Articles Posted in Elder Law

“There is a time for many words, and there is also a time for sleep.” — Homer

 Sleep, like food and water, is essential for humans to survive. Sleep affects almost every type of tissue and system in the human body. The brain, heart and lungs perform functions while you sleep. Similarly, your metabolism and immune system perform functions while you are sleeping. Sleep also affects your mood and ability to resist and fight diseases. Research shows that a chronic lack of sleep, or getting poor quality sleep, increases the risk of cardiovascular disease, diabetes, depression, and obesity. The next day you feel exhausted, tired, or fatigued after a poor night’s rest.

 What is sleep?

As we get older, changes to our sleep patterns occur. In fact, a normal part of the aging process is different sleep. People often report that they have trouble falling asleep and staying asleep as they age. Every night, people achieve sleep, by experiencing periods of light and deep sleep. For the most part, during sleep, our bodies remain still as our minds and body functions race to repair and reset themselves. Some of us even dream, vividly experiencing feelings and sensations all while laying perfectly still.

 The trouble with achieving deep sleep

As we age, older people spend more time in the lighter stages of sleep rather than in deep sleep. People often report that they were able to fall asleep but then woke up and could not return to sleep. Our bodies need deep sleep to perform functions on just about every organ, tissue, and system. Individuals suffering from chronic illnesses, like high blood pressure and cancer, need sleep to heal and get batter. Instead, older people report that the next day after poor sleep quality their mood and ability to perform active tasks is affected by fatigue.

Very few people look forward to living in a nursing home the last years of their lives. There is a growing segment of the population that wishes to remain in their homes as long as possible. To do so however, assistance is needed from medical professionals and home health aides.

 Continuing care retirement communities

Continuing Care Retirement Communities, also known as CCRCs, are well known to retirees. The premise is that residents live on a campus-like setting in facilities that change as their care needs increase. For example, a CCRC resident may begin at independent living facility, shift to assisted living, and enter a memory-care unit or nursing home. Where a resident starts depends on their overall health, mental faculties, and mobility level.

A recent story out of Virginia recently received a great deal of national attention. An 83-year-old grandmother of five and great grandmother of five received a “Notice of Lease Violation” from the management office of her assisted living facility.  

 What was the infraction?

It appears that Ms. Elsie Cruey had taken too many cookies from a community event. Ms. Cruery had previously run afoul of the community house rules when she took a partial gallon of milk after breakfast. She had hoped to combine the milk with the cookies she took as a late night snack.

Is an advance directive enough to ensure that your wishes are followed when you cannot express them because of disease or illness that affects your ability to make decisions for yourself? Physician Orders for Life-Sustaining Treatment (POLST Orders) for short, are often confused with advance directives. These medical care planning tools are very different from each other.

 What is an advance directive?

An advance directive consists of a living will and a health care power of attorney. Every adult, regardless of age, should have one and update them from time to time, especially following a diagnosis of a serious medical condition.

Earlier this month the Center for Medicare Advocacy and the Long Term Care Community Coalition made a joint announcement regarding changes to the Nursing Home Compare website. Nursing Home Compare is a service provided by Medicare.gov to help prospective nursing home residents or nursing home residents and their families obtain information about every Medicare and Medicaid certified nursing home in the country.

 A nursing home is a place for people who can’t be cared for at home and need 24-hour nursing care. Over 15,000 nursing home facilities around the country will be affected by this change. Nursing home residents and their families will be able to easily identify if the nursing home they are considering has a history of resident abuse, neglect, and exploitation of its residents.

 What’s happening?