Category: Guest Blogger

Resident-to-Resident Incidents: An Invisible Source of Harm in Nursing Homes

A White Paper by Eilon Caspi, Ph.D. Dwayne E. Walls was an investigative reporter at The Charlotte Observer. Throughout his career, he wrote stories on social justice issues from the inner circles of the Ku Klux Klan and the homes of poor Black farmers; he also covered hunger, voter fraud and the dysfunctions of the coroner system. Some of his most compelling stories reported on challenges experienced by vulnerable populations. Late in his own life, he joined a different vulnerable population: elders living with dementia. In 2001, Walls was diagnosed with Alzheimer’s disease. When his condition declined and his wife…

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Addressing Social Isolation and Loneliness in Older Adults During COVID-19

Social isolation and loneliness, which were problems for many older adults before the coronavirus pandemic, have become an even greater issue with the restrictions on travel and contact with others. While some who live alone may have been able to see family, friends, or neighbors or taken trips to buy groceries or go to medical appointments, the virus has shut most people away inside their homes, which means even those few interactions have been lost. Online technologies and social media, which can provide a social support network and a perceived sense of belonging, are not as available to many older…

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COVID Vaccine Rollout Leaves Most Older Adults Confused Where to Get Shots

Phil Galewitz, Kaiser Health News, January 22, 2021 Reposted with permission from khn.org Over a month into a massive vaccination program, most older Americans report they don’t know where or when they can get inoculated for COVID-19, according to a poll released Friday. Nearly 6 in 10 people 65 and older who have not yet gotten a shot said they don’t have enough information about how to get vaccinated, according to the KFF survey. (KHN is an editorially independent program of KFF.) Older Americans are not the only ones in the dark about  the inoculation process.

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Nursing Homes Need Support, Not Blame

By Jill Vitale-Aussem, LNHA, MMH, author of Disrupting the Status Quo of Senior Living: A Mindshift This post was originally shared on www.jillvitaleaussem.com and has been re-posted here with permission. View the original post here. I had hoped, with the current focus on healthcare workers as heroes, that the demonizing of nursing homes would cease during the pandemic. It hasn’t. I’ve seen very few news stories blaming hospitals when patients die from COVID-19 but nearly every story about people dying in a nursing home outbreak somehow blames the nursing home. While there are always some bad apples,…

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Getting the Life Story into Daily Use

This post originally appeared on www.bestfriendsapproach.com. View it here. When we make friends, our stories come out slowly. As we get to know one another, we learn each other’s favorite foods and songs, pastimes and passions. But person’s with dementia, especially those who live in memory care, may not be able to recall or share their own stories. And their care partners may be juggling so many responsibilities that they don’t have the time to sit down and listen. This is why the Life Story matters. It summarizes the most important elements of a person’s life. With those…

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How to Prevent Hypothermia in Older People

Harsh winter temperatures increase the risk of hypothermia in older people, which puts them in real danger of severe health problems such as heart attacks and kidney damage. When freezing conditions strike, it’s vital to know how to keep older relatives safe from hypothermia and what to do if you notice warning signs of a drop in their body temperature. This is a guest post by Michael Leavy, Managing Director of Home Healthcare Adaptations, a family-run company that specializes in adapting homes for the elderly and less abled. To learn more, visit…

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The Link Between Age-Related Hearing Loss and Dementia

By Guest Blogger Joan McKechnie, BSc, Hons Audiology & Speech Pathology from www.hearingdirect.com.  The estimates for people who are hard of hearing and/or deaf across America vary from 22 million to 36 million. The figures are based on statistics from The National Center for Health Statistics (NCHS), which is under the Centers for Disease Control (CDC), and the U.S. Census Bureau. There is no statistic showing the cause for hearing loss amongst these groups, but based on other western counties, age related hearing loss, as well as noise induced hearing loss are likely to be the…

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How to Find a Story

This is a guest post by Rosann Moore, CTRS, from www.CaregiversActivitySource.com.  Mention President Dwight Eisenhower, and my dad will tell you the story of how he encountered him one time in England during World War II. While performing training drills with about 20 other soldiers, my dad saw General Eisenhower pull up in a black limousine. He got out of his car and jumped atop a tank. He gave an impromptu speech to my dad and his fellow soldiers about how they would soon do something very special. Eisenhower could not be specific with what it was…

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