In the latest installment of the Chicago Tribune‘s investigation into Illinois nursing homes, Sam Roe and ProPublica’s Christina Jewett investigate Dr. Michael Reinstein, an impressively prolific prescriber who, in 2007, wrote more prescriptions for clozapine (“a potent psychotropic medication that carries five ‘black box’ warnings”) than all physicians in Texas put together.
In that same year, he prescribed medications to 4,141 Medicaid patients. Furthermore, while the average American doctor sees about 35 patients each with, Reinstein sees an incredible 60 patients each day. Reinstein’s workload may have something to do with the fact that he’s the psychiatric director at 13 different nursing homes, but Roe and Jewett write that the ultimate blame lies on systemic problems in Illinois.
Earlier
New slim guide:
Covering the Health of Local Nursing Homes
Check out AHCJ’s latest volume in its ongoing Slim Guide series. This reporting guide gives a head start to journalists who want to pursue stories about one of the most vulnerable populations – nursing home residents. It offers advice about Web sites, datasets, research and other resources. After reading this book, journalists can have more confidence in deciphering nursing home inspection reports, interviewing advocacy groups on all sides of an issue, locating key data, and more. The book includes story examples and ideas.
AHCJ publishes these reporting guides, with the support of the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation, to help journalists understand and accurately report on specific subjects.
Recent workshop
AHCJ’s Aging in the 21st Century workshop, held Oct. 16 and 17 in Miami, addressed many topics raised by the Tribune’s reports, as well as the changing picture of aging Americans and key research and issues related to this growing population. Tip sheets and presentations from that workshop are available to AHCJ members, as are these related tip sheets:
- Aging Nation: Troublesome Health Care Issues
- Headlines an advocate for seniors would like to see
- The impact of aging upon health care
- Covering nursing homes and other issues of aging
- How will retiring boomers affect the national health agenda?
- You Can Run, but You Can’t Hide: Policy and Problems in Long-Term Care
- Biology of Aging: Sources and Resources
