RSU Tops National Average for Rehab Outcomes

At Hebrew Rehabilitation Center's Recuperative Services Unit (RSU) in Roslindale, we use a quality measurement tool to verify and compare our patient outcomes to other facilities across the nation. The Functional Independence Measure (FIM) is commonly considered the most useful tool for assessing patient progress during inpatient rehabilitation, measuring 18 functions of daily living.

You should know:

• More than 50 percent of our patients are admitted with:
  
  
  • Complex medical diagnoses, including cancer, respiratory disorders, and
    complications after surgery
    
    
  • Cardiac disease
    
    
  • Multiple fractures
    
    
• In approximately 19 days, three out of four of our patients return home.
  
  
• Mobility and transfer skills, as well as the ability to provide self-care, improve better than the national average.
  
  
• Gains in speech and swallowing skills far exceed the national average.
  
  
• The ability to walk, climb stairs, and mobilize exceed the national average.
  

The RSU is accredited by the Commission on Accreditation of Rehabilitation Facilities (CARF) and recently received a deficiency-free rating from the Massachusetts Department of Public Health.

Hebrew SeniorLife Geriatrican Named Full Professor at Harvard Medical School

Susan L. Mitchell, M.D., M.P.H., a geriatrician at Hebrew SeniorLife and senior scientist at the Institute for Aging Research, has been named a full professor of medicine at Harvard Medical School (HMS), becoming only the fifth geriatrician to attain this prestigious faculty rank at the school.

Of the five geriatricians named full professors at HMS, four are currently faculty members at the Institute for Aging Research of Hebrew SeniorLife.

Hebrew SeniorLife Offers Private Care to Residents of Brookline

Hebrew SeniorLife (HSL) recently launched a new service for Brookline residents: HSL Private Care at Center Communities of Brookline (CCB).

One of the goals of HSL Private Care at CCB is to preserve and foster residents' ability to maintain independence and fulfill their desire to age in place.

HSL Private Care at CCB is a private-duty, non-medical home care program that provides services 24/7. To ensure the most appropriate and highest quality care, HSL Private Care at CCB works as a team with family, discharge planners, and other elder service professionals.

Services include:

For further information contact:
Jennifer Stephenson, Manager of Private Care
Center Communities of Brookline
100 Centre Street
Brookline, MA 02446
617-363-8032
jenniferstephenson@hsl.harvard.edu

Resources Available

Hebrew SeniorLife offers two resources that can help seniors and their families make sound decisions about their health care.

• Professionals can make HSL's new Long-term Care Planning Guide available to their clients who are considering long-term care for themselves or a loved one. The guide is designed to take families through a thoughtful process and contains helpful ways to discuss sensitive issues around long-term care needs. For free copies, please call 1-877-822-4722 or visit www.guidetolongtermcare.org.
  
  
• HSL's Fifty Tips for Healthy Aging are based on the expertise of our doctors, therapists, social workers, and other caregivers and are offered to help people age more healthfully. We have taken what we've learned through our research – and that of others – and put that knowledge into recommendations that are easily used in everyday life. Our goal is to help people live healthier, more active, and more fulfilling lives. For a free copy, please call 617-363-8283.
  
  

Upcoming Events

April 13, 2011, 12:00 p.m. - 1:00 p.m. – Research in Progress Seminar sponsored by HSL's Institute for Aging Research: "Aging at the extremes: Studies in centenarian longevity and accelerated aging in HIV infection," presented by Monty A. Montano, Ph.D., Boston University Medical Campus at Hebrew Rehabilitation Center, Borkum Auditorium, Boston. Call 617-971-5325 for more information.

April 14, 2011, 8:30 a.m. - 10:00 a.m. – Part 2 of HSL's End-of-Life Care series: "Working Effectively with Challenging Families at the End of Life" at NewBridge on the Charles, Carl J. and Ruth Shapiro Community Center, Dedham. RSVP online, email Mina Kuraoka or call her at 617-363-8766 for more information. RSVP online at www.hebrewseniorlife.org/endoflifeseries.

May 11, 2011 – HSL staff will be presenting "Multigenerational Programming in Memory Support Assisted Living" at the Alzheimer's Association Conference, "The Map Through the Maze" at the Royal Plaza Hotel in Marlborough. For more information, visit www.alzmass.org/maze11/index.asp.

May 12, 2011, 8:30 a.m. - 10:00 a.m. – Part 3 of HSL's End-of-Life Care series: "Who's In Charge: Defining Harmful and Ineffective Treatment" at Hebrew Rehabilitation Center, Cable Synagogue, Boston. RSVP online, email Mina Kuraoka or call her at 617-363-8766 for more information. RSVP online at www.hebrewseniorlife.org/endoflifeseries.

June 14, 2011 – Mark your calendar for Hebrew SeniorLife's annual Cabaret. This year's theme is "Carnivale in Venice." Watch your inbox for our save the date card.