News
ALFA Takes Feds to Task for Excluding Industry’s Role in Fighting Alzheimer’s
Posted: Jan 27, 2012
In a recent letter to the Department of Health and Human Services, the Assisted Living Federation of America (ALFA) voiced its dismay with the federal government’s exclusion of the industry in its proposed taskforce plan to fight Alzheimer’s disease.
In the letter, the ALFA cited research that found, as of 2009, one-third all of the residents residing in assisted living communities have a diagnosis of Alzheimer's or a related dementia. The organization also pointed to Centers for Disease Control and Prevention data that shows 42 percent of residents living in residential care facilities have Alzheimer's, McKnight's Long Term Care News reported. ALFA also asked the government task force to refer to those with the disease as “residents” or “individuals,” not “patients,” according to the article.
Pressure Ulcer Prevention and Management Play Vital Role in Risk Management
Posted: Jan 18, 2012
A woman in Pennsylvania alleges her brother’s death was caused by neglect that led to him being covered from head-to-toe in bedsores. While the facility that was allegedly neglectful was a prison, this incident is a sobering reminder of the importance of pressure ulcer prevention and management in risk management programs at long term care and other healthcare facilities. Dennis Austin, who suffered from lung and bone cancer, was bedridden after undergoing hip surgery. His sister, Paula Thomas, alleges that while her brother was supposed to receive physical therapy twice a week, “the therapist visited only once, and instructed other prisoners how to take care of Austin themselves,” according to the article in the Daily Mail.
Minnesota Nursing Home Charged in Weight Loss–related Death of Resident
Posted: Jan 13, 2012
Neglect charges stemming from the death of a Minnesota man whose weight loss and nutrition were not monitored for two months spotlights how vital it is for facilities to properly track their residents’ nutritional needs, including fluid intake.
The Star Tribune reported that Golden Living Center in Hopkins has been charged by state health officials in the case of a man who died in March 2011 after being transferred from the facility to the hospital. The article stated that state investigators cited a “breakdown in facility systems” in their decision to charge the facility, adding that the number of staff members involved in providing care to the man was also a factor. Among the “breakdowns” investigators noted were failure to monitor the man’s weight, failure to evaluate his intake of solids and fluids, and failure to notify the man’s physician and other medical staff about the weight loss.
Missing Resident a Reminder of Importance of Elopement Prevention
Posted: Jan 6, 2012
The search continues for a resident who suffers from Alzheimer’s disease who wandered away from an assisted living facility in Washington State. This incident is a sad reminder that facilities need to have strong, formalized elopement prevention programs in place. The Wenatchee World reported that Peter B. Greene, 79, was last seen in his room at Apple Spring Adult living on January 2 and had yet to be found two days later.