Nursing Home Keeps Elderly Happy By Having Its Own Pub

[matcom]

<snip>

DUBLIN (Reuters) - A nursing home in Ireland has hit on a cheering way to keep up the spirits of its elderly patients -- by providing its own pub.

St Mary's Hospital in County Monaghan, near the Irish border with Northern Ireland, believes ready access to a good pint may help its patients -- average age 85 -- actually live longer.

"We would say the whole social aspect of life does extend the years -- it means the patients aren't bored to death," Rose Mooney, assistant director of nursing told Reuters.

The pub, which opens at 11 a.m. and closes at 9 p.m. and charges normal bar prices, had also led to an increase in the number of visitors, she said.

Having its own bar made the hospital, which has around 140 patients, unique in Ireland, she added.

http://news.yahoo.com/s/nm/20051114/od_nm/ireland_pub_dc;_ylt=AvtG8yj0pPPb88e6ZKe2Y8sSH9EA;_ylu=X3oDMTBiMW04NW9mBHNlYwMlJVRPUCUl

[SoCalDem]

1. Sounds like a great idea..

It's depressing to think that so many nursing homes treat elderly patients so much like children..A Bar at least gives them back a little of their "adult-ness"..and so what if they get tipsy? less drugs necessary to sleep :).. a win win

[flowomo]

2. this is even better (plenty of bars onboard)

Cruise ship care: a proposed alternative to assisted living facilities.

Lindquist LA, Golub RM.

Divisions of Internal and Geriatric Medicine, Department of Medicine, Northwestern University Feinberg School of Medicine, 676 North St. Clair Street, Chicago, IL 60611, USA. [e-mail]

Options for elderly patients who can no longer remain independent are limited. Most choices involve assisted living facilities, 24-hour caregivers, or nursing homes. State and federal assistance for payment for individual care is limited, and seniors usually pay for most costs out of pocket. For those patients who have the means to afford assisted living centers or nursing homes, "cruise ship care" is proposed. Traveling alongside traditional tourists, groups of seniors would live on cruise ships for extended periods of time. Cruise ships are similar to assisted living centers in the amenities provided, costs per month, and many other areas. This article begins with an examination of the needs of seniors in assisted living facilities and then explores the feasibility of cruise ship care in answering those needs. Similarities between cruise ship travel and assisted living care, as well as the monetary costs of both options, are defined. A decision tree with selections for non-independent care for seniors was created including cruise ship care as an alternative. Using a Markov model over 20 years, a representative cost-effectiveness analysis was performed that showed that cruises were priced similarly to assisted living centers and were more efficacious. Proposed ways that cruise ship companies could further accommodate the needs of seniors interested in this option are also suggested. Implementation for cruise ship care on the individual basis is also presented. Ultimately, it is wished to introduce a feasible and possibly more desirable option to seniors who can no longer remain independent.


http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/entrez/query.fcgi?cmd=Retrieve&db=PubMed&list_uids=15507078&dopt=Citation

[MrScorpio]

3. The Irish are the bomb

Bottom's up!