Business Strategies

Disaster communication: A tale of two mothers-in-law

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Here’s my latest article on McKnight’s Long-Term Care News: Disaster communication: A tale of two mothers-in-law Both of my mothers-in-law live in long-term care communities in Florida. (I’ll keep the backstory about having two MILs a mystery.) One MIL lives in a place that was excellent about how they communicated with family members before, during … Read more

You and your staff are very different: Use it to your advantage

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Here’s my latest article on McKnight’s Long-Term Care News: You and your staff are very different: Use it to your advantage I often speak with healthcare groups, giving psychological insights about a variety of issues within long-term care. Sometimes I address a C-suite audience; other times I train direct care staff. I noticed during the … Read more

ElderTech: Ideas from a tech exhibit

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Here’s my latest article on McKnight’s Long-Term Care News: ElderTech: Ideas from a tech exhibit I was at the nursing station the other day when some unusual cracking noises caused me to look up from my documentation. A very old, petite lady was sitting in her wheelchair popping bubble wrap. She wore th e same … Read more

Why (culture) change is so hard and what to do about it

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Here’s my latest article on McKnight’s Long-Term Care News: Why (culture) change is so hard and what to do about it The team huddled around the nursing station talking in panicked whispers after the management meeting ended. “How do they expect us to do that?” a young nurse wondered. “Yeah,” an aide replied, “we’re stretched … Read more

Promote your connections

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Here’s my latest article on McKnight’s Long-Term Care News: Promote your connections  One of the things that most brightens my workday is when I see long-term care residents hanging out together. In particular, I’ve noticed two ladies who attend activities in tandem wearing dresses with hats and costume jewelry, a threesome of confused residents who … Read more

The violent workplace

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Here’s my latest article on McKnight’s Long-Term Care News: The violent workplace Last week a nurse, aide and police chief were killed at an Ohio nursing home, along with the gunman, who died of a self-inflicted gunshot wound. While it’s impossible to prevent all tragic events, especially those involving an armed assailant entering the building … Read more

Opening the door for ombudsmen

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Here’s my latest article on McKnight’s Long-Term Care News: Opening the door for ombudsmen Last week during a talk at the Pennsylvania Department of Aging 2017 Ombudsman Conference, audience members told me that they’re having difficulty speaking to administrators and other senior staff when they visit the facilities. In fact, some people reported that the … Read more

Insights on family-friendly care from Dr. El — the daughter of a new resident

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Here’s my latest article on McKnight’s Long-Term Care News: Insights on family-friendly care from Dr. El — the daughter of a new resident Due to a series of unfortunate events, both of my previously independent parents were recently injured over the course of five weeks. In the past, I’d been the granddaughter, the niece and … Read more

On power, teamwork and communication

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Here’s my latest article on McKnight’s Long-Term Care News: On power, teamwork and communication Having enough of it at work, I tend to avoid drama in my entertainment choices unless it involves aliens or post-apocalyptic nonsense. My family and I are currently enjoying the creative spectacle of Project Runway “Teams” version from a few seasons … Read more

Correcting long-term care’s image problem

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Here’s my latest article on McKnight’s Long-Term Care News: Correcting long-term care’s image problem Long-term care has an image problem. For a variety of reasons, we aren’t associated with good times. There are things we can do to turn this around, though, starting with the perceptions of our residents. Most people who come to live … Read more