All of the empathy training in the world pales in comparison to experiencing the effects of real, unmanufactured hatred based on an immutable aspect of your identity. When I saw her name on my list of patients I rolled my eyes and groaned. Ethel was scheduled for 30 minutes of occupational therapy this Saturday, but […]
Not all small talk is excruciating. Recently a friend stopped drinking for a month. Normally gregarious and sociable, she confided that her month without alcohol was fine, except, “I had no patience, none at all, for small talk.” Another friend just posted a fascinating article by David Roberts on Facebook (“Why Small Talk Is So […]
When an 85-year-old resident spent the night with her boyfriend, her aides made her a Do Not Disturb sign. The Hebrew Home at Riverdale has been recognized as one of the best nursing homes in the country. The facility offers an on-site audiology clinic, 24-hour nursing care, occupational therapy, and more. Among the services offered […]
This was the woman who requested that we put an extra pair of heels in her coffin so that she could cut a rug in heaven. Growing up, I remember women’s hands. My mother’s holding books in the soft rocking chair where we read together. My great aunt’s, roped with mazes of vein and garnished […]
