No one knows better than long-term care folks the unfortunate toll cognitive decline can take. So if you’re like me, and I wouldn’t wish that on anyone, you’re always interested in ways to keep your...
The scourge of screen time
By
Gary Tetz
Jan 11, 2024
Usually, we can safely rely on seniors to set an inspiring example for younger folks to emulate. They unselfishly share the wisdom acquired with age to help successive generations overcome current challenges,...
It’s good for you, I swear
By
Gary Tetz
Feb 09, 2023
What did you say when you found out your director of nursing had quit? Or that a new COVID-19 variant was knocking at your facility door? Or when CMS announced that survey citations will appear on Care...
It’s painful — and there’s no end in sight
By
Jacqueline Vance, RNC, CDONA/LTC
Sep 12, 2023
So here I am in Florida. I started having pain in my upper right gastric region. Over the course of three days it was getting really intense. Could my primary care provider squeeze me in? Nope. So...
End of the ‘youdate’
By
Gary Tetz
May 04, 2023
The departments of Health and Human Services and Homeland Security have announced their intention to “start the process to end” the COVID-19 vaccination mandate. Now, before we get too excited,...
Don’t spring a wellness leak
By
Gary Tetz
May 18, 2023
In a valiant attempt to achieve maximum personal and professional potential, and in support of her difficult job recruiting long-term care staff, a colleague of mine chooses one word every year on which...
New tech for not-so-new people
By
Gary Tetz
Aug 24, 2023
Do you yell at your Apple Watch? I do. All the time. Out loud. This happens most often while hiking, when I’ve dutifully set the device to track my activity. I’ll be laboring up the trail, trekking...
Better together
By
Gary Tetz
Nov 30, 2023
An hour or so before the siren in our long-term care factory blasted the official start of the work day, and feeling a heightened level of job-related stress, I strolled into a colleague’s office uninvited...
A beautiful noise
By
Gary Tetz
Apr 04, 2024
My first reaction was paralyzing shock, followed by bewildering bafflement, quickly replaced with intense feelings of personal revulsion. I must have stumbled across something truly horrible, right?...
Wine on a dog
By
Gary Tetz
Mar 23, 2023
You work in a difficult profession — long-term care. We all know that. I’m not even going to list the myriad challenges again, for fear of manifesting them into permanence. And yet, if your existence...