Once it dawned on us that a pandemic was underway, those of us involved in geriatric care knew that long-term care facilities were going to be in trouble. And yes, we knew that the usual racial and socioeconomic disparities in outcomes would appear. But we didn’t know exactly how much trouble, nor did we know exactly how the disparities would play out. At least for my county of Alameda, for the pre-vaccination phase of the pandemic, we now have answers.
We are in our fifth COVID surge, and my head is spinning with the rapidly evolving federal, state, and local guidance. Wouldn’t it be nice to visit a platform that tracks all the guidance in a convenient location?
During the current Omicron surge, COVID-19 vaccines (primary series and boosters) are an essential way for our communities to stay healthy. We would like to share COVID-19 vaccine resources for long-term care facilities (LTCFs) and your members.
Two years ago, I retired from an internal medicine practice in the SNF setting with emphasis on Medical Direction, Geriatrics, and Palliative Care. Last month, I worked 3 weeks providing vacation relief and noticed how “depersonalized” the medical records have become at the acute hospital and SNF levels. I suspect this is a reflection of our adaptation to EHRs and the perceived need for providers to become more time-efficient. One of the things I reintroduced into these facilities was the value of the patient’s story. This is fundamental to establishing working relationships with our patients and their families. The story is also fundamental to the diagnostic process and leads us away from prescribing more drugs for new symptoms to a more-cost effective and better understanding of the potential causes of the patient’s symptoms.
Assisting others who are less fortunate, emotionally, socioeconomically, or in poor health, can help change own our perspective to feel more positive.1 There is literature that suggests, helping others can change brain chemicals leading to more happiness.1,2 Furthermore, face-to-face volunteering, for example, lending a helping hand at a food bank or church can help reduce loneliness, isolation and can improve social and support networks.1,3
