A recent New York Times article talks about a nursing home danger most of us don’t even consider–beds with rails. Although rails are commonly used to protect frail patients from accidentally rolling out of bed, their design actually poses a danger of entrapment, when a patient get trapped between the rail and the mattress. According …
There is a very moving story in the April issue of The Atlantic magazine, written by a man who found himself utterly unprepared for the aging and decline of his father. Like millions of middle-aged Americans, he had to find a way to cope with the crisis. This article strives to give a voice to …
There’s an interesting article, complete with resource links, in today’s New York Times about how to decide which is the best care for ailing, elderly parents. Check it out here: NYT: Deciding on Care for Elderly Parents in Declining Health.
It was horrifying to families that had already lived through the tragedy of having a loved one diagnosed with Alzheimer’s disease. As reported in the media, 9 residents of the Britthaven of Chapel Hill nursing home tested positive for strong pain medication–opiates–that hadn’t been prescribed to them…one later died. Now, ENCtoday.com reports that the incident …
Investigations into Britthaven of Chapel Hill Abuses Read More »
It was only a matter of time before Toyota’s troubles spilled over. Problems that big always do. The next to feel the pain is the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA), the nation’s auto safety agency. In light of Toyota’s recall of more than 8 million vehicles for a variety of problems related to the …
In response to continuing reports of deaths, abuse, and substandard care at long-term nursing facilities, the Senate Finance Committee has opened an investigation. The company in the spotlight is Select Medical Corporation, a for-profit long-term care provider with 89 facilities in 26 states, including North Carolina. (They own Select Specialty Hospitals in Durham and Winston-Salem.) …
North Carolina Attorney General Roy Cooper announced today that owners of recalled Toyota vehicles will be offered several services to reduce the “inconvenience” of having to get their cars fixed. Among the benefits: Pickup and return of recalled vehicle Providing rental car while the car is being fixed Quick scheduling of repairs for accelerator and …
Today’s The Daily Tar Heel has a terrific editorial about the heartbreaking saga of abuse at Britthaven of Chapel Hill nursing home. At HensonFuerst, we would like to commend and echo the conclusion: “Britthaven itself needs to seriously evaluate its commitment to those it serves. Real and fragile lives are at stake.” Click here to …
According to the Lexington Herald-Leader, another Britthaven nursing home facility is in trouble, this time for the death of a resident by abuse and neglect. A former nursing assistant at Britthaven Nursing Home in Pineville, Kentucky, left a partially paralyzed man unattended and without support. The man fell and later died of complications from the …
A lovely article in the New York Times (“Old Age, From Youth’s Narrow Prism“) by Marc E. Agronin, M.D., describes how those of us who have not yet attained old age often make off-base assumptions about how the elderly think and feel. We project our own fears and beliefs onto them, while also presuming that we …