MedPAC is Washington, DC, shorthand for the Medicare Payment Advisory Commission, and if you subscribe to its e-mail announcement system, you typically get notices early in a week for public meetings to be held later that same week. This is fine for the beltway crowd, maybe, but for years…
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As we age we hope to remain at home and independent for as long as possible. Most people see the health care system as an important contributor to their ability to maintain this independence. Unfortunately, as we get older we become more susceptible to harm from a lack of…
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Janice Lynch Schuster works with Joanne Lynn, a geriatrician and friend of the Hartford Foundation, at the Center for Eldercare and Advanced Illness at the Altarum Institute, a new voice in the field of aging and end of life issues. Learn more about the Center’s work at www.medicaring.org, or follow…
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Last week, Chris Langston asked readers to assist us with our future grantmaking and strategic plan (Help Us Spend $100,000,000!). He requested input to help us define the nature of the problem in improving the health of older adults. I hope we get responses not only from seasoned health care…
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Since the downturn in 2008, we at the Hartford Foundation have had the incredibly frustrating experience of not having money for new grant programs amid what seems like a smorgasbord of opportunities to make an incredible impact on the health of older Americans. We of course had faith in what…
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Innovative new website (Timeslips.org) offers families caring for a loved one with dementia tested and creative activities to help them connect, communicate Most of the time, we have more bad news than good to share about delivering quality care to older people. Today, it is a joy to focus on…
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A few months ago I wrote about a convening built upon our primary-care depression treatment project, IMPACT, and its new umbrella center AIMS (Advancing Integrated Mental Health Solutions), led by Jurgen Unutzer at the University of Washington. I described the meeting as a “coming out party for AIMS,” which we…
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Leadership, as featured in our 2008 Hartford Annual Report, is defined by four key elements: Formal Training, Mentoring, Peer Networking, and Answering the Call. Leaders rarely rise spontaneously from within the ranks of health professionals and often need special training, nurturing, and support. Even though leadership often seems to…
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It's September again, which for most means falling leaves, the end of vacations, and kids returning to school. For those interested in medical education, it also means the annual special issue on the topic in the Journal of the American Medical Association. I always turn directly to the charts at…
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One of my dear friends, Liz, was a remarkable caregiver for her aunt Nancy, who passed away earlier this year, a few months short of her 101st birthday. I first met Nancy six years ago, when she was 95, physically active, vibrant, and independent. At the time, she had just…
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