Cranky Old Man

When an old man died in the geriatric ward of a nursing home in an Australian country town, it was believed that he had nothing left of any value. Later, when the nurses were going through his meager possessions, They found this poem. Its quality and content so impressed the staff that copies were made and distributed to every nurse in the hospital.
 
One nurse took her copy to Melbourne. The old man’s sole bequest to posterity has since appeared in the Christmas editions of magazines around the country and appearing in mags for Mental Health. A slide presentation has also been made based on his simple, but eloquent, poem.
Source: Google Images
Source: Google Images
And this old man, with nothing left to give to the world, is now the author of this ‘anonymous’ poem winging across the Internet.
 
Cranky Old Man
 What do you see nurses? . . .. . .What do you see?
What are you thinking .. . when you’re looking at me?
A cranky old man, . . . . . .not very wise,
Uncertain of habit .. . . . . . . .. with faraway eyes?
Who dribbles his food .. . … . . and makes no reply.
When you say in a loud voice . .’I do wish you’d try!’
Who seems not to notice . . .the things that you do.
And forever is losing . . . . . .. . . A sock or shoe?
Who, resisting or not . . . … lets you do as you will,
With bathing and feeding . . . .The long day to fill?
Is that what you’re thinking?. .Is that what you see?
Then open your eyes, nurse .you’re not looking at me.
I’ll tell you who I am . . . . .. As I sit here so still,
As I do at your bidding, .. . . . as I eat at your will.
I’m a small child of Ten . .with a father and mother,
Brothers and sisters .. . . .. . who love one another
A young boy of Sixteen . . . .. with wings on his feet
Dreaming that soon now . . .. . . a lover he’ll meet.
A groom soon at Twenty . . . ..my heart gives a leap.
Remembering, the vows .. .. .that I promised to keep.
At Twenty-Five, now . . . . .I have young of my own.
Who need me to guide . . . And a secure happy home.
A man of Thirty . .. . . . . My young now grown fast,
Bound to each other . . .. With ties that should last.
At Forty, my young sons .. .have grown and are gone,
But my woman is beside me . . to see I don’t mourn.
At Fifty, once more, .. …Babies play ’round my knee,
Again, we know children . . . . My loved one and me.
Dark days are upon me . . . . My wife is now dead.
I look at the future … . . . . I shudder with dread.
For my young are all rearing .. . . young of their own.
And I think of the years . . . And the love that I’ve known.
I’m now an old man . . . . . . .. and nature is cruel.
It’s jest to make old age . . . . . . . look like a fool.
The body, it crumbles .. .. . grace and vigour, depart.
There is now a stone . . . where I once had a heart.
But inside this old carcass . A young man still dwells,
And now and again . . . . . my battered heart swells
I remember the joys . . . . .. . I remember the pain.
And I’m loving and living . . . . . . . life over again.
I think of the years, all too few . . .. gone too fast.
And accept the stark fact . . . that nothing can last.
So open your eyes, people .. . . . .. . . open and see.
Not a cranky old man .
Look closer . . . . see .. .. . .. …. . ME!!
Remember this poem when you next meet an older person who you might brush aside without looking at the young soul within. We will all, one day, be there, too!”
 

 

Rising Obesity Rates Put Strain on Nursing Homes | NY Times

The issue “Rising Obesity Rates Put Strain on Nursing Homes” puts nursing homes in a real bind financially and it makes it hard to give quality care.

“The Population is shifting faster than the ability of nursing homes to deal with them” said Cheryl Philips, a senior vice president at Leading  Age, an association of nonprofit providers of services for older adults. “We don’t have adequate staff. We don’t have adequate equipment. We don’t have adequate knowledge.”

 

RNs more likely to identify medication errors in nursing homes, study finds

RNs more likely to identify medication errors in nursing homes, study finds
Registered nurses may be more likely than licensed practical nurses to identify high-risk medication errors in nursing home settings, a new study suggests

Read the full article here:
RNs more likely to identify medication errors in nursing homes, study finds

UNMC gerontology nursing program ranked nationally

Wow! We are so proud of our gerontology program here at Gero Nurse Prep! We continually collaborate within our faculty team to produce our course material. You can rest easy knowing that you are receiving information from faculty who are nationally recognized and experienced in caring for elders.

Read more about it here: http://www.unmc.edu/news.cfm?match=17674

The Need for Specialty

Take a look at this article that addresses the importance of specialty training in geriatric care. It stresses interdisciplinary work and knowledge of how elder care differs from younger adults. With the declining rate of those trained in elder care, we need more nurses who can fill this gap.

Source- http://blog.drmurielgillick.com/2015/09/right-diagnosis-wrong-treatment.html

Certified Nurses Improve Facility Quality

Training for gerontological certification turns out to be a win-win proposition for nurses, administrators, and residents.

Registered nurse (RN) staff are in a unique position to affect quality in long term care settings at the bedside and to influence the care delivered by both individual staff members and the team as a whole.
GeroNursePrep
RN staff in long term care settings need to have well-focused clinical assessment and judgment skills, as they are usually the primary assessor of the patient. Medical support is not always immediately accessible, so the nursing staff must analyze clinical situations and have the confidence to make decisions concerning when residents need additional care.

Rest Home Article – USA Today

You Need to Know The Financial and Quality Factors Driving Long Term Care. The CMS has implemented new quality rating standards that have immediate effects on your organization.

Nursing Home

Read the article taken from USA today on February 20, 2015 linked here to see what information is being given to the general public about this event that is greatly impacting your specialty.

Read more here: http://www.usatoday.com/story/news/2015/02/20/cms-nursing-home-ratings-lowered/23732385/
We’d love to hear your reaction to the story linked above.

Distinguished GeroNursePrep Alumn!

Nurses! We have a very distinguished GNP alumn who has recently been featured in Provider Magazine for her research on decubiti prevention! Dr.Rosalind Wright, RN-BC, DNP, RAC-CT, CNHA, has more than 30 years of leadership experience in long term care, acute care, and academia.

Source: providermagazine.com
Source: providermagazine.com

Wright serves as vice president of quality management for VMT Long Term Care Management and administrator of Unique Residential Care Center, a 230-bed skilled nursing facility, in Washington, D.C. She successfully administered her facility to a Five-Star nursing home rating from CMS.

Read all about her amazing project by clicking this link: Project: Zero Tolerance For Pressure Ulcers