senior care Archive

Debates Heat Up as Medicaid Funding Hits the Chopping Block

Posted on March 24, 2011 | No Comments
Over the past decade, the national skilled nursing sector has incurred almost $30 billion in cuts by way of budget and regulatory reforms. The cuts have mostly affected employment and renovations for skilled nursing facilities, but both have major implications on the quality of care...
Full Story
Emergency Rooms Adapt to Aging Population

Posted on March 17, 2011 | No Comments
People who are 65 years of age and older are among the fastest growing segment of emergency room visitors in the country, according to statistics from the Centers for Disease Control this patient demographic has grown by more than 18% since 1995. A number...
Full Story
Novel Approach to Medical Education in Senior Care

Posted on January 28, 2011 | 1 Comment
The NBC affiliate, KARE 11 in Minneapolis, Minnesota reported this week on a novel approach to educating medical students about senior care. The University of Minnesota School of Medicine has partnered with senior care provider Augustana Care to create an elective course for medical students...
Full Story
Study Shows Dementia Patients are Over-Hospitalized

Posted on January 21, 2011 | No Comments
A recent post in The New Old Age blog of the New York Times reported on a study of Medicare spending among patients with advanced dementia in Boston area nursing homes. The 300-person study showed that 30% of total Medicare expenditures for these patients was...
Full Story
Silverado Receives Heart-Warming Gift from Eagle Scout

Posted on December 30, 2010 | No Comments
The San Diego Union Tribune featured a touching story about a young man’s generous spirit and moving contribution to Silverado Senior Living – Escondido. Corey Permann, a senior at Rancho Bernardo High School, earned his Eagle Scout status by building a mobile garden box for...
Full Story
Memory-Impaired Seniors Share their Voice through Art

Posted on December 23, 2010 | No Comments
On the first floor of the Architects Building in downtown Green Bay lies an unconventional art gallery dedicated to exhibiting watercolor paintings and other artistic creations by local seniors with memory-impairing illnesses. The gallery is operated by Legacies Arts, an initiative that grew out of...
Full Story
Coming Together to Touch the Lives of Seniors During the Holidays

Posted on December 22, 2010 | No Comments
During the holidays many of us will spend our time with family and loved ones, enjoying the traditions that bring us joy through the spirit of giving and caring; however not all of us are this lucky. For many seniors the holidays are a time...
Full Story
National Alzheimer’s Project Act (NAPA) approved by House

Posted on December 15, 2010 | No Comments
Early this morning the U.S. House of Representatives overwhelmingly passed the National Alzheimer’s Project Act (NAPA). This historic piece of legislation is now on its way to be signed by the President. On December 8th, the Senate Special Committee on Aging held a forum...
Full Story
5-Minute Alzheimer’s Screening Promises to be MOST Effective

Posted on December 13, 2010 | No Comments
Beginning January 2011 primary care physicians will be required to identify cognitive problems as part of a Medicare patient’s Annual Wellness Exam. Currently the two most common tools to assess cognitive abilities are the Folstein Mini Mental State Examination (MMSE) and the Mini-Cog exam. The...
Full Story
Loren Shook Speaks to Senate Special Committee on Aging

Posted on December 10, 2010 | No Comments
Earlier this week President and CEO of Silverado Senior Living, Loren Shook spoke to the Senate Special Committee on Aging. He was invited to speak on topics related to memory-care for the forum “Until There’s a Cure: How to Help Alzheimer’s Patients and Families Now.”...
Full Story
Designing Outdoor Environments for Seniors

Posted on December 9, 2010 | No Comments
Spending time outdoors has long been associated with good health, but until recently there has been little formal research to validate this notion. In the last few years researchers from around the world have concluded that a connection to outdoor settings can have significant therapeutic...
Full Story
Replacing Drugs with Personal Care

Posted on December 6, 2010 | No Comments
Medicare spends over $5 billion a year on antipsychotic drugs. Many of those drugs are used by senior care facilities to subdue agitation and curb disruptive behavior among people with mental illnesses, such as Alzheimer’s and other forms of dementia. The percentage of nursing home...
Full Story
A Family’s Story of Dealing with the Struggles of Dementia

Posted on December 3, 2010 | No Comments
There have been many articles and stories written about dementia and other memory-impairing diseases. Most of what is written focuses on the research of treatment and origin of these diseases, the increasing percentage of people suffering from these conditions, and what services are available...
Full Story
Alzheimer’s Futurists Share Their Vision of the Future

Posted on October 19, 2010 | No Comments
Care, alongside cure, must be the focus, as two Alzheimer’s futurists explain how American can cope with the epidemic SAN JUAN CAPISTRANO, Calif., Oct. 18 /PRNewswire/ — Providing meaningful roles in society, involving children, and embracing a love-based approach are how America can successfully cope...
Full Story
A poem by a, “Crabby Old Man”

Posted on July 30, 2010 | No Comments
An inspirational poem written by an anonymous person reminds us all to treat the elderly as the vibrant people they were. Silverado cannot verify if this story is true or not. However, we feel good poetry is worth sharing: When an old man died in...
Full Story