Category Archives: aging

Nursing Homes for People of Color:
Still Segregated, Still Unequal

Posted on January 23, 2015 by Laura Newman

If Martin Luther King, Jr. was alive today, he would be 86. If he was like many elderly black Americans, he might well end up in a nursing home ranked lower in quality and with less well-trained nursing staff than … Continue reading →

Posted in aging, disparities | Tagged , , , , , | 8 Comments

Dying From Dirt

Posted on January 3, 2014 by Laura Newman

Many years ago, when my father was working his way through psychiatric diagnoses, my mother-in-law, whom I’ll call “J,” said, “If I ever get like that, take me out back and shoot me.” She was kidding, of course, but not … Continue reading →

Posted in aging | Tagged , , , | 8 Comments

Inattention to Drug Safety in the Elderly
Leaves Generations At Risk

Posted on July 5, 2011 by Laura Newman

This post originally appeared in a slightly different form in Scientific American’s guest blog on June 30, 2011. My frail, 92-year-old mother was prescribed 80 mg of the cholesterol-lowering drug, or statin, simvastatin (Zocor) for years, possibly decades. She fell … Continue reading →

Posted in aging, drug safety, falls | Tagged , , , , , , | 2 Comments