Kindred bid shows that not all the fishing will be taking place upstream
By
John O'Connor
May 19, 2014
Some might wonder why a skilled care giant like Kindred Healthcare would launch a $533 million hostile takeover bid of home-health provider Gentiva. The real question should be why such efforts haven’t...
These replies worth a million
By
John O'Connor
Jan 20, 2012
Life Care Centers of America regularly publishes a magazine called LifeMatters. The publication never fails to inform and inspire. One of my favorite pages is called “Resident Voices.” Here,...
And you thought long-term care operators lived in silos?
By
John O'Connor
Apr 20, 2012
Our Founding Fathers were wise to separate our government’s executive, legislative and judicial branches. As we’ve seen all too often, concentrated power leads to disastrous results.
Fire, rain and the elephant on the 40th floor
By
John O'Connor
Nov 27, 2017
You never know when freak storms or unexpected fires might strike. But you can be sure that if and when one does, angry people will line up to demand that you be held more accountable.
A Biden damaging proposal that’s barely getting noticed
By
John O'Connor
Mar 13, 2022
President Biden sure gave nursing homes the stink eye during his State of the Union address. Care quality is down while charges are up, he alleged. He added that Medicare rules need to be tightened
A new way to save face
By
John O'Connor
Mar 01, 2013
When is face-to-face contact with a resident not such a good idea? When an avatar can do better. That’s just one lesson researchers like Timothy Bickmore, Ph.D., are proving. Bickmore is an assistant...
Want to know what ‘secrets’ you’ll soon be sharing? Buy a car
By
John O'Connor
Aug 01, 2014
As never before, data collection and analytics have become part and parcel of long-term care. Even midsize and smaller operators are sifting through amazingly granular information to document strengths,...
Reducing seniors’ drug use, one iPod at a time
By
John O'Connor
Mar 28, 2014
For reasons that are understandable yet hard to countenance, antipsychotic drugs are widely used in nursing homes. Too often over-used, according to government statistics. But it’s beginning to look...
The real labor problem
By
John O'Connor
May 01, 2013
Long-term care operators are understandably giddy about the sudden prospect of immigration reform. Such a change holds the promise of a larger labor pool at a time of rampant worker shortages. Add in the...
Card-check battle leaves all combatants worse for wear
By
John O'Connor
May 01, 2009
The apparent demise of a bill intended to make it easier for unions to form has left nearly all sides bloodied from battle.