Well, here we go again. Within long-term care especially, the shock and discouragement of the delta variant and the havoc it’s wreaking on those we care for and work beside is pervasive and demoralizing. ...
Standing up for the camel — and your staff
By
Gary Tetz
Jun 01, 2017
Even the best managers can sometimes inadvertently make jobs more difficult than they have to be, often just out of habit or inattention.
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...
Five-Star profanity
By
Gary Tetz
Nov 19, 2015
“Well, gosh. Just my luck.” I don’t know for certain that’s how the Pennsylvania nursing home housekeeper responded after being fired for using bad language at work. But regardless,...
He came back
By
Gary Tetz
Jun 04, 2015
There’s a legendary photo of General Douglas MacArthur wading ashore upon a heroic return to the Philippines in World War II, and that’s what popped into my mind recently when I saw an elderly...
Biometric preening — dying is not good business
By
Gary Tetz
Nov 24, 2014
For success in long-term care, you want your employees to stay well, and especially not dead. If it isn’t already, that should probably be a primary component of your business plan. A dead staff...
Marry for love, or for blood sugar?
By
Gary Tetz
Apr 06, 2023
As a wounded veteran of multiple misguided unions, the McKnight’s headline raised at least one of my eyebrows: “Marriage, acrimonious or not, appears to protect blood sugar levels in seniors.” From...
Everything matters
By
Gary Tetz
Jul 22, 2021
I’m a slow and resistant student in the classroom of life. And perhaps the truth I face most reluctantly is how unwelcome and painful challenges teach lessons that I probably wouldn’t learn any other...
I’ve just seen a face
By
Gary Tetz
May 27, 2021
I don’t want to put a hex on the situation with a premature celebration, but the downward trajectory of the pandemic makes it appear that long-term care people can finally perhaps maybe start discretely...
Sure, you’re smart. But how well do you merge?
By
Gary Tetz
Feb 21, 2019
Isn’t finding a long-term addition to the team mostly about the culture and the fit? That’s why it’s imperative to find out how he or she is likely to behave on a freeway on-ramp (or office hallway).