Good Medical Care for the Elderly and How to Get It

Pandemic swine flu news

Several articles in the New England Journal of Medicine concerning Pandemic Influenza A (H1N1) Virus (”Swine Flu”) are offered free of charge to all. One of those articles indicates that early results on testing show that one dose of the vaccine may be sufficient for most groups. The NEJM calls the preliminary studies “reassuring.”

Choosing a nursing home - A checklist

Jane E. Brody, columnist for the Health section of the New York Times wrote about how to choose a good nursing home on October 5, 2009. She said:

I have often said in no uncertain terms that I never want to be placed in a nursing home unless it is to recover from a treatable illness or injury. I have heard so many horror stories of neglect, mistreatment, under-staffing, poorly trained attendants and even corruption. I shared the common perception of a nursing home as the last place you go before you die, and this was not how I wanted to spend my last days.

Brody was then invited to tour one of the largest nursing homes in Florida. She came away with an entirely different perspective.

Living wills & "death panels"

In a recent blog post, "Dollars & Health: Living wills, death panels and my dad," Andy Miller advocates for use of "living wills." These documents are also called "advance directives" or "patient advocacy designations." This topic is timely given the growing health care reform debate and concerns about so-called "death panels."

Miller's father was 88 and had multiple health problems when he was hospitalized. He did not, however, have a terminal illness. Miller and his brothers soon discovered that they would need to make decisions about their father's health care.