Articles written by Diana Weber
Sorted by date Results 1 - 16 of 16
A look back at our progress before moving on
Dear readers, it's time to say goodbye. I will retire next month and hand off the reins to a new Long Term Care Ombudsman. It has been a real privilege to hold this position. I've got the best staff...
Don't let assisted living home kick you to the curb
In the last 30 days, the Ombudsman has received five complaints that seniors are being threatened with involuntary discharge from their assisted living homes. This is often a terrifying prospect to a...
There are many ways to help out a caregiver
I’ve been exchanging emails and phone calls with a woman who is taking care of her husband at home. As his Alzheimer’s progresses, her days and nights become more and more challenging. She never...
Long term care rights and sexual orientation
Research suggests that lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender elders are disproportionately represented in long term care facilities because, compared to their heterosexual counterparts, LGBT elders...
Staff have been known to steal residents' drugs
Every time you visit your mom in the assisted living home, she complains she isn’t getting her medication. When you question staff, they show you the medication log and it seems to indicate she is...
Don't let the hospital discharge you too soon
Judging by the complaints to the Long Term Care Ombudsman, many Medicare beneficiaries and their families do not realize they have rights during the hospital discharge process. These rights are meant...
Take steps to reduce caregiver confrontation
When an aging parent begins to fail, adult children often must step in to make arrangements for care. The opportunities for family conflict are enormous. Old rivalries between siblings are...
Someone you know could likely use your help
Imagine your family is far away. Strangers bathe and dress you, but you’ve had a stroke, so it is hard to explain that your roommate is stealing your things. You’re a senior in a long term care...
Insist on your equal opportunity housing rights
If your low income housing complex was developed with federal loans or grants, the owner must comply with federal Civil Rights law, the Fair Housing Act, and the Rehabilitation Act of 1973. Under the...
We need more thoughtfulness in caregiving
We can judge a society by how it treats the weakest of its members. As the number of seniors with dementia rises rapidly, each of us should reflect on how we treat people disabled by Alzheimer’s or...
Is the level of care keeping up with our needs?
There is a disconnect in the way we manage long term care for frail seniors. Nationally, we are moving toward taking seniors out of nursing homes and keeping them in the community, giving them more as...
Long term care residents have inalienable rights too
“We hold these truths to be self-evident, that all men are created equal, that they are endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable Rights, that among these are Life, Liberty and the pursuit...
The top four long term care insurance complaints
The current wisdom is that 70 percent of us will need long term care at some point. Alaska’s long term care is the most expensive in the nation. So long term care financing is on a lot of...
New efforts to serve displaced Native elders
When I lived in Bush Alaska, I used to love seeing the Native elders at the potlucks. They came from up and down the Yukon in all kinds of weather to sit together and share food and stories. As the...
Here is some guidance about your rights as a tenant
For older Alaskans living on a fixed income, senior housing can be a great option. Sometimes, though, our office receives complaints about senior housing property managers who abuse their power,...
Intimidation tactics trample residents' rights
This month’s column is about retaliation, specifically homes that retaliate against residents who complain or who offend them in some way. Retaliation against a resident can be overt, but often it...