The stress of nursing home admission

In 1967, psychiatrists Holmes and Rahe created a scale that measures the stress levels of various life events, finding that people with stress levels Read More »

After hours with the aides

Sometimes aides and residents develop a strong friendship or attachment. This may lead to a resident asking an aide to take them out either after Read More »

Staff needs to know what residents and families want

A recent question for the Resident Sound-Off feature here on Long-Term Living asked, “What qualities or characteristics make for a good staff Read More »

Fly right! Get on board with culture change

Recently, flying from Denver to Baltimore for the “Creating Home in the Nursing Home” conference, I couldn't help comparing my experience of Read More »

September Product Focus (PDF Opens in a New Window)

Facility Management System Direct Supply® TELS® is a Web-based facility management system for tracking equipment and scheduling preventive Read More »

Leap of faith

I used to roll my eyes when someone would trot out that old chestnut, “What doesn't kill you makes you stronger.” But, having emerged scarred but Read More »

Weighing in

The disease of obesity is growing in long-term care as the overweight population increases. It is not uncommon to find residents weighing more Read More »

Sustaining lifelong connections

Humans are relational beings. We have connections with one another and the natural environment. When we think about how we can nurture and Read More »

Old law-New problem

The courts are becoming cluttered with wage and hour lawsuits. Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA) cases are emerging as a leader in employment Read More »

A model experience

For seniors shopping for a new residential lifestyle, a key factor in emotionally and financially “buying into” a long-term living arrangement is Read More »

Promoting leadership

We have long had a fascination with leaders. We have studied individual leaders, and mused on what makes a good leader and the interactions of Read More »

Trends in foodservice

To maintain or increase occupancy, most nursing homes are looking for ways to improve the satisfaction of residents and their families. In that Read More »

Mather Pavilion’s Culture of Leadership

2010 OPTIMA Award proudly sponsored by Since 1996, Long-Term Read More »

‘The Decision’

I'd been out of town. Out of the country, actually. I'm not saying exactly where, because I don't want those of you employed by gossip magazines to Read More »

Stemming contagious outbreak

Did you miss out on the Association for Professionals in Infection Control and Epidemiology (APIC) Annual Conference this past July in New Orleans? Read More »

Consumer protection and CCRCs

Continuing care retirement communities (CCRCs) have attracted the attention of the federal government and two parallel investigations of the Read More »

Flavor enhancers

The number of elderly individuals is increasing. By the year 2025, there are expected to be more than one billion persons over the age of 60 years Read More »

Facility eye care

Several years ago, I saw the visiting eye doctor at this nursing home for examinations and prescriptions. I never liked the styles of frames Read More »

Alzheimer’s conditions worsen during experimental treatment

“News is news, but what do you do about it?”Turn to LTL for depth, analysis, perspective. Pharmaceutical developer Eli Lilly and Company halted Read More »

Linking quality measures to clinical practice

Continuous Quality Improvement (CQI) is a process of creating an environment in which administration, healthcare workers, and ancillary staff Read More »

Providing Internet access without going into the Internet business

It's not news that older Americans are using the Internet in unprecedented numbers, but recent statistics are striking. A June 2008 survey conducted Read More »

What about local produce?

During a June alfresco lunch at my sister's, my brother-in-law remarked that local produce was delicious and would be for the entire summer. He asked Read More »

New claim speeds Aid and Attendance pensions

The U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs’ Aid and Attendance pensions are non-service-connected pensions, which are for veterans whose disability or Read More »

When a resident’s family does their laundry

We have a few residents here whose families do their laundry. However, some families do not realize how much laundry a resident can use in a few Read More »

How the Internet affects long-term care design

A simple Google search for long-term care design key words results in the following: Lobby furniture - 2,690,000 resultsFurniture - 179,000,000 Read More »

Reminders of mortality

Ever since I have lived in a long-term care facility there are frequent reminders of my mortality. At any time we may have several residents who are Read More »

Your community needs a vision (cont.)

Click here for part one of this two-part series.   What leaders and the leadership team say and do is important to staff. Employees are watching Read More »

Changing the color of nursing home rooms

My room was last painted five years ago. It is supposed to be a cookie dough type of color, but it looks a bit darker than that. It was quite a Read More »

The best staff members

Q: What qualities or characteristics make for a good staff member who meets your needs? Resident Betty Read More »

How we’ve mishandled art in assisted living

Artwork has been slowly changing in assisted living communities from paintings of children and puppies to a more sophisticated pallet of abstracts, Read More »