What Are the Costs of Assisted Living?
In December 2017, the Trump administration lowered nursing home fines for the assisted living industry. These fines have been an important line of defense for seniors, helping to ensure the quality of their care. Supporters of the measure argue that it will make care more efficient and decrease bureaucratic government control over nursing homes. Its opponents claim that the revised penalties take an already weak system of quality control and remove a crucial patient safety tool. Perhaps you believe this change could impact you. If you or a loved one has been injured due to... Read More
Pedestrian Deaths Double in Tucson
When a pedestrian dies as a result of injuries from a neglectful or reckless driving accident, the tragedy should trigger a review of the safety of Tucson’s roads for those traveling on foot. By October 5, there were 18 pedestrian deaths in Tucson during the year. By that same date in 2016, there were only a total of nine deaths. Likewise, there has been a serious increase in pedestrian deaths in Pima County: five deaths in 2017, compared to only one death in 2016. The cause of this rise in pedestrian deaths remains uncertain, although... Read More
Stay Safe this Holiday Season!
The holidays are meant to be a time for family and celebration. With family gatherings, time off work, and the end of a (hopefully) prosperous year coming up, there’s plenty to celebrate. But as with all good things, there’s reason to take extra care during the holiday season. There are plenty of potential dangers to watch out for, both inside and outside. The season’s major holidays are the biggest days for cooking fires happening in homes across the country. Thanksgiving Day is the peak for such fires, with Christmas Day and Christmas Eve coming in... Read More
Can Nursing Home Mergers Hurt Patients?
Healthcare mergers have hit an all-time high in 2017, following a trend that seems likely to continue into the next decade. According to Stuart Lindeman of Mission Health Communities, “Over the next 5 to 10 years, we will see a ramp up of acquisitions in this area.” Nursing home mergers can adversely impact the quality of care. And by all appearances, Lindeman is right. On September 1, 2017, PinnacleHealth joined UPMC to become UPMC Pinnacle. On September 5, Tenet Healthcare Corp. agreed to sell its Philadelphia hospitals to Paladin Healthcare. That same day, Cooper University... Read More
How to Keep Your Family Safe This Thanksgiving
Thanksgiving will be celebrated on November 23rd this year. For millions of Americans, Thanksgiving is a day for friends, family, and football. It’s a day when we celebrate all the goodness we’ve received during the past year. It’s also a day when it’s acceptable for us to take it easy and treat ourselves. Thanksgiving is supposed to be a celebration. But it can turn tragic. Be Safe on the Holiday That’s because Thanksgiving is one of the peak traffic days of the year. In 2015, 46.9 million Americans travelled at least 50 miles for Thanksgiving... Read More
When Nursing Home Abuse Goes Unreported
A recent alert from the Office of Inspector General found that more than a quarter of cases of serious nursing home abuse go unreported, putting our senior citizens at grave risk. In one recent case, a male resident of a senior care facility allegedly sexually assaulted one of the female residents. The victim suffered serious bruising. Facility employees caught the man in the act and should have reported the incident to the police immediately. Instead, they bathed the victim. According to Curtis Roy, an assistant regional inspector general in the Department of Health and Human... Read More
Halloween Safety Reminders for All Ages
At its best, Halloween is a fun time for all of us. The weather is changing, we’ve all got our pumpkins out for carving, and we’re ready for candy and costumes. Everyone is ready for a fun evening with spooky music and scary movies. But Halloween can also be a dangerous evening. Whether for children and their parents out trick-or-treating, or for college students out for a night of partying, it’s important to keep safety in mind as you go out on Halloween night. That’s why we’ve gathered up a few tips in the hopes... Read More
No More Vehicle Accidents?
Tucson Tech, a tech startup run through the University of Arizona, just announced the development of a set of inexpensive, high-performing Luneberg lenses. These Luneberg lenses are spherical lenses that will be able to replace multiple sensors that existing autonomous cars depend on. It’s possible that these 3-D printed Luneberg lenses will replace the complex (and expensive) elements of today’s autonomous cars. This would make it possible to produce much cheaper autonomous cars, and may bring us that much closer to a driverless future. Fully autonomous cars aren’t with us yet, but many people are... Read More
Safety Reminders for University of Arizona Students
Welcome to all University of Arizona students as you begin your Fall 2017 semester, and a very special warm welcome to the U of A Class of 2021! Whether this is your first time in Tucson or you were born and raised here, this is an exciting time of year. You’ve probably got your mind full of classes, parties, and learning your way around campus. But before you get too caught up in your collegiate experience, we wanted to take a little time to let you know about some of the dangers you might be... Read More
“No Sue” Agreements in Nursing Homes, An Uncertain Future
If you have a loved one in a nursing home or are considering placing a person in a nursing facility, you need to be aware of the rights of patients and their families. Laws are in place to protect the welfare of patients and provide for legal recourse for families of patients who may have been abused or otherwise mistreated. Some nursing homes, however, have been including “no sue” agreements in their patient acceptance paperwork. These “no-sue” agreements state that neither the patient nor the family may sue the nursing home in court in the... Read More