When our elderly loved ones require care at a nursing home or assisted living facility, we need to balance the costs of a facility with the quality of care we know they’ll be receiving. It’s necessary to remember that nursing home abuse and neglect can occur at even the most…
A Booming Hospice Industry in America Did you know that about half of all Medicare patients who die “will do so as a hospice patient”? According to a recent article in the Huffington Post, just ten years ago only about 25 percent of all Medicare patients died in hospice care.…
Many of us in the San Diego area have seen commercials for liquid nutritional supplements, particularly those marketed toward older adults. According to a story in the New York Times, these bottles have become “staples in older people’s refrigerators, in nursing homes and assisted living facilities, and in hospitals.” As…
With more than two out of five Americans caring for their aging parents—many of whom do so because they cannot afford to pay for other elder assistance—it’s often difficult to find time for both work and caregiving. Indeed, according to a recent article in Forbes, many children who act as…
Collaboration on Dementia Awareness and Abuse Do you have a parent who currently suffers from Alzheimer’s or another form of dementia? These degenerative brain diseases are difficult not only on patients, but also on their family members and caregivers. In response to elder abuse advocates’ concerns about educating and empowering…
Global and Local Awareness About Aging and Elder Abuse Earlier this month, San Diego County’s Aging Summit, which focused on Alzheimer’s disease and caregiving issues, occurred just as the National Center on Elder Abuse (NCEA) and the Administration on Aging launched the eighth “World Elder Abuse Awareness Day.” The two…
A recent article in Reuters reported that the mayor of Los Angeles has declared his support for “a new state law barring public agencies from refusing job applications from people convicted of a crime.” But could such a law place residents in nursing homes and assisted-living facilities at greater risk…
We often think about staff members and other employees at nursing homes and assisted living facilities when we worry about whether our elderly loved ones are receiving proper care. However, spouses, children, and other close relatives of older adults can commit elder abuse, too. Indeed, anyone can commit elder abuse.…
Does the number of staff relate to the level of care in nursing homes and assisted living facilities? According to a recent article in McKnight’sLong Term Care News Online, a new study suggests that staffing levels at nursing homes do in fact “correlate with better quality of care.” But what…
California Seniors and Fraudulent Telephone Calls Older adults are becoming especially susceptible to elder financial abuse, and a recent article in the San Mateo Daily Journal suggests that police have noticed a “rise in fraudulent telephone scams that target seniors.” Elder abuse can take many different forms, and scammers often…