Did You Know?

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The temperature hit a high of 101 degrees here in my city on Sunday. That’s hot for North Dakota, especially in June. The heat wave prompted me to share an article I posted last year. Let’s make it a priority to check in on older people this summer and see if we can prevent these tragedies. 

According to the CDC, an average of 702 people in the United States die of heat-related illnesses each year. Most of these deaths occur in people over the age of 60. Sadly, we can assume this number will rise this year because of the intense heat waves predicted across our country.

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The recent death of Naomi Judd shocked and saddened me. I enjoy her music, and Naomi’s career especially interested me because she, like me, was an RN.

As I thought about her suicide at age 76, I wondered how common suicide is among older adults. When I hear of a person taking their own life, I usually picture someone in their teens or twenties.

I learned that people over the age of 65 make up 12% of the U.S. population, but they account for about 18% of suicides. And did you know men aged 85 and above have the highest suicide rate in the country?

[Read more…] about Suicide In Older Adults: What You Need To Know

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With National Nursing Home Week coming up soon, I thought it would be helpful to share a few facts about nursing homes in the U.S.

1.  When surveyed, the thing people like best about working in a nursing home is the relationships they form with the residents.

2.  In 2021, the average cost of a private room in a nursing home was $297 per day. That comes out to $108,405 in one year.

[Read more…] about 12 Fascinating Facts About Nursing Homes

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Would you like to work in a nursing home? Today I’ll tell you about a job that allows you to have fun and play games with the residents all day. It’s the activities department!

Don’t worry. I’m not being serious. Unfortunately, I’ve heard people make similar comments about the activities staff many times over the years. But in reality, working in the activities department involves a lot of hard work, and it comes with its own set of challenges.

[Read more…] about Who Is The Nursing Home Activities Director?

This post may contain affiliate links, and I will be compensated (at no extra cost to you) when you make a purchase by clicking on my links. 

Knowing I’m an RN, a couple of people have asked me what I think about the Radonda Vaught verdict. If you’re unaware of the case, a jury recently found Ms. Vaught (also an RN) guilty of criminally negligent homicide in the death of a patient after she made a medication error.

I’ve heard a few different versions of what happened, so I didn’t know what to think. Fortunately, I found an excellent summary of the facts in an article by Kati Klieber, RN. Ms. Klieber is a master’s prepared ICU nurse with a passion for mentoring new nurses. I hope you’ll read her article before you make any judgments.

[Read more…] about Why We Need Just Culture In Our Nursing Homes