When the Biden administration announced a set of proposed nursing home reforms last month, consumer advocates were both pleased and puzzled. The reforms call for minimum staffing requirements, stronger regulatory oversight, and better public information about nursing home quality — measures advocates have promoted for years. Yet they don’t address residents’ rights to have contact with informal […]
For decades, Americans have been urged to fill out documents specifying their end-of-life wishes before becoming terminally ill — living wills, do-not-resuscitate orders, and other written materials expressing treatment preferences. Now, a group of prominent experts is saying those efforts should stop because they haven’t improved end-of-life care. “Decades of research demonstrate advance care planning […]
Editor’s note: This is the latest installment in what has become a series of posts about partnerships that medical practices have formed to provide patients and families with additional services. This trend reflects increased awareness that factors outside traditional medical services can have a profound and ongoing effect on health. Practices that engage effectively with […]
Editor’s note: The relevance of superficial, temporary, random social connections to patient engagement may at first seem like a stretch. But all it took was a glance at the title and subtitle to trigger memories of visiting my father in assisted living, rehab and memory care communities. Taking the time and care to exchange greetings […]
Editor’s Note: This story, first published by Kaiser Health News, describes adjustments made by patients and clinicians at River Bend Family Medicine, a physician’s office in Maryland, during the coronavirus outbreak. It demonstrates both the advantages of telemedicine and the irreplaceable role of personal relationships in medicine. Patients would often stop by River Bend Family […]
“Honestly, I think we’re all trying to figure out how worried to be.” – Dr. William Dale, quoted by Judith Graham Editor’s note: From washing canned goods to disinfecting our cellphones, leaving packing boxes on the porch, self-quarantining and wondering if all 60 year olds are at “high risk,” the novel coronavirus has us all […]
Home dialysis for older adults will become more common in the years ahead, experts predict — but not without overcoming significant challenges. By 2025, the Trump administration wants 80% of people newly diagnosed with kidney failure to receive home dialysis or kidney transplants, according to an executive order issued in July. Currently, more than 85% […]