It’s shocking to realize the enduring power of the printed word. First I write a column about a giant, possibly rabid squirrel attacking innocent people in a Florida long-term care facility activity...
Grateful chickens
By
Gary Tetz
Dec 03, 2015
Chickens absolutely love Thanksgiving. At least on that one special day, they can finally breathe a little easier while chefs from humble homes to long-term care kitchens choose a larger bird for celebratory...
Naked crowd-funding — the salvation of long-term care
By
Gary Tetz
Apr 10, 2015
Crowdfunding isn’t the only way to raise money for a good cause, though it has recently netted one provider 60 televisions. Nudity is also an ever-attractive option.
Stronger at the broken places
By
Gary Tetz
Aug 19, 2021
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...