A disciplined approach to growth capital

Growth and evolution go hand in hand for LTC providers who finance wisely. Ziegler offers tips on how to evaluate financial options when it's time to expand. Read More »

FDA approves deep brain stimulation procedure for Parkinson’s

Medtronic's Deep Brain Stimulation Therapy receives new approval to extend its uses to less advanced Parkinson's cases. Read More »

4 marketing strategies long-term care gets wrong (and how to fix them)

Long-term care providers need to take care to address their marketing shortcomings because getting the word out about their facility is key to their long-term success. Read More »

A smoking light fixture

SNF resident blogger Kathleen Mears relates an exciting moment in the dining room, and how everyone reacted when smoke began pouring out of a dining room light fixture. Read More »

LeadingAge report: Options for LTSS financing makeover

Financing for long-term care services and suppports (LTSS) is in big trouble and needs new financing options that don't push all the burden onto Medicaid.  A new report from LeadignAge explores some alternatives. Read More »

Iowa won’t require nursing home employees to complete dementia care training

State legislators failed to pass a bill that would have required nursing home employees to learn how and be assessed on how they care for people with dementia.  Read More »

MatrixCare, CliftonLarsonAllen partner to help providers with value payment

CliftonLarsonAllen will consult MatrixCare clients on how to implement value based payment model initiatives.  Read More »

Griffin-American Healthcare REIT IV to launch $3B IPO

The mammoth real estate investment trust (REIT) has added daughter-company #4, and the SEC has approved an IPO that could top $3 billion. Read More »

New housing construction cools, memory care still hot

Fewer senior housing organizations plan to pursue new construction in 2016, but plenty plan to do some renovating and repositioning for a better service mix, notes the latest survey data from Lancaster Pollard. Read More »

Kindred partners with Avalere for improved data analytics

The multi-year agreement gives the nation's largest post-acute care provider access to data analytics that can help improve care outcomes in real time.  Read More »

An Alzheimer’s-like disease that leaves people speechless

Researchers don't know much about primary progressive aphasia, a neurological syndrom that makes it difficult for people to express their thougths. It's often mistaken for dementia, though most people are able to remain independent.  Read More »

Predatory legal advertising: How nursing homes can respond

Legal advertisements that aim to exploit nursing homes often hit way below the belt, and nursing homes have the right to challenge them. Legal expert Alan C. Horowitz, JD, RN, explains what nursing homes can do to fight back against misleading and deceptive legal advertisements. Read More »

3-D ‘mini-brain’ could be future of Alzheimer’s, Parkinson’s research

Researchers have grown human neurons and cells that mimic the brain's structures and functions. The mini-brains could eliminate the need for animal drug testing, the results of which are often unreliable in humans.  Read More »

Key to continuity of care a single doctor

A piece in the Journal of the American Medical Association found high-risk older adults benefit from having a phsyician follow them throughout their continuum of care from the hospital to the skilled nursing facility to home.  Read More »

CMS, AHIP release core quality measures to align documentation

CMS and major insurers will use the core measures to synchronize the way quality care is defined and measured, reducing the reporting burden on providers. Read More »

Firefighters heat things up at ALF

Arizona firefighters delivered flowers to more than 50 female residents at an assisted living facility this Valentine's Day.  Read More »

Home health, hospice M&As heat up

Several senior care services companies added to their portfolios in a flurry of home health mergers and acquisitions. Read More »

Rx for obesity

Medicare has long invested in the coverage of prescription drugs to treat chronic diseases. But a growing number of people think Medicare is missing the boat by not covering medications used to treat obesity. Read More »

Say what? Hearing loss increases risk of dementia

Older adults with hearing loss are more likely to develop dementia, research suggests. Read More »

‘Cautious optimism’ over decline in dementia cases

Researchers have noticed a steady decline in dementia cases in the 40 years between the 1970s and the 2000s, but the rising numbers of older adults will keep the battle with other types of dementia top of mind for many years to come, notes longitudinal study data in the New England Journal of Medicine. Read More »

I (still) do: Memory care center hosts vow renewals

The Valentine’s Day spirit was in full force at Stoneybrook Memory Care in McKinney, Texas, as dementia care residents and their spouses renewed their marriage vows and their commitments to stay together despite the disease. Read More »

Silent deaths

Resident blogger Kathleen Mears mourns the loss of relatives she hadn't known died. Her contact with many family members has been limited after she moved into her nursing home.  Read More »

CA judge halts end-of-life decision making for incompetent nursing home residents

A judge rules physicians are no longer able to make end-of-life decisions for nursing home residents, citing the 1992 state law violates residents' constitutional rights.  Read More »

Help wanted: LTC hourly job positions reach peak need in next 10 years

The senior living sector could need more than a million new workers between now and 2025, especially in five key areas, says a new report from Argentum. Read More »

CT launches background check program for LTC workers

Connecticut has launched a new background check portal to allow employers to screen potential employees, contractors and volunteers who have direct contact with residents.  Read More »

CCRC to launch “virtual senior living” membership program

Life Enriching Communities wants to help seniors plan for a possible transition of care while they're still healthy and independent.  Read More »

One-on-one with… Randall Holley

Great technology strategies include integrated systems and physician/nurse buy-in, says Commonwealth Care of Roanoke IT Director Randall Holley. Read More »

Genworth to refocus on LTC insurance offerings

Genworth Financial Inc. announced plans to restructure as the company continues to report losses.  Read More »