It was around Easter time one year when the following exchange took place: “Hand me my peeps,” Isabelle commanded from her geri-recliner. She pointed to something behind me. I turned and saw a package of yellow baby-chick-shaped marshmallows on her tray table. The word “Peeps” was written on the front of the box. I handed … Read more
I once heard a family member complain at the nursing station about a parent being on antidepressants. “She can’t remember a thing. How can she be depressed?” The nurse replied, “I know.” To clear up this common misunderstanding, Marc E. Agronin, MD, author of How We Age: A Doctor’s Journey into the Heart of Growing … Read more
I was a dork in high school. Oh sure, some of the people who knew me best realized I wasn’t quite as dorky as I appeared on the outside, but to most of the kids in my class I was not a sought-after individual. Residents in geri-recliners are the dorks of the nursing home. For … Read more
THE PROBLEM: Because of their personality styles, some nursing home residents don’t ask for their PRN (as needed, or “per request of the nurse”) pain medication when they need it. The reasons for this vary: Psychologist, finding the resident in pain: “Why didn’t you tell the nurse?” Passive: “I didn’t want to bother her.” Macho: … Read more
A recent article in McKnight’s Long-Term Care News (September 2010) caught my eye: Attitude appears to affect healing process for wounds. The article cites a research study in the August issue of Dermatologia that found patients who were less depressed had wounds that healed faster. It also found slower healing in those who had “confrontational” … Read more
After my session with Evelyn, who painstakingly typed her thoughts on her computer, I stopped at the nursing station to relay her message. “Can you tell me which aide works with Evelyn Booth in 302?” I asked the nurse. “Ms. Johnson,” she said, and pointed to a Certified Nursing Assistant (CNA) in a light blue … Read more
Complaint #5: There’s no one here for me to talk to. Untrue! But we need to prove it to residents by helping them connect with their peers. The false impression they’re alone in the nursing home is based on several factors: New residents carry the prejudices of most people outside the nursing home, believing everyone … Read more
Complaint #4: Nighttime disturbances The main culprits: TVs blaring into the wee hours Agitated neighbors Loud conversations between workers Steps toward improved sleep hygiene: Implement a TV curfew and require night owl viewers to use headsets past the curfew Encourage night shift workers to report resident sleeplessness so sleep/wake cycle disturbances can be reversed and … Read more
In 1967, psychiatrists Holmes and Rahe created a scale that measures the stress levels of various life events, and found that people with stress levels over 300 are at high risk of illness. I’ve always considered a nursing home stay to be a very stressful experience, but applying the scale was illuminating. I took the … Read more
Complaint #3: The Patient Lift The patient lift is a machine used to transfer a resident from their bed to their wheelchair and back. No resident I’ve met likes using one, and I suspect the reason is the combination of loss of control, the frightening feeling of being suspended, helpless, in midair, and a lack … Read more