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JEFF GOLL
TRIANGLE ELDER CARE NAVIGATION
Support Services for Seniors and Their Families
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Aging Well Digest
Useful, interesting, and informative news for seniors and their families www.triangleeldercarenavigation.com
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Dear Friends:
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Welcome to the July 2011 edition of the Aging Well Digest. I trust you will be able to find something useful, informative, or interesting in this issue. I will continue to be on the lookout for the best and most helpful information on issues related to aging that I find each month and I encourage you to contact me if there are topics you would especially like me to investigate.
In this issue there are links to articles on; 1) the team approach to infection prevention in the hospital, 2) the long term financial costs of care-giving, 3) preventing frequent re-hospitalizations , and 4) a comparison of negotiated drug prices between the VA and Medicare.
Of course I am here to work with you if you need more personalized help with any of these issues or other aging related concerns. Your first consultation is free in order for us to determine if and how I can help you.
Thanks, Jeff
triangleeldercarenavigation.com
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Hospital Safety Video
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 This training video, PARTNERING TO HEAL, was produced for hospitals to educate medical professionals on the importance of diligent infection control. According to the Centers for Disease Control and Infection, just under 100,000 people die each year from hospital acquired infection. Between 4 and 5% of patients entering a hospital will acquire a bacterial infection. While this video was developed for hospital employees, it offers valuable insight to patients and their families as well in their efforts to have a safe hospital stay. It is a dramatic and sobering story. View the Hospital Safety Video (hit start to begin playing)
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The Cost of Care Giving
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Many of you are already familiar with the fact that caring for an aging parent can take a toll on one's health, emotional equilibrium, and personal relationships. The financial cost of caring for a parent in terms of lost wages, career advancement, and social security payments is less well recognized. A study by MetLife and New York Medical College's Center for Long Term Care Research and Policy tries to quantify that financial loss. The chart below shows the impact on lost wages for the average man or woman caring for an older adult. According to this same study approximately 17% of men and 28% of women currently care, either physically or financially, for a parent. The financial toll can be enormous and it echos on through the retirement of the care-taking child.
Read more here and here.
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The Revolving Door :
From Hospital to Skilled Nursing Home and back.
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A team at HebrewLife in Boston has developed a new model of care that has shown promise in reducing these re-admissions. It started by learning more about the kind of care patients and their families want, increasing the use of palliative care teams, and improving communication between hospitals and long term care facilities.
Read the Full Article:
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Drug Price Comparison:
Comparing VA Costs to Medical Advantage Plan Costs
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If you are wondering why Medicare Part D (prescription drug plan) costs are rising so quickly you may want to read this analysis comparing the cost of VA drugs and the exact same drugs through Medicare. The study indicates that on average, VA drugs cost 48% less than Medicare negotiated drugs. In nearly every instance, the cost is less for the VA than Medicare, due primarily to negotiation restrictions that apply to the latter program.
Read the Full Story Here:
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Services Offered
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-Housing Transitions / Coaching
-Medicare Counseling
(all Medicare Counseling is free of charge)
-Daily Money Management
-Executor Tasks
- Family Communication
-Education and Patient Rights
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Archived articles by issue and topic
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- Health insurance claim denial
- Hospital shift change - The most frequent medical error - Senior fraud schemes
- "Observation only" hospital stays
- Sleep issues in assisted living facilities
- Family mediation and senior issues
- Creativity and aging
- Sex, condoms, seniors
- Senior friendly products
- Common diagnostic tests
- Global dementia projections
- Beers list criteria
- Pre-authorization delays
- NC SHIIP
- Senior Pharmassist
- Poor nursing home pay
- The CLASS act
- Falls and Fractures
- Creative advantages
- Are we safer now? (hospital safety)
- Trauma center bias
- Nursing home practices
- Revocable Trust review
- Hospital discharge
- Home health agencies
- Geriatric MD shortage
- Bereavement counseling
- Hospital Re-admissions
- For-Profit Nursing Care Homes
- Reverse Mortgage Councilors
- Home Safety Checklist
- Health Care Literacy
- National Patient Advocacy Foundation
- 10 Ways you Get Smarter as You Age
- Driving Errors and Aging Drivers
Issue # 10
Most Drugs Don't Work for Most Patients
Six Steps to a Successful LTC Transition
Falls and Their Prevention
The Need for "At Home" Services
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While I hope that this digest will contain something useful, interesting, or informative for you in every monthly edition, I don't want to burden the inbox of anyone who would prefer not to receive it. If you would rather not get this email digest again, please just click on unsubscribe at the bottom of this page.
Alternatively, if you would like to send this digest to someone, just click on Forward email at the bottom of the page. Also, let me know if there are any topics you would like to have me include in the Aging Well Digest.
I intend to provide coverage on a wide range of senior issues so that even if you are a professional in the field of aging, I hope you can learn something in every issue.
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"It takes a long time to become young."
Pablo Picasso
"With mirth and laughter let old wrinkles come."
Merchant of Venice 1.1.80
photography by Jeff Goll |
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