Healthcare for Seniors Will Change

As our population gets older, will we just build more hospitals? Our healthcare system is designed this way. Hospitals are the center of the healthcare universe. When patients become acutely ill they go to the hospital. The hospital takes over.

Continue reading

Is Mom in the Hospital? Remember the 8 Ds

Dr. Warren Wong

The hospital is a hard place for older patients. In a previous post, I described three awful things that happen too often. I was frequently asked to help care for frail older patients in the hospital. Based on these experiences, I came up with 8D's.

When you have an older loved one in the hospital, think of these 8 Ds:

Continue reading

Hospital at Home: How does it work?

Dr. Bruce Leff is my friend and colleague. I admire him greatly. Decades ago, he came to the realization that hospitalization of older adults can cause major problems. Instead, he wanted to bring hospital services to the home. In this post, Dr. Leff talks about how Hospital at Home works.

Continue reading

Mom’s Hospitalized – Time to Cross our Fingers

In our last post, Dr. Bruce Leff talked about Hospital at Home. When someone becomes acutely ill or injured, hospital care is needed to treat the problem.  But hospitalization causes its own problems.  One of Dr. Leff’s patients described the hospital as a “crappy hotel.” I’ll describe three things that make the hospital feel like a crappy hotel.1. Who’s in charge? 3 different doctors in 2 days???When a patient is hospitalized at night, the nighttime doctor examines the patient and writes the orders. The next morning, the doctor goes home. Another provider assumes care. However, […]

Hospital at Home, Bringing the Hospital to the Home

The hospital can be a dangerous place, especially for older patients. Decades ago, I met a physician named Dr. Bruce Leff. He asked the question: Can we bring the hospital to the home? There’s a reason he asked that question. He has a great explanation.

Continue reading