Dr. John Huth

'I've personally visited many long-term care facilities...Residents are lonely, feel abandoned, and like worthless burdens on society.'

Today, as we all know, the US is aging and our family structures no longer accommodate the caring of elderly parents or grandparents at home. 

With the inexorable increase in the number of elderly, both as a percentage of the population and in absolute numbers, and the rise in chronic diseases, researchers have hypothesized that Medicare and Medicaid will be bankrupt in a few years. One physician told me that if no cure if found for Alzheimer's, it alone could bankrupt the long-term care system.

There are approximately 200 long-term care facilities -- nursing homes, assisted living centers, etc.-- within about 25 miles of the nation's capitol.  I’ve personally visited many of them. One invariably finds many residents who are lonely, feel abandoned and have come to regard themselves as simply worthless burdens on society. As one psychologist has put it, “They need to shift their attention from themselves to the outside world.” 

I do not accept the inevitability of such a fate, and have a three part plan to attempt to improve the quality of life for seniors cocooned in such facilities. I outline the plan in my next blog.

Was Long-term Care Neglected in Dartmouth Study?

Dartmouth/Health Affairs researchers have released a study dealing with variations in Hospital Care and Outcomes for the Chronically Ill.

What I found curious is that despite the fact that more than half of all health care beds are in long-term care facilies, no mentioin was made of them.