Reduce Use of Antipsychotic Drugs in Elderly with Dementia
HBNS STORY | March 28, 2013
Most older adults with dementia can successfully be taken off antipsychotic medications, which have negative side effects and increase the risk of death, finds a new evidence review from The Cochrane Library.

Palliative Care: Easier Said than Done
PREPARED PATIENT BLOG | February 1, 2013 | Conversation Continues
If we want our end-of-life wishes to be properly carried out, we have to prepare in advance and our clinicians must also be prepared to help us realize them.

Choosing a Nursing Home
PREPARED PATIENT RESOURCE | Plan For Your End of Life Care
Choosing a nursing home for a family member can be a challenging and exhausting process.

What Is Hospice?
PREPARED PATIENT RESOURCE | Plan For Your End of Life Care
Learn more about this important service that provides care and comfort in the months, weeks and days before death.

Education Can Reduce Use of Antipsychotic Drugs in Nursing Home Patients
HBNS STORY | December 13, 2012
A new review in The Cochrane Library finds that education and social support for staff and caregivers can reduce the use of antipsychotic drugs in nursing home patients with dementia.

Caregivers Neglect Their Own Health, Increasing Heart Disease Risk
HBNS STORY | November 6, 2012
People acting as caregivers for family members with cardiovascular disease may inadvertently increase their own risk for heart disease by neglecting their own health, according to a new study in the American Journal of Health Promotion.

Our Caregiver Reality Check
PREPARED PATIENT BLOG | November 1, 2012 | Amy Berman
Who cares for our ill, our aged, our vulnerable? Is it physicians, nurses, social workers, aides? Or is it perhaps another member of the health care team? The largest portion of health care is delivered by families.

Comparative Effectiveness Research: Gail Hunt of the National Alliance for Caregiving
PREPARED PATIENT BLOG | September 26, 2012 | Gail Hunt
Gail Hunt is president and CEO of the National Alliance for Caregiving and serves on the Board of Commissioners for the Center for Aging Service Technology, the Governing Board of the Patient-Centered Outcomes Research Institute (PCORI), and the CFAH Board of Trustees. This is the third in a series of interviews between CFAH President and Founder Jessie Gruman and patient and consumer group leaders about their experiences with and attitudes toward comparative effectiveness research.

Assisted Living Options Grow, Nursing Home Occupancy Declines
HBNS STORY | May 23, 2012
A new study finds an association between an increase in assisted living options, which provide older adults with an array of services such as help with everyday tasks in homelike settings, and a decline in nursing home occupancy. This shift in delivery of care has both positive and negative implications for seniors.

The Costs of Long-Term Care
PREPARED PATIENT BLOG | November 14, 2011 | Conversation Continues
Does long-term care insurance have a future? In this roundup, Nancy Folbre, Don Taylor, and Trudy Lieberman offer their forecasts and perspectives on its costs.

After an Emergency, Comprehensive Care Is Best for Older Patients
HBNS STORY | July 21, 2011
Older people rushed to the emergency room are more likely to be living at home up to a year later if they receive a comprehensive and age-appropriate evaluation during their hospital stay.

Few Studies Delve Into Hospice Care in Nursing Homes
HBNS STORY | March 17, 2011
A new evidence review finds scant high-quality research on the best ways for nursing homes hoping to ease the suffering of older patients through hospice care. Still, the studies suggest that strategies such as teams of specialists and partnerships between nursing homes and hospice care services are essential.

Nursing Homes Can Reap Financial Gain From Good Report Cards
HBNS STORY | October 29, 2010
Nursing homes that improve their quality of care – and thereby score high on public report cards – might see financial gains.