As more people live longer, the need for quality long-term care for the elderly will increase dramatically. This volume examines the current system of nursing home regulations, and proposes an overhaul to better provide for those confined to such facilities. It determines the need for regulations, and concludes that the present regulatory system is inadequate, stating that what is needed is not more regulation, but better regulation. This long-anticipated study provides a wealth of useful background information, in-depth study, and discussion for nursing home administrators, students, and teachers in the health care field; professionals involved in caring for the elderly; and geriatric specialists.

Medication mishaps can and do happen in nursing homes. This highly important new book focuses on the scope of drug-related problems (DRP) of misuse and adverse reaction to medications in the nursing home environment. Experts provide practical methods for detecting DRPs, they explain a systematic approach to preventing DRPs, and they document the magnitude of DRPs in the long term care setting. Each chapter of this timely book deals with a different type of drug-related problem and includes operational definitions, prevalence of the problem, and the actions needed to detect and minimize risk and prevent recurrence. A checklist at the end of each chapter aids readers in assessing specific problems in nursing homes, home health care, day care settings, and other locations in which medications are given to the elderly. Illustrative case examples are used throughout the text. With an emphasis on awareness and change, Drug-Related Problems in Geriatric Nursing Home Patients will be invaluable for pharmacists, physicians, and nurses who work in long term care; health care planners who need to be cognizant of the scope and magnitude of medication mishaps in the nursing home; administrators who are ultimately responsible for such problems. Students and educators will find the information, and especially the checklists, timely and practical.