Naïveté solves all LTC-related problems, studies do not show
By
Gary Tetz
Jun 03, 2016
Next to a cozy blanket or mug of cocoa, nothing quite soothes the soul like the calming embrace of pure naiveté. Perhaps that’s why more than one-third of Americans apparently believe Medicare will...
Paul Revere rides again
By
Gary Tetz
Nov 12, 2020
Where is Paul Revere when we need him? It seems like he should be racing through every hamlet and long-term care facility in America shrieking, “The vaccine is coming! The vaccine is coming!”
Halloween — the ultimate staffing solution
By
Gary Tetz
Nov 01, 2018
Strolling with an adorable dog through my neighborhood at twilight last night was an eerie journey into the macabre. The neighbors’ yards have been scary for weeks — there’s an election going on,...
What must that be like?
By
Gary Tetz
Apr 04, 2019
“What must that be like?” It can serve as a mantra, helping us view each interaction, no matter how painful, with acceptance and resilience.
Go ahead, TSA. Make my day
By
Gary Tetz
Nov 05, 2015
“That TSA agent made my day.” You don’t hear that sentence very often. On any list of unlikely utterances, it’s right up there with “Those Republicans and Democrats really...
In a death-phobic nation, long-term care embraces the ultimate privilege
By
Gary Tetz
Apr 21, 2022
Some in long-term care wake up thinking of pay cuts, business survival or reform. Me? I awoke this morning thinking about cremation.
Escape from the blinking light
By
Gary Tetz
Jul 26, 2018
It sits on the facility reception desk, blinking bright purple as I approach, but somehow escapes my initial notice. After all, I have so very many things — urgent things, funny things, deeply profound...
The blues drummers of long-term care
By
Gary Tetz
Jan 26, 2017
After witnessing a musical performance that left me amazed and stupefied, I went home with a flash of insight and a long-sought analogy — facility administrators are the blues drummers of long-term care.
Surefire warning signs that you’re living a long-term care nightmare
By
Gary Tetz
May 03, 2018
Have you ever had a long-term care nightmare? Not the waking kind, where some horrifying facility crisis leaves you muttering, “This is a nightmare.” I’m talking about a real one, the...
Poor, poor pitiful me
By
Gary Tetz
Sep 06, 2018
When I ask rehab patients about the precipitating event that brought them to therapy, they can at least answer the question. Maybe they tripped on a zucchini vine, slipped on a grape in the grocery store...