February 2014 35 2 Issue of McKnight's Long Term Care News
Top news stories from the February 2014 edition of McKnight's Long-Term Care News.
News
CMS wants tougher emergency prep rules
Long-term care facilities would have to meet more comprehensive emergency preparedness guidelines if a newly proposed rule from the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services ...
Call to slash therapy caps
The chairman of the Medicare Payment Advisory Commission has urged a House committee to set lower Medicare Part B therapy spending caps.
Newest wound care insights
Wound care continues to be a growing challenge in the long-term care sector. But many facilities are not doing enough to ensure success, according to ...
Dual eligibles moved out of LTC face risks
Dual eligibles who move from a long-term care facility to home- and community-based services have a 40% increased risk of a potentially preventable hospital stay.
Inpatient admissions plummet
A new admissions policy has driven hospital inpatient stays to record low levels, according to Citigroup analysts.
Glucose meters views sought
Federal authorities are accepting comments through the first week of April on newly proposed stricter guidelines for blood glucose monitoring systems.
Hand washing might be moot
Caregivers who wear gloves can likely save time and skip hand washing before putting them on without worrying about increasing nosocomial infection rates.
Jimmo guidance: Document goal before you provide care
Skilled nursing facilities should not claim that therapy was to maintain a patient's condition if documentation reflected only an improvement goal.
Bookkeeper linked to long-term scheme
A Wisconsin bookkeeper who worked at a nursing home for 31 years is suspected of garnering $850,000 in what authorities describe as a complex embezzlement ...
State News
State News
MINNESOTA — Residents of rural long-term care facilities have been scrambling to find rides to medical appointments due to a change enacted by Blue Cross/Blue ...
Features
Feature: Prescribing Unity
Assembling a well-coordinated medication management team requires solid communication, collaboration and convergence of clinical professionals
Feature: All together now
Rehabilitation professionals still are navigating challenges of providing group, concurrent therapies in a world that has come to value individual therapy more
60 Seconds with...
60 seconds with ... Rep. Diane Black
Q: You recently introduced a bipartisan bill to create a bundled payment system that would give a lump sum to acute and post-acute providers for ...
Ask the care expert
Ask the care expert ... about the ISTAP tool kit
I am in a new charge position and when I went to training, someone kept mentioning "ISTAP" with reference to skin tears. Do you know ...
Resident care
Vitamin E slows functional decline in AD patients: study
Vitamin E could slow down the functional decline of patients with mild or moderate Alzheimer's disease, according to new research.
Chinese extract eases neuropathic pain
There may be new help for those with inflammatory and neuropathic pain, from a traditional Chinese herb.
Ask the treatment expert
Ask the treatment expert ... about pressure maps
Can you explain the purpose of a pressure map and the usefulness when evaluating the function of a therapeutic support surface?
Wound care
Wound care research is poor and has few answers: review
Research on wound care therapy tends to be poor and reveals few insights for new treatment options, according to Johns Hopkins researchers.
New findings explain stubborn wounds
Why do chronic wounds repair so slowly? Blame a toxic healing environment, new study results assert.
Ask the nursing expert
Ask the nursing expert ... about addiction in the profession
I heard that a lot of nurses have issues with addiction. Is this true?
Nursing
Program cut MRSA by a third in VA facilities, analysis finds
A nationwide initiative to reduce methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus in veterans' nursing homes dramatically slashed the infection rate, and could provide a framework for other nursing ...
CDC outlines 2014 global health threats
Antibiotic resistance and prescription drug abuse are among the top global threats expected in 2014, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.
Ask the payment expert
Ask the payment expert ... about the Brief Interview for Mental Status
Is there anything we should be doing with the results of the Brief Interview for Mental Status (BIMs) and PHQ-9 that we get from the ...
Payment & policy
CMS wants tighter oversight for Medicare prescriptions
The Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services has seen enough and wants to gain more control over drug-prescribing practices for the Medicare Part D program.
OIG: Hospices often out of compliance, need framing
The Department of Health and Human Services' watchdog arm recently said hospice providers need stronger oversight measures. It also noted more than $5.8 billion in ...
Ask the legal expert
Ask the legal expert ... about hidden cameras
Staff members have discovered a hidden camera that family members planted in their loved one's room, suspecting that she was being abused or not take ...
Legal Matters
ACA objection by provider earns temporary injunction
A Catholic long-term care provider and the federal government opposed each other in recent Supreme Court filings over the Affordable Care Act's so-called "contraception mandate."
Feds join suit against hospitalist company
The federal government has joined in a whistleblower lawsuit alleging that a large hospitalist company engaged in systematic "upcoding" of Medicare and Medicaid claims.
Design
Design Decisions: Hitting the right notes
Company's first big construction project overcomes challenges and plays on Nashville region's tastes for music, art and local attractions
How to do it…
How to do it ... wound care
Wound care programs can be the bane of long-term care providers, or they can be a source of clinical pride and marketing material, as well ...
A day in the life
Therapist heads to the Paralympics
When top athletes arrive in Sochi, Russia, for the Paralympic Games next month, at least one long-term care professional will be representing the Stars and ...
I couldn't live without...
I couldn't live without ... the SARA/3M-HomeFree interface from JNL Technologies
As 2013 came to a close, 3M phased out support of its HomeFree nurse call system. Leaders at Allegro Senior Living carefully weighed replacement options. ...
Technology
Internet connections are just getting started, experts say
If last month's International CES show had a strong message for providers, it was this: Being connected to the Internet is about to take on ...
ITUpdate
» The government's five-star system for rating nursing homes does not reflect the quality of life experienced by residents with preserved cognition, according to newly ...
Opinion
A pause for civility
It was a simple question, one I've asked before in moments of extreme desperation. But this time, the answer went beyond merely helpful.
Company news
Local 'religiosity' often tied to fairer business practices
A number of the nation's largest nursing facility corporations might have better business practices because their headquarters are in communities where religion is important to ...
Freddie Mac option debuts
A California long-term care provider has become the first to obtain financing through a new revolving credit facility offered by Freddie Mac.
BusinessBriefs
» The Cahill Group, based in Chicago, has acquired a portfolio of Rosewood Care Centers skilled nursing facilities for $250 million. The SNFs are in ...
Vendor news
Health technology devices reach new level at CES show
Several new health devices debuted at the 2014 International Consumer Electronics Show in Las Vegas, including some that may help long-term care providers.
Product offers hope for those with OSA
A new device that gives mild electronic stimulation therapy to the upper airway during sleep is effective in reducing obstructive sleep apnea, according to new ...
CompanyBriefs
» Relias Learning has acquired the Hospice Education Network from the principals of Weatherbee Resources. This will add more than 160 hospice and palliative care ...
The big picture
Inching toward success
Our brand new year is already into its second month. So chances are fairly good you have been exposed to more than a few suggestions ...
Editor’s desk
How's this for a change? Poll says they like you
Lost in the year-end shuffle was nursing home operators' most optimistic story of 2013: The public has an all-time high opinion of you.
Profile
Profile: Work feels just like home
If a Ciena Healthcare Management facility feels especially homelike, it's possibly because of Kay Peruski.
