Latest news with #Deering
The Journal
5 days ago
- Health
- The Journal
Lack of progress moving younger people from nursing homes slammed as 'completely unacceptable'
THE OMBUDSMAN GER Deering has criticised the lack of progress made by the HSE to move younger people out of nursing homes, and called for additional government funding to tackle the issue. According to the Ombudsman Annual Report for 2024 – which examined complaints and reports from the Ombudman last year – the HSE has insufficient funding to continue to assist hundreds of young people to move out of nursing homes and into more appropriate accommodation. The Ombudsman in Ireland is a public official who investigates complaints from individuals who believe they have been treated unfairly by certain public service providers. As previously reported by The Journal , more than 1,200 people under the age of 65 in Ireland are living in nursing homes designed for much older people, leaving them frustrated and calling for alternatives . A 2021 Ombudsman investigation found that these people face a number of issues, including isolation from family and friends, a lack of any meaningful social engagement and residing with elderly patients – many of whom suffered from dementia. Since 2021, 102 people have been supported to move to homes of their choosing in the community where this is their wish, as part of a HSE-led 'Under 65 programme'. The Enhanced Quality of Life Supports (EQLS) scheme established in 2021 also improved the lives of those who could not transition out of nursing homes. While the Ombudsman would like to see an increase, the HSE has since said that there is not enough funding to continue to aid many young people in moving out of nursing homes. Deering said in an Ombudsman report that he had received an update from the HSE in November 2024, which made clear that the Under 65 programme 'will falter' this year without additional funding. 'This means that many of those identified for moves to more suitable accommodation will not now be able to do so. This is a major setback and disappointment for the people concerned and their families,' Deering said. 'It is completely unacceptable that this excellent programme, which brought hope and independence to people with disabilities cannot be delivered because of a lack of funding,' the Ombudsman said. He added that progress on transitioning people out of the nursing home system ha, to date, been 'unquestionably slow'. In a report, the Ombudsman called on the government to provide 'sustainable and annual funding' to support younger people in nursing homes through the EQLS scheme, and, where appropriate, funding to move to more suitable accommodation. Recalled payment to deceased carer's account Later in the report, the Ombudsman detailed a number of cases which were flagged with his office and upheld last year. One such case saw the Department of Social Protection recall a payment of over €2,700 it incorrectly believed it had paid to the bank account of a carer who had passed away. Anne* contacted the Ombudsman after the Department recalled a payment it believed had been deposited into her late son Martin's account. Martin had been Anne's carer before his death. Anne and her family repeatedly contacted the Department over a 12-month period to explain the situation and request a refund, but the Department refused to act. Advertisement It later emerged that although Anne had notified the Department of Martin's death, payments for Carer's Allowance and the Carer's Support Grant had continued to be issued to his account. Since the account had been closed, the bank automatically returned the funds to the Department. However, the Department failed to update its records to reflect the returned payments and mistakenly believed Martin had received the funds. As a result, it recalled the payment, which led to the money being withdrawn from Martin's closed account in error. The Department has since apologised to Anne and refunded the incorrectly retrieved payment. It also agreed to pay €1,850 to Anne's family in the form of a Carer's Support Grant, acknowledging that Martin would have qualified for it prior to his death. Dentures and shoes stolen from hospital patient In another case, Andrew* contacted the Ombudsman after his mother's personal belongings, including her dentures and shoes, went missing during her stay at St Vincent's University Hospital in Dublin. Hospital staff initially claimed there was no record of the items being with the patient at the time of admission. However, the Ombudsman uncovered documentation indicating otherwise. An early report from a speech and language therapist noted that Andrew's mother had no difficulty eating. A later report, however, recorded that she was struggling to eat and missing some teeth. Additionally, a therapist's note mentioned she had trouble 'putting on her shoes,' further suggesting the items were with her during her hospital stay. The hospital has since apologised to Andrew and his mother and reimbursed them for the missing items. Ombudsman complaints According to the Ombudsman's annual report, there was a continued increase in complaints about public bodies received by the Ombudsman. The Ombudsman's team dealt with 4,673 complaints last year – an increase of nearly 5% on the 2023 figure. In 2024, 1,497 complaints were made to the Ombudsman about local authorities, with 218 received about Dublin City Council and 150 about Cork City Council. 1,397 complaints were received about Government Departments and Offices with the Department of Social Protection being the subject of 604 complaints. There were also 887 complaints about public bodies in the health sector, with 705 involving the HSE and 149 involving Tusla. * The names were changed in the Ombudsman's report to protect privacy Readers like you are keeping these stories free for everyone... A mix of advertising and supporting contributions helps keep paywalls away from valuable information like this article. Over 5,000 readers like you have already stepped up and support us with a monthly payment or a once-off donation. Learn More Support The Journal
RTÉ News
5 days ago
- Health
- RTÉ News
HSE warns of risk to nursing home exit plan for under-65s
The HSE has warned of a "significant" risk to its programme aimed at reducing the number of people under 65 living in nursing homes. In a letter to the Ombudsman's office, seen by Prime Time, the HSE said it requested €8.5 million to relocate 40 people under the age of 65 from nursing homes in 2025. It was allocated only €4.8 million — enough to fund just 24 moves to more appropriate settings in the community, including group or individual houses or a return to their family home. Separately, in an interview with Prime Time, Ombudsman Ger Deering criticised funding relating to younger people in nursing homes, describing it as "completely unacceptable." "We've seen time and again where ministers and Taoisigh come into the Dáil and they actually apologise for our failings in the past," Mr Deering said, "this is a failing that's happening today, and it's happening because the government is not putting the funding into this programme that is required." The current Programme for Government commits to ending the placement of young people with disabilities in nursing homes. A similar commitment was also made by the last government. But progress has been slow. The number of people under-65 currently living in nursing homes stands at around 1,227, the HSE told Prime Time. Since 2021, just 104 have been moved to more appropriate settings. The HSE letter from last November also said its budget for transitioning younger people from nursing homes to the community would be fully committed by March 2025. "With no security of funding," it stated, "the transition plans for many individuals will either cease or be delayed until further funding can be secured in 2026." The HSE was granted just 32% of its overall requested budget for under 65s, which includes services to those who are in nursing homes and for whom there are no immediate relocation plans. The HSE letter, written by an Assistant National Director of the HSE's National Disability Team, added that "the risk to the overall U65 programme is significant." There is widespread agreement that nursing homes are not appropriate places for under 65s, many of whom are in homes because of brain injury. In 2021, the Ombudsman's office produced a lengthy report on the issue called Wasted Lives. Then Ombudsman, Peter Tyndall, stated that "people who could and should be living in our communities, contributing to our society, are left without hope or futures." Medical professionals who spoke to Prime Time agree. "It is a completely abnormal situation for a younger person to be living in a nursing home often with much older adults who may have conditions like dementia," said Raymond Carson, Medical Director of the Brain Injury Programme at the National Rehabilitation Hospital. "People have said to me how lonely they feel, how imprisoned they are in that context, often far from home and without access to stimulation and support," Mr Carson added. Wasted Lives After the 2021 Wasted Lives report from the Ombudsman the HSE set up its U65 Programme to move younger people to more appropriate settings. Figures supplied to the Labour Party's health spokesperson, Marie Sherlock, in March showed that there were 176 people in nursing homes aged in their 20s, 30s and 40s. One of those is William Scott, a former truck driver who suffered a brain injury after a cardiac arrest in 2013. He was left with short-term memory problems, poor motivation and initiation, and limited mobility on his right side. Now 49, William has spent a decade in a Donegal nursing home which specialises in caring for elderly people with dementia. He is neither elderly nor does he have dementia. He says he feels he is in the wrong place and that he spends his days "in the room, bored out of my mind." William wants ultimately to live more independently, ideally in Dublin where he is from. He receives assistance from the Acquired Brain Injury Ireland charity each week, five hours split over two consecutive days. "It's not near enough" says Gregory Harris, a Community Rehabilitation Assistant with the Acquired Brain Injury Ireland charity. Mr Harris brings William out for social activities – visits to the cinema, friends or family. But two days a week of community rehabilitation are not enough to prepare William to be able to live more independently outside of the nursing home, Mr Harris says. "We get a certain distance with him and in a few days' time, he has gone back again." It needs "to be more consistent," Mr Harris added. For those who remain in nursing homes, there is also the HSE's Enhanced Quality of Life Supports Programme, aimed at providing benefits to those living in nursing homes, such as regular hours with a personal assistant, or devices like an iPad, an exercise bicycle, or a powered wheelchair. The HSE applied for €1.7m from the Department for Disability to fund those supports in 2025, but that application was rejected. So, the HSE has to dig into its overall budget, which is for moving under-65s from nursing homes. It declined a request for interview, but in a statement, it said that its Enhanced Quality of Life Supports funding for under 65s in nursing homes "has not been cut entirely for 2025." It added that it will pay €251,000 from its overall under-65 Programme budget towards the quality-of-life supports. That's less than one-third of the €812,000 allocated in 2024. "If the government wanted this programme to progress, it would progress," Ombudsman Ger Deering said. "It's the Government who sets the standards, the Government who sets the budgets. If the Government decide that people with disabilities actually matter and that people with disabilities are entitled to live the same lives that the rest of us want to live, then the funding would be made available," he added. An Saol One non-governmental charity is stepping in to fill the gap in services provided by the State. An Saol, which supports people with brain injuries, was founded by German national Reinhard Schäler after his son Pádraig was hit by a truck while cycling in the United States. Pádraig, then 22, suffered a serious brain injury. A university graduate and Irish language enthusiast, he can no longer walk or speak, but remains acutely aware of the world around him. "He can understand four languages," Reinhard says. "I speak German to him, his friends speak Irish to him. My wife and I speak Spanish, and he understands that. He has a Spanish carer that talks Spanish to him," he added. Pádraig lives at home with his parents and regularly attends An Saol in Dublin's Santry for therapies. He communicates responses to questions using a beeper. An Saol plans to open a larger facility in Ballymun, including step-down accommodation that could help people avoid nursing homes. 'Bureaucracy' Dublin City Council has made a site available, but Reinhard Schäler says the project is now mired in HSE bureaucracy. "A year and a half ago, we were nearly there" he says. "Then everything stopped." Reinhard says he is now filling in a new set of forms "for the same purpose" as forms he filled in previously. "It's very hard to understand, and it's very frustrating," he said, noting that the HSE is in full support of the proposed project and has highly evaluated the current An Saol service. He says that there is no time to waste. "We have an urgency here. We have the people here who need this now, not in five years or 10 years." In its statement, the HSE said it was "proactively engaged with An Saol Foundation and making significant progress regarding securing a site for a proposed development project. It is anticipated a full submission will be in place for a National HSE Capital Steering meeting in late 2025 or early 2026."
Business Insider
10-06-2025
- Business Insider
Take a look inside Vizcaya, the 45,000-square-foot Gilded Age mansion near the heart of Miami
Vizcaya was James Deering's winter home from 1916 until his death in 1925. Struggling with illness toward the end of his life, James Deering came to Miami, then a small city surrounded by mangrove forests and wetlands, looking for tropical warmth, which was believed to help improve health. By the turn of the century, the Deering family had begun to develop estates around South Florida, with patriarch William Deering purchasing a home in Coconut Grove in 1900. By the time James Deering began building Vizcaya, his brother, Charles Deering, was also developing a winter home in the south of Miami. The property, known today as Deering Estate, also operates as a museum and is open to the public. The main house features 54 rooms, including 34 rooms decorated with their original furniture. Expanding over 45,225 square feet, Vizcaya's main house features the living spaces of James Deering himself, his guests, and the house staff. Envisioned by interior designer Paul Chalfin, Vizcaya took inspiration from the Italian Renaissance adapted to South Florida's subtropical climate, and showcases furniture, artworks, and artifacts purchased by Chalfin and Deering on their travels to Europe. Although Miami's population was estimated to be only 10,000 in 1916, the construction of the Vizcaya estate employed an estimated 1,000 workers, many of whom were Black immigrants from the Bahamas. Apart from the main house, Vizcaya is also home to the Vizcaya Village, the historic quarters of the mansion's workers and farmers that allowed Vizcaya to serve as a self-sufficient farm-to-table estate. The Village expands over 12 acres and includes 11 "architecturally significant" buildings, according to the museum's website. The tour begins in the courtyard, which is adorned with tropical plants. Lined with tropical plants like palms and philodendrons, the courtyard highlights South Florida's natural beauty while adhering to the mansion's European inspirations. While today the courtyard is covered by a glass canopy that allows for the estate's air conditioning, it was originally open to the elements, allowing the tropical climate to seep into the main house. Meant to be used as Vizcaya's main entrance, the East Loggia opens up to the Biscayne Bay. Featuring marble floors and columns and decorated ceilings, the East Loggia was meant to serve as Vizcaya's main entrance for guests arriving by sea, which was Deering's intended — and preferred — way of entering the mansion. It was used as an entrance for guests who arrived by boat, while the current main entrance of the museum was used as a back entrance for guests arriving by car. The room also features a model boat hanging from its ceiling in honor of the explorers who inspired Deering's interpretation of Vizcaya. Although he began living in Vizcaya during his retirement, Deering included multiple working spaces in the property. James Deering was heir to the International Harvester manufacturing firm, which produced tractors and other agricultural machinery, and he worked as its vice president from 1902 until 1909. Deering might have been one of the first prominent Florida "snowbirds," retirees who travel South during the colder months. His downstairs library, located in the northwest corner of the main house, is located steps from the entrance hall that welcomes guests. It features Deering's personal book collection, desks for him and a secretary, and seats for business guests. When closed, the door leading to the next room — a reception room meant for entertaining guests — is concealed within the book-lined walls. The reception room features a ceiling imported from Venice, which had to be resized to fit. The reception room is lined with tropical-inspired silk panels showing palm trees. Our tour guide brought our attention to the ceiling, which is decorated with sculpted panels that extend to the sides of the room. The ceiling was imported from Venice and purchased before construction on the property was finished. By the time workers were putting up the decorations in the mansion, they realized that the ceiling panel did not fit the room dimensions, leading to the restructuring of the panel, which curved into the walls. "We should remember that this house was built during the First World War," curator Flaminia Gennari said in the audio tour. "So to import large quantities from Italy in the middle of the war was very complicated." Vizcaya's telephone line was one of the first in Miami. Wired throughout the house, Vizcaya features a highly innovative telephone system for the time. Only 17 years before the beginning of Vizcaya's construction did the Miami Telephone Company begin providing telephone service to the city. Vizcaya's telephones also featured automatic electric exchange, allowing users to connect directly to the number they dialed without going through a human operator. The telephone room, located between two of Vizcaya's main entertainment rooms, was meant for guests to communicate privately without disturbing the flow of the entertainment. The living room showcased Deering's most impressive collections. The living room, with its 1600s limestone fireplace, features some of Vizcaya's most impressive items, including an "admiral carpet" originally commissioned in the 1450s by the grandfather of King Ferdinand II of Spain, the Spanish king who sponsored Christopher Columbus' exploration of the Americas. The room also features throne-like armchairs where US President Ronald Reagan and Pope John Paul II sat in 1987 during the Pope's visit to America. A centerpiece of the room is the Welte Philharmonic Organ, which was meant to fill the house with music through elaborate sound systems. Designed for guests rather than full-time professional players, the organ uses perforated paper rolls to aid the musicians' performance by adjusting notes and volume. Concealing the organ pipes is an oil painting, which was cut in half to cover wooden doors. "Chalfin had the idea of cutting it in half and using it as the doors of the organs, which is not a very respectful thing to do for a representation of the Virgin Mary, the child, and the saints, but it somehow testifies to the freedom and positive carelessness that they had around old objects," Gennari said in the audio tour. The mansion's formal dining room features the house's oldest artifacts, although it was rarely used. While Deering himself didn't eat in the formal dining room often, he made sure that the room was impressively decorated for his guests. Sitting to the side is the room's most awe-inspiring feature: a marble tabletop sitting on carved bases resembling mythical creatures, which were historical artifacts unearthed near Pompeii, dating back to the times before Mount Vesuvius' eruption. Next to the dining room, on the south side of the mansion, the enclosed loggia gave guests a view of the gardens. The colorful glass panels, designed for Vizcaya, feature the estate's main symbols: the seahorse and the caravan. Providing a view of the garden through the glass panels and double doors, the enclosed loggia allowed guests to take in the garden views while staying cool from the Florida sun. The loggia also connects the gardens to the main house through sculpted iron gates. Aside from giving guests an inside view of the gardens from the ground level, the room also connects the outdoors to the rest of the mansion. Downstairs, the kitchen worked as a serving space for staff to plate food and bring it to guests. When designing Vizcaya, Deering asked for the main kitchen to be built upstairs as he didn't want the smell of food to flood the main entertaining rooms on the first floor. To facilitate the transportation of meals and the serving of guests to the dining room, the entertaining rooms, and the loggia, he built a downstairs serving pantry. Today, the serving pantry cabinets display one set of Deering's fine dining china, the one designated for his 80-foot-long luxury yacht, Nepenthe. Commissioned in 1912 to be shipped from Europe, the original set of china purchased by Deering was transported to America as cargo aboard the Titanic. After the ship sank, a replacement set was ordered and is now displayed. The kitchens feature state-of-the-art Gilded Age technology. Throughout the house, Deering incorporated cutting-edge technology, including annunciators with bells connected throughout the house that Deering or guests could ring at any time to get the house staff's attention. Another then-advanced feature of the serving kitchen were its refrigerators, which were rare at the time. The kitchen also featured a warming oven that helped keep food warm while guests were served. Connecting to the upstairs kitchen, which serves as the house's main cooking area, was a dumbwaiter: a food elevator meant to carry the food cooked upstairs to the downstairs plating area, where staff would then take it to the main entertaining rooms, like the dining and sitting rooms. Upstairs, 24 rooms housed guests, staff, and Deering himself. Nine of the bedrooms were dedicated to guests and each was given a name and decorated uniquely, showcasing the artifacts and furniture purchased by Deering and Chalfin on trips to Europe. While not open to the public, an additional 14 rooms housed staff. Another then-advanced technological feature of Vizcaya was its elevator. Deering was motivated to move to South Florida because of his illness, so accessibility features were built throughout the house, such as the elevator he would take when using a wheelchair or to avoid walking upstairs. Today, the elevator isn't open to the public, and the museum's second floor is not wheelchair accessible. Deering's main office was inspired by the Napoleonic era. Connected to Deering's bedroom and bathroom, the sitting room was his office where he would tend to business and personal matters, such as sorting his mail. The decoration style was inspired by Napoleonic France. Deering's bedroom was modest compared to some of his guest bedrooms. His personal bathroom has one of the most breathtaking views of the property. Opening up to a balcony, Deering's bathroom looks over Biscayne Bay and has one of the best views of the house, although it is not accessible to the public today. The closed-off balcony also leads to a secret door to the Espagnolette, the guest bedroom located next to his, usually reserved for Deering's dearest guests. Spiral staircases lead to the South tower. A set of spiral staircases leads up to the South tower, one of the two guest suites overlooking the estate. The tower bedroom has views of the bay and the gardens. The corner room atop the North tower was designed to transport guests to Europe. "Water reflects upwards to the ceiling and the sound of waves is audible in this room, precisely as upon the quay of this great canal of Venice," noted Chalfin about the room, according to the mansion's website. A central piece in the room is a large wardrobe assembled with 1700s Venetian panels, as well as the antique painted closet doors. The breakfast room was Deering's preferred dining space. Back on the second floor, the breakfast room was the central entertaining spot. The room is lined with oil paintings depicting ocean scenes, and the windows slide into pocket doors, revealing views of the garden. It also features a sound system, with a piano hidden away in a room off the spiral staircase next door and connected to the breakfast room through floor vents that allow sound to travel into the space. Most times, Deering opted to dine in this room rather than the formal dining space. Tucked next to the breakfast room is the main kitchen. Designed to maximize staff efficiency, the main kitchen upstairs has different areas for different tasks, including separate sinks for washing dishes and produce. It also features ice boxes, or refrigerators of the time, powered by salt water. During Deering's time at the estate, Vizcaya employed two French chefs dedicated to food and pastries. Food served at the mansion was sourced from the staff village built across the street, where a farm provided vegetables, dairy, chicken, herbs, and citrus. "You and I could come down and drive into the farm area, stop and buy a dozen Deering eggs and take them home and have them for breakfast, and I think that was probably particularly important during World War I," historian Arva Moore Parks said in the audio tour. "He was able to supply not only himself but his workers also." Inspired by European designs, the gardens feature mazes, terraces, fountains, and more. Inspired by 17th- and 18th-century Italian and French villas, the Vizcaya gardens feature a variety of scenes, from a garden theater to multiple paths and mazes, intended to highlight and enhance the native South Florida flora surrounding the estate. The original layout of Vizcaya featured over 180 acres of subtropical forests. Today, that number has gone down to 50 acres. In 1987, President Ronald Reagan hosted Pope John Paul II at the estate. On September 10, 1987, President Ronald Reagan welcomed Pope John Paul II at Vizcaya, where the two conversed while exploring the gardens and the estate. Atop a garden mount is the Casino, a focal point of the gardens. Located at the top of garden mounds designed to block the reflection of water ponds into the main house, the garden casino — Italian for "little house" — was a space where Deering and his guests could take in the garden views or enjoy the subtropical weather without being in direct contact with the sun. Inside the building, a painted ceiling depicts heavenly images. Underneath, bathrooms and other now closed-off areas hide under decorated ceilings. Originally, the casino overlooked a water park part of the estate, where gondolas would be launched, a crucial part of Deering's vision for Vizcaya. Today, the water park no longer exists, and the land is instead taken up by a Catholic church, hospital, and schools after the Deering family sold part of the property to the Catholic Diocese of St. Augustine in 1946. The opposite side of the estate was once used for clandestine entertainment; now, it is a café. While today a café sits underneath the mansion, the space served as a leisure center during Deering's stay. The rooms were filled with billiard tables, bowling alleys, and leather chairs. Hidden underneath the billiards table was also a roulette table, which Deering often used when his college friends visited the estate. The mansion, which opened at the peak of the Prohibition era, also had a decent supply of liquor, which Deering smuggled into the estate and hid in secret bars and cellars. The swimming pool is half-covered, providing relief from South Florida's relentless sun. Tucked next to the leisure rooms underneath the main house is the half-indoor swimming pool, in which Deering is said to have only swum once. Designed as the main entry point to the mansion, the east side of the mansion opens up to a stone barge in the Biscayne Bay. When he first moved into his winter home in December 1916, Deering arrived by sea on what he intended was the front entrance to Vizcaya. Opening up to the Biscayne Bay, the waterfront side of the property features a stone barge, a sculpted structure that acts as a breakwater and protects the main house from changing tides and waves. Today, the mansion hosts private events and has become a local staple for Quinceañera pictures. Purchased from the Deering family by Miami-Dade County for $1 million in 1962, Vizcaya today operates as a museum open to the public and for private reservations. The estate is often the background of Quinceañera pictures from Miami's large Hispanic population. Walking around the gardens, I saw multiple young women dressed in extravagant gowns posing in the many stunning locations of the estate. Along with being a photographic hot spot, Vizcaya also hosts private events, from Miami Swim Week runway shows to floral-decorated weddings in the gardens. Today, the estate remains an icon of Miami, a city that many would often relate to modern luxury rather than the old and classic wealth on display in Gilded Age -style mansions like Vizcaya.
Yahoo
01-05-2025
- Health
- Yahoo
How to extend the life of almost any grocery item, according to food safety experts
With new tariffs in effect and likely more on the horizon, it's only natural to think about how to save money as prices increase. One way? Extending the life of our groceries to cut costs, not to mention waste. After all, how many of us have tossed expired jars of mayo or fuzz-coated jam (ew) we discovered in the back of the fridge? Even as someone who used to bake for a living, I'm guilty of committing some of these crimes over the years — but I've also picked up some tricks for keeping food edible, longer. In the interest of creating a more comprehensive food-storage guide, I sought the input of two food safety experts: Dr. Amanda Deering, Associate Professor of Fresh Produce Food Safety at Purdue University's Department of Food Science, and Dr. Ellen Shumaker, Director of Outreach for the Safe Plates program at NC State University. Related: How long can your pasta salad stay out? Here's what food safety experts say Because different foods spoil at different rates, I asked them which types we should be most cautious about. "Any foods that require refrigeration will be the ones that spoil more quickly than others," says Deering. "Foods that spoil quickly are milk, raw meat and poultry and cut produce," echoes Shumaker. "These foods all provide high amounts of nutrients for spoilage organisms, have a high amount of available water for these organisms to thrive and are a more neutral pH. (Microorganisms don't grow very well in more acidic or more basic environments.)" So while the bag of pretzels in your cupboard can certainly go stale over time, chilled foods have the shortest lifespans. "Spoilage primarily happens due to the growth of microorganisms that produce off flavors, smells or changes to the texture," says Shumaker. "The growth of these microorganisms depends on a few factors, including various properties of a food product and the time/temperature that the food is kept at." With that in mind, here are some methods to help preserve refrigerated, frozen and pantry items (as well as your hard-earned cash). "An important part of the temperature conversation is that it is really a time/temperature relationship," says Shumaker. "Even at or below 41°F, spoilage bacteria and some types of bacteria that can cause illness, like Listeria, can still grow (just more slowly). For that reason, I recommend keeping leftover prepared foods (like cooked vegetables, cooked meat dishes, cooked pasta or casseroles) for no longer than seven days for food safety." "Fresh produce has a pretty short shelf life," says Deering. "Berries are especially susceptible to spoilage. It's important to not wash the berries until right before you are going to eat them. Adding water allows the spoilage microorganisms to grow and will accelerate spoilage. I would get berries as cool as possible, as quickly as possible, and then wash right before you eat them. Some things, like tomatoes, people say not to store in the fridge because it changes the texture, and that could be true. However, if you want to reduce spoilage, it is still good to get them into the refrigerator." "I recommend using a 'First In, First Out' approach in your kitchen," says Shumaker. "Move older foods to the front of your fridge and pantry to make sure you're using the oldest food first while it is still fresh and ultimately avoid wasting it. It's also helpful to keep track of what you already have before buying new foods to make sure you're consuming food within its shelf life." Isn't it annoying that most recipes only call for a few tablespoons of chopped herbs, but you can only purchase them in large bunches? Rather than letting them wilt away, you can keep them fresh for weeks if stored properly. Just the thought of accidentally sipping sour milk is enough to make my stomach churn; unfortunately, dairy products are among the foods that go rancid the quickest. The good news? Milk can be frozen, and this is my little trick for portioning it out. "It's important to maintain a refrigerator temperature at 41°F or below to maximize the shelf life of your food — the lower temperature slows the growth of these spoilage microorganisms," says Shumaker. "This will also help slow the growth of potentially harmful bacteria that can cause foodborne illness, which are different from spoilage microorganisms. If your fridge is kept above 41°, foods may spoil more quickly. You can confirm the temperature of your fridge by using a fridge thermometer." What would we do without shelf-stable foods? They're lifesavers when your fridge goes kaput, and you generally don't have to babysit them to ensure they don't go bad. That said, even if they can last a while from a safety perspective, taste and texture can be compromised over time. (Note: Canned goods can stay good for years as long as the can is in good shape.) Psst: Did you know flour mites are a thing? I hate to be the bearer of bad news, but, yes, these teeny-tiny pests exist. They can be found in just about any type of dried pantry staple like flour, oats, grains and spices, but transferring these foods from their original packaging to airtight containers can help prevent mites. (If they do show up, they are difficult to get rid of unless you toss out all of your dry ingredients — not fun or cost-effective!) Want your food to last a really long time? "Keeping foods as cool as possible, as quickly as possible, is the best," says Deering. Shumaker adds, "You can consider freezing foods to extend the shelf life." According to the USDA, "Food stored constantly at 0°F will always be safe. Only the quality suffers with lengthy freezer storage." This means that, technically, the ground beef in your freezer could be safe to eat for years as long as the appliance keeps functioning as it should — but you'll want to take steps to prevent freezer burn so it retains its flavor and texture. If you have Amazon Prime, you'll get free shipping, of course. Not yet a member? No problem. You can sign up for your free 30-day trial here. (And by the way, those without Prime still get free shipping on orders of $35 or more.) Our health content is for informational purposes only and is not intended as professional medical advice. Consult a medical professional on questions about your health.
Yahoo
09-04-2025
- Politics
- Yahoo
Portland schools adopt 2025-26 calendar with Yom Kippur and Eid al-Fitr
Apr. 8—Yom Kippur and Eid al-Fitr will be included in Portland's school calendar next year following a unanimous vote by the school board Tuesday night. The district administration proposed adding the Jewish and Muslim holidays as a recognition of the district's growing religious diversity, an idea that originally came from students. All of the religious holidays in the district's current calendar come from the Christian faith. The board heard strong support for the inclusion of Eid from students, school employees, parents and community members, who said Muslim students currently miss out on school because the holiday is not recognized. Safa Mohamed, a Deering High School sophomore representing the Deering Muslim Student Association, thanked the district for taking up the new calendar. "Eid on the calendar means more than a day to us," she said. "It means recognition in our respective schools. It means recognition in the district." Fellow Deering student Khalid Mahamed, who serves as the school's student body president, testified about the challenges of missing school for Eid. "I have been set behind on days, missing hours of sleep, and from time to time when I can't make up those days of school hours, I do get set behind, and that does affect my GPA," he said. Portland City Council Member Pious Ali, a former member of the school board, also spoke in support of the calendar. "No child should have to pick between their religious holidays and their education," Ali testified. "Recognizing these holidays ensures that all students feel valued, included and supported in their learning environment." Deering High School teacher Tyler Jellison said he is never able to teach new material on Eid because so many students miss school. "Overall, it feels like a wasted educational day for all students in Portland public schools," Jellison said. "Additionally, my understanding is that my Muslim colleagues are asked to take a personal day. We are given two personal days a year, so they have one less than myself." Portland Public Schools doesn't keep data on student religion, but the Muslim population in the greater Portland area has grown dramatically over the past decade. Portland isn't the first district in Maine to make this change: Lewiston Public Schools added Eid to its calendar in 2021. Each added holiday will cost the district an additional $65,000, because they would add a paid holiday for hourly staff like ed techs. The district is required to maintain at least 175 in-school days for students and at least 180 days for teachers. In response to questions about how the district will handle scheduling of the holidays, which are not on set dates each year, Director of Strategy Sarah Warren said the district will plan for them similarly to snow days. "We have the projected date, but if something changes at the last minute, we have the flexibility to move it," Warren said. Tuesday's vote isn't a policy change — the school board will have to vote on a calendar each year, but Superintendent Ryan Scallon said the plan would be to include Yom Kippur and Eid going forward. District administrators and board members have described the addition of these two holidays as only a first step toward acknowledging the religious diversity of students. "The attempt in this calendar is to move towards including all major holidays from the holidays that our students celebrate. But we can't get there all the way yet," said board Chair Sarah Warren. "So we chose one high holiday from Judaism and one high holiday from the Muslim religion, and I think that after we get feedback, we can see what we can do in future years. But this is an attempt to move us in the right direction." The calendar vote happened during the board's final budget meeting. The board had not taken up the budget vote yet at press time. This story will be updated. Copy the Story Link We believe it's important to offer commenting on certain stories as a benefit to our readers. At its best, our comments sections can be a productive platform for readers to engage with our journalism, offer thoughts on coverage and issues, and drive conversation in a respectful, solutions-based way. It's a form of open discourse that can be useful to our community, public officials, journalists and others. We do not enable comments on everything — exceptions include most crime stories, and coverage involving personal tragedy or sensitive issues that invite personal attacks instead of thoughtful discussion. You can read more here about our commenting policy and terms of use. More information is also found on our FAQs. Show less
