| Study's reaction is mixed Care providers worry over state's budget ...
MILLERSBURG -- A just-released study that found the state could save millions of dollars by paying more money to home health providers and less to nursing homes is drawing predictably mixed reactions. "A nursing facility is going to say, 'Hey, we need this money, and home health cannot take care of these people like we can.' And there are cases where that is true. But if you walk into any nursing home, you will see people who just basically need assistance with medications, but maybe for whatever reason the family is not able to do that," said Leslee Mast, superintendent at the Holmes County Home. Mast brings a unique perspective to the study by the Ohio Council for Home Care, a home health advocacy group. She's in the business of long-term care. But because the Holmes County Home is not state certified, her facility does not receive state funding.
Gunther legislation would save nursing home beds in Sullivan County
Albany -- Assemblywoman Aileen Gunther of Forestburgh has introduced legislation which seeks to prevent the Berger Commission from cutting back 40 beds at the Achieve Rehabilitation & Nursing Facility in Sullivan County. Gunther, a former nurse and chair of the Assembly Subcommittee on Women’s Health, called the legislation a necessary step to maintain quality health care for the region. "We know from the state’s analysis that Sullivan County is short 137 nursing home beds," Gunther said. "Increasing the shortage by another 40 beds will further stress county services and residents." Couple that with the growth in the county and that will mean more residents, said Gunther. "In Sullivan County, we are the fastest growing county in New York State, so we are going to see an increase in population, not a decrease in population, so probably in the future, we will need more beds." The Senior Legislative Action Committee of Sullivan County concurs with Gunther.
Peninsula's first Jewish senior center in pipeline
The first Jewish-sponsored senior living center on the Peninsula began lining up future residents in Palo Alto earlier this year. Though construction of the "899 Charleston" center, actually located at 901 San Antonio Road, will not begin until this summer, the center began taking reservations for its 193 apartments Jan 2. The 8.6-acre Taube-Koret Campus for Jewish Life, which will include both 899 Charleston and a new Oshman Family Jewish Community Center, will cost $635 million and likely take two years to build, spokeswoman Stephanie Rees said. The collaborative project is being funded and developed by the Jewish Home of San Francisco, Palo Alto's Jewish Community Center, the Jewish Community Federation of San Francisco, local counties and by individual donations. "To build a Jewish community center on the same campus (as the senior center) is unique to the industry.
Creating a caregiving ministry
Several years ago, a simple question by a fellow church member led MTSU professor James E. Taylor on a quest to help other family caregivers. "I interviewed some at my church, Greater Bethel African Methodist Episcopal (A.M.E.) Church in Nashville," said Taylor, a social work professor at MTSU. "They asked me, 'Why don't we have a family caregivers ministry?'" .
For seniors, these are 'Friends' in deed
Jumping into and out of a shower is no big deal to a teenager or even a middle-aged person, but it's difficult for many seniors - they often require hand rails to ease in and out. In recent decades, home safety equipment has been a big selling point in retirement communities and assisted living facilities.
But, many seniors are unwilling - or financially unable - to leave their homes. Installing the equipment they need can sometimes exceed their financial ability to pay, or they may not have adequate insurance or Medicare coverage.
Safety equipment can include bathtub safety grips, tub mats, bathtub benches sized to fit a specific tub, smoke detectors, elevated toilet seats, toilet safety frames, high visibility house numbers - making it easier for fire and medical personnel to find an address in the dark - hand held shower heads and jar vises.
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