The World According to Dr. El by Eleanor Feldman Barbera, Ph.D.
BBB Act provides opportunity to address LTC mental health needs
By
Eleanor Feldman Barbera, Ph.D.
Nov 23, 2021
In my last blog post, “Boosting team resilience,” I briefly touched upon the need to recognize the pandemic-related trauma experienced by staff members and to better prepare for future catastrophes. …
Boosting team resilience
By
Eleanor Feldman Barbera, Ph.D.
Nov 09, 2021
It’s no secret that many long-term care staffers are grappling with feelings of stress and burnout following their pandemic experiences. Burnout affects workers on a personal level, and it can also impact…
Ageism in LTC
By
Eleanor Feldman Barbera, Ph.D.
Oct 26, 2021
As I listened last week to a web event on confronting ageism in healthcare, I found myself nodding in agreement with the participants, who were all themselves nodding at the comments of their collaborators. …
How to give feedback that gets results
By
Eleanor Feldman Barbera, Ph.D.
Oct 12, 2021
Whether coaching supervisors on leadership skills or teaching employees to follow proper infection control procedures, the way in which feedback is offered can have an enormous impact on how it’s received…
We need staff… NOW
By
Eleanor Feldman Barbera, Ph.D.
Sep 28, 2021
Last year, as the pandemic raged in New York City and sirens filled the air, a group of young travel nurses arrived to assist weary long-term care teams. They took over nursing stations that had been depleted…
Reducing the impact of cascading collective trauma in LTC
By
Eleanor Feldman Barbera, Ph.D.
Sep 14, 2021
I spent most of last weekend doing what I could to avoid the 9/11-related headlines in the news. With my Manhattan-below-14th-Street recollections of the event, last year’s immersion in the pandemic…
How to keep working in LTC (when you’re not sure how much more you can take)
By
Eleanor Feldman Barbera, Ph.D.
Aug 31, 2021
When I speak to long-term care groups, whether to those in leadership positions or to direct care staff, it’s clear that virtually all the audience members have been drawn to the industry because of…
As the editors of the June 2021 volume of The Gerontologist put it, “Workforce issues are the most significant challenges facing the long-term care industry.” This special edition of the journal…
Vaccines: Saving face
By
Eleanor Feldman Barbera, Ph.D.
Aug 03, 2021
I watched warily as Leo wheeled his cart onto the elevator with me, his mask below his nose. He used to pull it up when he saw me, mindful of the many conversations we’d had about getting the vaccine,…
Foster relationships to improve staff retention
By
Eleanor Feldman Barbera, Ph.D.
Jul 20, 2021
“God bless you,” an aide said to me the other day after I handed her a container of homemade green bean salad. She’d joined the same psychology-based weight loss program I was using and the green…
Once upon a time, before profit ruled the land, there were missions
By
Eleanor Feldman Barbera, Ph.D.
Jul 06, 2021
In the old days, Young Readers, before the goal of eldercare was merely profit, nursing homes used to have things called “missions.” Missions focused on the well-being of the elders they cared for…
My look: Forever changed by the pandemic?
By
Eleanor Feldman Barbera, Ph.D.
Jun 22, 2021
For my first 20-plus years as a long-term care psychologist, I arrived on the job wearing not just clothes, but outfits. I chose garb that contributed to the sense of “expertness, attractiveness, and…
5 strategies to promote mental health in long-term care
By
Eleanor Feldman Barbera, Ph.D.
Jun 08, 2021
Last week, tennis superstar Naomi Osaka chose to forgo mandatory but anxiety-producing post-event press interviews to protect her mental health. She was fined $15,000 by tennis officials and, after being…
Post-pandemic population may require higher staffing levels
By
Eleanor Feldman Barbera, Ph.D.
May 25, 2021
Before the pandemic, residents were admitted for rehabilitation following elective surgery or a health crisis. The rehab residents either returned home or joined the group of long-term residents who had…
5 ways to reduce late-pandemic staff burnout
By
Eleanor Feldman Barbera, Ph.D.
May 11, 2021
Most residents and workers are vaccinated and COVID-19 rates in nursing homes have plummeted, so everything should be great, right? According to a recent article in StatNews, not quite. In “As the Covid-19…
The pandemic narrative, a tool for mental health
By
Eleanor Feldman Barbera, Ph.D.
Apr 27, 2021
Comparisons between April 2020 and April 2021 are surprisingly jolting in some ways. Not until I composed this blog did I fully realize how far we’ve come, regarding pandemic conditions, and life…
Rethinking quality care: A long-term care psychologist’s perspective
By
Eleanor Feldman Barbera, Ph.D.
Apr 13, 2021
At a time when there’s a greater push for community care over nursing and rehabilitation centers, it’s worth rethinking what quality means to the residents themselves. There are clear themes.
A conversation with ‘superhero’ health policy researcher David Grabowski
By
Eleanor Feldman Barbera, Ph.D.
Mar 30, 2021
For a fascinating zoom-out of the impact of policy decisions on long-term care in general, paying attention to Harvard health policy professor David Grabowski is a really good idea.
Anticipating anniversary reactions
By
Eleanor Feldman Barbera, Ph.D.
Mar 16, 2021
The coronavirus was officially declared a pandemic one year ago this month. The news is filled with articles reflecting on the dramatic changes in our lives from last year to this — lost jobs, remote…
Is your facility prepared for returning families?
By
Eleanor Feldman Barbera, Ph.D.
Mar 02, 2021
If all goes well, over the next few weeks there will be an increasing number of family members visiting their loved ones in the nursing home, many for the first time in a year. Along with the joy and relief…
