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MORE Holiday Gifts for Nursing Home Residents

This post, along with last week’s and my Planning for the Holidays article, could be printed out and left for family members in a prominent location.  Think of it as your gift to every nursing home family.

7 tips to make your LTC facility shine for holiday family visits (LTL mag online)

Here’s my latest article on Long-Term Living magazine online:

The holiday season is a time when family members are more likely than usual to visit their loved ones in long-term care facilities. Out-of-town relatives may be making their annual visit, or grandchildren off from school might be stopping by to see Grandma or Grandpa. Now’s your chance to roll out the red carpet and show families what nursing homes are really about—caring treatment of their loved ones, an engaged staff that considers family members part of the team and good customer service. Where to start taking advantage of this opportunity to shine? At the front desk…

1. Encourage staff to provide an extra-warm holiday welcome.

LTC staff members are used to the hustle, buzzers, equipment and jargon of facility life, but the environment can be jarring to occasional visitors. Counteract their expectations of a sterile setting by offering a cheerful hello from a holiday-themed lobby, providing directions to their loved ones that show personal knowledge of the resident (“Your aunt is probably at lunch on the first floor right now so you might want to check there before you go to her room.”) and suggesting guests have a look at the visitor’s information provided by the facility. This material can be displayed as informally as a stack of newsletters on the counter, or with the fanfare of a labeled magazine rack filled with the elements outlined below and complete with resident greeter.

2. Reach out to family members through the facility newsletter.

Have relatives sign up to receive the missive so they can be informed of events and happenings all year round—and create a facility newsletter if you haven’t already done so. It’s easy and inexpensive to offer an electronic version, so now is the time to capture those email addresses and save on printing and mailing costs. Deliver helpful information and news consistent with the mission of your facility at a realistic frequency that can be maintained by your staff. It’s much better to offer a quarterly or semi-annual publication that can be delivered regularly than to commit to a monthly contact and not be able to follow through.

3. Offer tips for families to make the most of their visits.

For more, visit LTL magazine online:

7 tips to make your LTC facility shine for holiday family visits

Holiday Gifts for Nursing Home Residents

This post, along with next week’s (stay tuned) and my Planning for the Holidays article, could be printed out and left for family members in a prominent location.  Think of it as your gift to every nursing home family.  

~Happy Holidays from Dr. El at mybetternursinghome.com

With the holiday season upon us, you may be wondering what would make a good present for a relative in a nursing home.  In my efforts to banish the barren nursing home room, photos are still my number one pick for holiday gifts, but here are other suggestions (be sure to label everything!):

Savvy Resident’s Guide Kindle edition FREE today only!

The Savvy Resident’s Guide Kindle edition can be downloaded for FREE today, 12/5/12 until midnight Pacific time.  Now’s your chance to check out the Kindle edition — and see why you’ll want to order the print edition for Mom or Dad for the holidays!

Dr. El on Main Street Vegan Radio, 12/5/12, 3pm ET

I’m thrilled to be joining author and vegan coach Victoria Moran on her radio show, Main Street Vegan Radio, at 3pm ET on 12/5/12.  Earlier this year, I went to hear Victoria speak about her new book, Main Street Vegan, and became unexpectedly vegan.  Tune in for our discussion of aging, compassion, and my vegan journey by visiting Main Street Vegan Radio and clicking on the Listen Now button at 3pm ET on 12/5/12.  Questions can be called in at  888-558-6489 (or  816-347-5519 outside the US).

Grey’s Anatomy Promotes Awareness of Limb Loss

Many nursing home residents have experienced an amputation, an issue that’s often under-addressed both in the facility and in the media.  (Limb loss should, but doesn’t always, trigger a referral for psychological services or other support.)  Grey’s Anatomy has been working with The Amputee Coalition to make their portrayal of a character with an above knee amputation as realistic as possible.  Tonight, 11/29/12, they plan to air a public service announcement about The Amputee Coalition to raise awareness about the resources available to amputees and their families.  For more information about the collaboration between the coalition and the show, click here.  To read more about Grey’s Anatomy and its characters, click here.  Watching or discussing the show with residents could be an opportunity to recognize their concerns about limb loss and to consider what other support they might need.

Savvy Resident’s Guide Launch/Fundraiser Follow-up

Thanks to all of you who Liked, Shared, Tweeted, and purchased The Savvy Resident’s Guide during my cyber-launch earlier this month, I was able to raise $100 to donate to the American Red Cross to help those affected by Hurricane Sandy.

Thank you for making my launch day a great success!

 Dr. El

Reducing antipsychotic medications? Try these behavioral interventions (LTL mag online)

Here’s my latest article on Long-Term Living magazine online:

Reducing antipsychotic medications? Try these behavioral interventions

With the recent focus on reducing antipsychotics in long-term care and substituting behavioral interventions, facilities may be left wondering what interventions to use and how to implement them. Here are ideas on how to prevent, investigate and monitor agitation on your units and address staffing needs to ease the transition from antipsychotic medication.

PREVENTION: BORROW FROM THE PSYCHIATRIC HOSPITAL

In a psychiatric hospital, the focus is on creating an emotionally healing environment—a therapeutic milieu. In long-term care, the focus is on providing high-quality physical healthcare and the frequently neglected therapeutic milieu can contribute to resident agitation. Take some time to walk your units and evaluate the emotional environment. This is what residents, and especially those with dementia, are reacting to and small changes can make a big difference.

Evaluate and adjust the physical environment. Is it disturbingly bright or so dark that older eyes can’t see who’s approaching? Is it very loud, with excessive overhead paging, chair alarms and shouting staff and residents? Is it too cold or too warm? Make environmental changes so that an older version of you wouldn’t mind spending time in the day room.

Provide appropriate programming. Are residents crammed together in a small area for long periods of time, creating the sensation of being trapped? Is the main activity a blaring television set? A therapeutic milieu is all about engaging the residents in appropriate activities with a pleasant flow through the day. Pursuits for residents with dementia can include music, baking, tactile and visual stimulation, etc. Providing activities off the unit offers additional stimulation to those who can tolerate it and lessens crowding in the day room. It can also offer a healthy diversion for cognitively intact residents.

Calm residents before they get agitated. The time for staff to act is when interactions between residents start to become tense, rather than waiting until an argument has broken out. Interventions such as distraction, redirection and a face-saving move to another location can be remarkably effective. Attending to individuals at early signs of distress can prevent episodes of full-blown agitation.

Use customer service techniques. Well-trained staff can often prevent agitation from occurring. Units can be transformed by charge nurses who speak to residents and staff alike in calm, respectful tones, address needs immediately and expect the aides working with them to do the same.

Staffing recommendations:  

• Train all your staff in customer service techniques.
• Offer special workshops for nurses, aides and recreation therapists on providing care and activities for residents with dementia.
• Consider hiring nurses with psychiatric experience who understand how to maintain a therapeutic milieu.

INVESTIGATE: PUT ON YOUR SHERLOCK HOLMES HAT

If a resident is agitated despite environmental changes, look for underlying causes.  Residents with dementia are often unable to speak through words, so they use other methods. Sometimes it takes a bit of sleuthing to figure out what they’re saying.

For more, visit LTL magazine online:

Reducing antipsychotic medications? Try these behavioral interventions

For more details on behavioral interventions, download Dr. El’s FREE report: Stop Agitating the Residents!

Nursing Home Christmas (and other holidays)

My perennial post on the perennial issue around this time of year:

‘Twas the week before Christmas…

And 83-year old Albertha assured me her family was planning to take her home for the holidays.

“Have you talked to them about it?  Have they called the social worker to arrange a pass, and meds, and transportation?”

Radio Show with Viki Kind: 11/15/12 4pm ET

Please join me as I speak with Viki Kind of KindEthics.com (“The Human Side of Ethics in Healthcare”) on her BlogTalkRadio show on Thursday, November 15th at 4pm ET.  We’ll be discussing my new book, The Savvy Resident’s Guide, and ways in which to help residents thrive in nursing homes.  The show will be a great resource for family members, providing tips for helping loved ones adjust to a long-term care stay, and will offer healthcare professionals a deeper understanding of residents’ concerns to enhance person-centered care.  If you’re a facility looking for ways to improve relationships with families, let them know about this show which offers a balanced insider view of nursing homes and how to work within the system to meet the needs of residents.

For more information about the half-hour radio show, visit the Kind Ethics blogtalkradio page.  To listen to the show, visit the page on Thursday, November 15th at 4pm ET and click on the arrow button below the photo.  To ask questions, use the call-in number listed there.

The recording will still be available at the same page after November 15th.