May 3, 2016
Lisa K. Radio http://www.LisaKRadio.com
In 1991, Dr. Thomas went from being an emergency room physician to the medical director of a nursing home in upstate New York. “The place was depressing, with old people parked in wheelchairs like frogs on a log, bored with nothing to do, just waiting for death to finally reach them. It was horrible,” Dr.Thomas recalls. Sohe did the unthinkable. He persuadedthe facility and staff toget two dogs, four cats, several hens andrabbits, and 100parakeets, along with hundreds of plants, avegetable and flowergarden, and a day-care site for staffers’ kids.At the time, therewere laws prohibiting animals in nursing homes.They went aheadanyway. Listen to the rest of Dr. Thomas’ storyand find outhow we can change our misconceptions about aging, beingolder andwhy we don’t need to fear our “elderhood.”
Dr. Bill Thomas is an internationally recognized expert on aging.He co-created The Eden Alternative, an international nonprofit, and The Green House Project, both models to revolutionize nursing home care. In addition to teaching, speaking,and consulting internationally, he is currently a Senior Fellow of AARP's Life Reimagined Institute. A graduate of the StateUniversity of New York and Harvard Medical School, he lives in Ithaca, New York with his family.
originally aired on Between Heaven and Earth