As the owner of a Worcester family owned small business, you have likely devoted your lifetime to growing the business from the ground up. As a result, you certainly have a stake in the future of the business, including what will happen to it upon your death. You have probably considered passing down the business to your children, but is this a wise choice?

As a Leominster resident, you have probably given considerable thought and consideration to how you wish to structure your estate plan in order to transfer your estate assets to family members and loved ones upon your death.

Home ownership has long been the foundation of wealth building in the United States. If you are like most Americans, your home is your single most valuable possession. As a result, if you were to reduce the taxable value of your home you could go a long way toward mitigating your estate tax exposure.

San Jose estate planning attorneys invariably speak to many clients who feel as though the estate tax is fundamentally unfair. Their clients register multiple complaints, but the primary reason that they cite is the fact that the estate tax is an instance of double taxation.

If you ask government inspectors, the answer is a resounding--- YES. Today, psychiatric drugs-- and anti-psychotic drugs in particular-- are prescribed to an astounding 14% of all nursing home patients. The bulk of the psychiatric drugs are administered to patients with dementia or Alzheimer's in order to calm their potentially aggressive behaviors.

Next week attorney David Terry and I will be exchanging blog-posts on perhaps the most common-- yet under-appreciated medical condition effecting patients in nursing homes and hospital-- Bed Sores. Used interchangeably with the terms: pressure sore, pressure ulcer or decubitus ulcer, most people have little appreciation of the real devastation that bed sores cause until they see one first hand.

We look to environmental causes of falls....cluttered hallways...improperly footwear...yet in many fall-related situations the real 'cause' of the fall lies within the person herself... Hypotension (low blood pressure) is a problem for many nursing home residents, causing dizziness and fainting.

Commonly known as C. Diff, Clostridium Difficile is a bacterium commonly found in the colon of healthy people. C. Diff can become a problem when the body’s natural defenses are slashed in effectiveness with the introduction of antibiotics that are typically used to treat various illnesses. Especially in older patients or those on in a weakened condition, the introduction of antibiotics may allow the C. Diff can bacteria to rapidly multiple causing serious illness or even death.

I've come to accept that the physical responsibilities placed upon nursing home staff are completely unrealistic. The desire of management and administrators to maximize the individual productivity of nursing home workers may appear to be an admirable proposition on paper--- yet, fails when it comes to providing quality care for patients.

Yesterday we discussed potential signs of mistreatment or abuse in a day care setting. Today we continue our discussion regarding child abuse as we consider the signs of various types of abuse. While many of these topics are exceptionally troubling, as parents it is important to pay attention to changes in the behavior of our children and recognize the importance of addressing these issues head on.