Texas assisted living residents displaced by flooding

Rising floodwaters prompted an evacuation of Atria Cypresswood after historic flooding in the Houston area.   Read More »

UnitedHealthcare pulls out of most state health marketplaces

The largest private insurer in the country has announced it will be ending its participation in most state healthcare marketplace exchanges, but it has some new plans for the future. Read More »

AL, memory care costs keep rising, especially in South

Seniors can expect to pay $99 to $125 per month more for assisted living and memory care compared to 2014, especially in the Southern states. Read More »

2016 Leaders of Tomorrow: Rachel Pankratz, PT, WCC

In our second installment of the Leaders of Tomorrow award winners, Rachel Pankratz, PT, WCC, director of therapy at Larksfield Place, Wichita, Kans., shows what can be done when physical therapy and clinical teams combine efforts in the mission of proactive resident care. Read More »

Advanced dementia doesn’t lead to more ED visits, study shows

Residents with mild or no dementia are more likely to make a trip to the emergency department than residents with severe dementia, says a new study by the Regenstrief Institute and the Indiana University Center for Aging Research. Read More »

Guardian Pharmacy partners, expands to West Coast

Two long-term care pharmacy companies join forces to boost market share in California. Read More »

2016 Leaders of Tomorrow: Bruce Williams

In our second installment of the 2016 Leaders of Tomorrow award winners, we honor Bruce Williams, senior services coordinator with The Pride Center at Equality Park in Wilton Manors, Fla. As an openly-gay older adult with more than 25 years in long-term care, he sees the importance of outreach and the need for inclusion. Read More »

OSHA gives whistleblower status for employee food safety complaints

The Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) has released the final rule that gives protection to employees who serve as whistleblowers on food safety violations. Read More »

The caped crusader

When bad weather thwarts social plans, a "girls day in" can be just as fun, says SNF resident blogger Kathleen Mears. Read More »

2016 Leaders of Tomorrow: Debra Gallimore, RN

In our first installment of the 2016 Leaders of Tomorrow award winners, we honor Debra Gallimore, RN, Director of Nursing at Skyline Health and Rehabilitation Center in Floyd, Va. She may be one of the youngest DONs the community has had, but you'll have a difficult time finding someone who knows more about her staff's job roles—she's done most of them herself. Read More »

Having ‘the talk’ about death

National Healthcare Decisions Day is Apr. 16, and as most skilled nursing facilities know, an advance directive may be a little piece of paper, but it’s a big conversation process. Read More »

Mass. lawmakers want to raise nursing home wages

A budget proposal by Massachusetts lawmakers would spend at least $35.5 million on nursing homes, specifically, on wages and benefits for employees. Read More »

Fast food threatens to steal LTC workforce in Texas

Texas has one of the highest turnover rates for nursing home employees. The facilities are having trouble staying competitive with Wendy’s or McDonald’s, which can offer hourly workers a job with better pay and less stress.  Read More »

JAMA study: Drug interaction risk doubles for older adults since 2006

Adults age 62 to 85 are using more concurrent medicines and dietary supplements than ever, a new JAMA study says, enhancing the need for detailed medication reviews to avoid drug interactions. Read More »

Boomer expectations don’t match reality for retirement, report finds

The sixth annual Boomer Expectations for Retirement report from the Insured Retirement Institute found baby boomers are less confident about and how well they have prepared financially for retirement.  Read More »

Tap dancing at any age

An 85-year-old Navy veteran always wanted to learn to tap. He decided it was finally time to dance.  Read More »

Meet the 2016 Leaders of Tomorrow!

Long-Term Living’s Leaders of Tomorrow awards celebrate five nominated individuals who go out of their way to change the status quo of senior care, try new strategies and innovative approaches and serve as inspirations to their peers. Read More »

Infectious disease orgs release new guidelines for antibiotic stewardship, combating C. diff

A good antibiotic stewardship program is more than a leaflet or two about drug resistance. New guidelines from two leading infectious disease bodies offer specific strategies to implement stewardship programs and improve antibiotic efficacy, including ways to handle staff training and the challenge of C. diff. Read More »

Arizona State University to build CCRC on campus

The university wants to build a continuing care retirement community on campus. The CCRC could appeal to the roughly 30,000 alumni age 65 and up dwelling in Arizona who want to relive their college years. Only, this time class is optional.  Read More »

AHCA to Congress: Rural SNFs need better technology

Skilled nursing providers in rural areas need better access to broadband connectivity to keep up with the rapidly changing senior care landscape, providers said in testimony before the House Subcommittee on Communications and Technology. Read More »

Rocking the drug reimbursement boat

Medicare is trying a new way of calculating the reimbursement for certain drugs, including expensive drugs to treat cancer. After barely a month, the pilot has riled physicians on both sides of the issue. Read More »

CMS payment model could change primary care for up to 25M Medicare beneficiaries

The Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) will test a new payment model that encourages doctors to focus on health outcomes rather than volume of visits or tests. Read More »

An apparent seamless transition

For nursing homes residents, the transience of living space can be difficult to accept, especially when a resident dies. Read More »

Light therapy helps people with dementia sleep

A pilot study by Ecumen found residents exposed to bright lights for at least 30 minutes a day had fewer sleep disturbances, behavioral episodes and needed less antipsychotic medication—all without any adverse side effects to the light.  Read More »

Older women have less cognition loss—and less quickly—than men

Researchers examined the effects of aging on cognitive functioning. They found normal age-related memory and cognition decline may occur at an earlier age and at a faster rate in healthy older men compared to healthy older women.   Read More »

Educating AND training for safety

Safety training only goes so far unless you train employees’ hands as well as their heads, says safety training expert Steve Wilder. Read More »

New clues in the link between Alzheimer’s disease and diabetes

Researchers have found that Alzheimer’s disease impairs the part of the brain that regulates metabolism. That means people with dementia may be more likely to develop diabetes. Read More »

COPD study: inhaled corticosteroids may not be for everyone?

Combination treatments, such as using an extended-release pill and an inhaled product, are a standard practice in therapy for chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD). But new research shows that many people with COPD may not benefit from the addition of a corticosteroid inhalant. Read More »

DOJ: substandard nursing home care will not be tolerated

The Department of Justice announced the launch of 10 regional interagency task forces designed to protect seniors in nursing homes by holding operators accountable for the quality of care they provide. Read More »

CMS imposes fines of more than $278k for Woodbriar Health Center

The Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services has imposed steep fines and threatened to terminate Woodbriar Health Center from its programs if serious problems are not resolved by next week. Read More »