever possible. Nursing home abuse and neglect can take many different forms. If you have a
Red Flag Warning Signs of Nursing Home Abuse Read More »
We write this nursing home abuse blog to tell you how important it is to choose a quality facility in the event your loved one needs full-time care. Every few weeks, we gather news stories from across the country about abuse cases in nursing homes,to remind ourselves exactly how bad things can get. Please note:
More Nursing Home Tragedies Read More »
Earlier this year, California Congresswoman Lucille Roybal-Allard introduced legislation known as H.R. 2552: “Nursing Home Patient Protection & Standards Act.” (The “H.R.” stands for House of Representatives, signifying that the bill started in that body of Congress.) H.R. 2522 was introduced to ensure consistent standards in nursing homes across the nation. It provides training and whistleblower
Helping to Ensure Nursing Home Patient Protections Read More »
This is one of those good news stories we don’t get to write about often enough. First, a little background: Most people with Alzheimer’s disease and other forms of dementia eventually develop agitation as asymptom of their disease. While “agitation” sounds benign, akin to being “cranky,” it is, in fact, a serious concern for dementia
Humor Highly Effective in Treating Dementia Read More »
Every year the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) recommends that everyone 6 months old and older get a yearly influenza vaccine. And this is especially true for people over age 65, who are at greater risk of serious complications from the flu compared with young, healthy adults. In the United States, it’s estimated
Influenza Risk in Nursing Homes Read More »
No one wants to think about the possibility of someday becoming so sick, frail, or disabled that we can no longer take care of ourselves. But if that should ever happen — and it happens for about 20% of people over age 65, and about 55% of people over age 85 — long-term care insurance
What Does Long-Term Care Insurance Cover? Read More »