There’s a lot of talk about how to handle transitioning your loved one from home to assisted living—but what about from assisted living to long-term care? After all, it’s a fairly common transition that many seniors eventually face. As Paula Span writes in an article on assisted living for the New York Times, “however suitable assisted living … Continue reading Transitioning from Assisted Living to Long-Term Care
Exercise is vital at all ages. However, for seniors, it often comes with unique challenges. Those challenges can stand in the way of seniors maintaining a healthy level of physical fitness. But there is help available. Long-term care communities are designed to make it easy for seniors to safely engage in physical activities—here’s how. Fitness … Continue reading How Long-Term Care Can Help with Physical Fitness
Everyone has a different pain threshold so they react differently. Doctors sometimes have a tough time finding the right balance between too much pain medication and too little. And with addiction rates nationwide on the rise, no physician wants to put a patient at risk. While it will be very important for you to work … Continue reading Importance of Pain Management
Dear Dori: My father recently moved to an assisted living community. After my mom passed away, he was isolated and lonely. He was even beginning to develop new health problems, most notably diabetes. While I know these are big life changes to adjust to all at once, I really miss seeing him smile and hearing him laugh. … Continue reading Laughter – The Best Medicine
Dear Dr. Haas, After a recent heart attack, my husband was told he needs to go for cardiac rehab. I’ve never heard of such a thing. Why does he need rehabilitation for his heart? Sincerely, Jean Why Does My Husband Need Cardiac Rehab? Dear Jean, In the past, there was no such thing as a … Continue reading Why does my husband need cardiac rehab?
Dear Crystal: My parents have both had some serious health issues in recent years. I think in all likelihood, we will need to find a nursing home for them to move to in the very near future. My father is very unsteady on his feet and is falling quite often. Despite telling my mom over … Continue reading What is Quality Income Trust?
Dear Greg: The time has come for my brother and me to talk with our father about moving to an assisted living community here in the Columbus area. From falls to car accidents to poor nutrition, he just isn’t safe living in his old house any longer. We just know it is time to make … Continue reading Convincing Mom or Dad That It’s Time
Dear Lura: My mother passed away unexpectedly almost three years ago. Since that time, my dad has been pretty down. In the last few months, however, he’s started talking about dating again. I have to admit, I’m not wild about the idea. It’s hard to imagine him with someone other than my mom. They were … Continue reading Intimacy & Aging
When a central Ohio senior you love is hospitalized for an illness or injury or planning for an upcoming surgery, understanding what Medicare will cover for rehab to help with their recovery is important. Older adults and adult children may not have had any experience using their Medicare benefit beyond physician appointments and outpatient testing until now. … Continue reading Making Sense of the Medicare Rehab Benefit
Dear John: My parents have both had fairly serious health problems the last few months. Until then both of them were active and independent. To be honest, we never really discussed how we would handle healthcare decisions and what their wishes for the future might be. My brother and I thought, since our parents were … Continue reading Making Healthcare Decisions for Your Parent
