Symptoms of COVID-19 and the flu can look similar but they are caused by different viruses. Although much attention has been given to COVID-19, the flu is showing much more of an impact on Americans. Download our latest informational poster.
Card-Carrying and Proud of It!
So you get little jabs from your younger friends about getting old; your grandchildren call you “granny” and your kids don’t ask for your advice as often as they used to. Then you go out in the community and you become invisible, people don’t acknowledge you or worse, they try to “help” you! Ageism, ah, alive and well. These are …
CMS Suspends Survey Activity
CMS is suspending non-emergency inspections across the country, allowing inspectors to turn their focus on the most serious health and safety threats like infectious diseases and abuse. This shift in approach will also allow inspectors to focus on addressing the spread of the coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19). Click HERE to read the memo issued earlier today.
Antibiotics for UTI – Yay or Nay?
The Journal of the American Geriatrics Society published the results of a statewide program to improve the management of suspected urinary tract infections in long-term care. The reason the study was done was that too many residents were being treated for UTIs when in actuality they were experiencing “asymptomatic bacteriuria”. What does this mean? Well, maybe we need to go …
Coronavirus & Respiratory Infection Toolkit Now Available
Coronavirus is the topic of many conversations lately. The CDC recommends the best way to prevent illness is to avoid being exposed to the virus. We’ve put together a toolkit of policies, procedures, checklists, and resources you can use to prevent the spread of respiratory diseases. Download the toolkit on our Resource & Education Center.
Overactive Bladder – Meds or Therapy?
There are many different medications on the market for managing overactive bladder in men, however, none are without side effects. I recently talked with a gentleman in a senior housing center who said he was constipated and had made several trips to the ER for impaction removal. When I asked if he knew why this was happening he said it …
Copper Not Just For Arthritis Anymore?
There was a recent study to determine if copper could serve as an antimicrobial agent. The Journal of Post-Acute and Long-Term Care Medicine published the study and it was found that copper did prevent outbreaks of healthcare-associated infections in a long-term care facility. Specifically, the risk of hand-transmitted healthcare-associated infection was significantly lower in the area equipped with copper surfaces. …
Are we doing the right things for pain management?
In a recent article written by J Bryan Conrad, PhD1; Ann Monis, PsyD2; Elizabeth B Hooper, PsyD2 in reference to a study on pain management for long term care facilities, pain was positively correlated with female gender, fractures, pressure ulcers, falls, sleeping disorders, cancer, unstable health conditions, a number of drugs and depression. The authors also found that a high number …
Healthy Lifestyle Decreases Dementia Risk
As caregivers for frail elders, we see the devastating progression of dementia on a daily basis. What if we could do something to impact the risk for developing this dreaded disease? A recent study conducted by Exeter Medical School in Exeter, United Kingdom used a “healthy lifestyle score” based on 4 modifiable lifestyle risks. The goal of the study was to identify if …
Dementia Screening – Primary Care Involvement
Many seniors refuse their primary care providers recommendation to be screened for early-onset dementia, however, a recent study published in the Journal of the American Geriatrics Society, found there was no harm from screening measured by symptoms of depression or anxiety. This is great news but what is troubling is the high rate of refusal to get follow up diagnostic …