Comparing Hospice Care at Home, at Assisted Living Facilities, and at Nursing Homes

Use of hospice has exploded over the past decades with approximately half of those who die while enrolled in Medicare receiving hospice care. A February 2018 study from the Indiana University Center for Aging Research and the Regenstrief Institute compares the quality of hospice services provided for patients living at home, in assisted living facility,… Continue reading Comparing Hospice Care at Home, at Assisted Living Facilities, and at Nursing Homes

3 Ways to Help a Loved One Receive Proper Nursing Home Care

It’s an almost weekly occurrence across the country. Nursing homes face lawsuits over patients who develop severe bedsores that in some cases lead to death. One week it’s a now-closed nursing home in California dealing with its third such lawsuit. Another week it’s a New Jersey nursing home sued by the family of a woman… Continue reading 3 Ways to Help a Loved One Receive Proper Nursing Home Care

Study: Nursing-Home Workers Don’t Change Gloves Often Enough

Certified nursing assistants often fail to change gloves, and that careless practice may be a significant cause of the spread of pathogens in long-term care settings such as nursing homes. That’s according to a new study published in the September issue of the American Journal of Infection Control, the journal of the Association for Professionals… Continue reading Study: Nursing-Home Workers Don’t Change Gloves Often Enough

Tips to Deal with a Controlling Aging Loved One

As people age, it’s not uncommon for their personalities to change and for them to become more controlling. It’s usually the result of medication, pain, the frustrations of having difficulty doing things that were once easy, and changing family dynamics. While it can be frustrating and even unpleasant at times to deal with, there are things you… Continue reading Tips to Deal with a Controlling Aging Loved One

Baby Boomers and Food Safety

Editor’s note: Steering clear of food poisoning is crucial, and older people face special risks from this condition. The experts from FoodSafety, a division of the U.S. Department of Agriculture, offer these tips for dealing with a common and potentially deadly issue. Adults 65 and older are at a higher risk for hospitalization and death… Continue reading Baby Boomers and Food Safety

Old Age – Then and Now

A long time ago, when I was just a teen, a girlfriend who already volunteered at a local nursing home, invited me to volunteer. For six months or so, twice a week, Sue, dressed in a cute Candy Striper outfit, pushed around the hospitality cart. Her job, which cast her in an angelic light, was… Continue reading Old Age – Then and Now

Risky Procedure May Not Benefit Nursing-Home Patients

Revascularization procedures, designed to preserve limbs, benefit only a few U.S. nursing home residents, according to new research. Investigators from the University of California San Francisco published the finding in JAMA Internal Medicine.  They said that even those patients who survived gained little, if any, function. “Our findings can inform conversations among physicians, patients and… Continue reading Risky Procedure May Not Benefit Nursing-Home Patients

Don’t Let Nursing Home Expenses Wipe Out Your Nest Egg


People pondering their retirement years often conjure images of spending more time on a favorite pastime or traveling around the country or the world. Health concerns can intrude on those idyllic scenes, though, not only affecting enjoyment of life but also punching a heavy dent in retirement savings. “As we age, usually our medical or… Continue reading Don’t Let Nursing Home Expenses Wipe Out Your Nest Egg