June 2015 36 6 Issue of McKnight's Long Term Care News
The June 2015 issue of McKnight's Long-Term Care News
Analysis
New staffing rules redux
The Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services' proposed rule for skilled nursing facilities in fiscal 2016 contains some "must read" information about new staff reporting ...
big picture
ADAPT's cynical moves
What kind of cruel, heartless person could openly criticize disabled people in wheelchairs? I guess that cruel, heartless person would have to be me.
News
AHCA announces ambitious new quality initiative goals
The largest nursing home association in the country has announced a campaign to significantly reduce poor outcomes and hospital readmission rates, and tackle other quality ...
Minnix: We have outdated views on aging
Aging services over the next decade should be looking at redefining age, improving practices, innovating solutions and transforming policy, the leader of a top senior ...
Providers cheer bill, but want cap relief
Long-term care providers were among those cheering loudest when the Senate returned from its spring recess and promptly voted 92-8 to pass H.R. 2, ensuring ...
Awards pile up for McKnight's
Another May, another slew of awards for McKnight's Long-Term Care News.
Drug-resistant bacteria lurks
A Boston-based study of 152 nursing home residents with advanced dementia found about 20% harbor strains of drug-resistant bacteria.
Exercise helps brain matter
Cardiorespiratory fitness can change seniors' brains, new research reveals.
Budget plans target Medicare, Medicaid
The Senate has joined the House in passing an austere spending blueprint that trims support for Medicare, Medicaid and other social programs.
Tech contest is open for entries
The 2015 McKnight's Excellence in Technology awards program has returned, giving long-term care facilities a place to shine.
SNF pay to rise by $500 million
Medicare officials said they hope to increase skilled nursing facility reimbursements by $500 million in 2016 under a proposed new payment rate.
State News
State News for June 2015
Rhode Island Gov. Gina Raimondo (D) wants to reduce nursing home reimbursement rates by 3% and raise providers' bed tax ceiling by 0.5%. But she ...
Features
Flu keeps the heat on
Vaccinations and the return of previously extinguished diseases such as measles were all over the news media this past winter, generating discussion about how vulnerable ...
Team coverage plans
When wound education specialist Rhonda Kistler travels to the 25 long-term care facilities in her region, she often works with wound care nurses on effective ...
60 Seconds with...
60 Seconds with ... Richard J. Hodes
Q: How will the Big Data Portal's launch help ease concerns about Alzheimer's disease?
Ask the care expert
Ask the care expert ... about antibiotic stewardship
According to SHEA (Society for Healthcare Epidemiology of America) antibiotic stewardship refers to "a set of coordinated strategies to improve the use of antimicrobial medications ...
Resident care
Latest Alzheimer's discovery looks like a real eye-opener
Extra sleep can help fruit flies overcome Alzheimer's-like memory problems, according to new research out of Washington University School of Medicine in St. Louis.
Happy mind could lead to healthy heart
Gratitude for the positives in life might improve mood and sleep, according to a rare study examining the effect of spirituality on heart failure patients.
Ask the treatment expert
Ask the Treatment Expert ... about pressure ulcers
Turning, repositioning and mobilization are important interventions to assist in pressure ulcer prevention. Many clinicians continue to maintain an every two-hour turning intervention that has ...
Wound care
Electromagnet treatment shows promise
Pulsed electromagnetic field therapy appears to accelerate wound healing and improve blood circulation in chronic diabetic foot ulcers, according to a small study by researchers.
New guidance: assess risks, document for all in facilities
Updated guidelines on preventing and managing pressure ulcers are now available for use.
Ask the nursing expert
Ask the nursing expert ... about patient-focused care
Can you give some highlights on patient-centered care?
Nursing
Yet another teamwork benefit: Workplace infections go down
Healthcare-associated infection rates are reduced when nurses and physicians work collaboratively, according to an analysis by New York researchers.
Nursing diversity improves ... but slowly
Though nursing's ranks are becoming more diverse, there's still much work to be done to make it reflective of the U.S. population.
Ask the payment expert
Ask the payment expert ... about quality metrics
A metric is a measurement of some sort of factor. For a quality metric, we are measuring quality in your facility. Companies measure performance against ...
Payment & policy
Providers challenge proposal that adjusts payments, care
Providers in the post-acute care sector seem to be united in wanting BACPAC to take a hike.
Patient CARE Act is probed
Because it does not allow for states' consent, the proposed Medicaid Patient CARE Act block-grant program likely will be considered unconstitutional, say two public policy ...
Ask the legal expert
Ask the legal expert ... about surveyor citations
One of the first opportunities for a facility to refute surveyor citations or deficiencies and have the survey agency remove them is the Informal Dispute ...
Legal Matters
HCR ManorCare 'vigorously' refutes whistleblower suits
HCR ManorCare is vowing not to back down from its refutation of three "whistleblower" lawsuits that allege the giant nursing home and rehabilitation chain fraudulently ...
Alzheimer's spousal sex case has fallout
The case of a 78-year-old retired lawmaker who was prosecuted for alleged sexual abuse of his Alzheimer's-afflicted wife highlights a need for nursing homes to ...
Design
Design Decisions: Ready for therapy
Otterbein St. Mary's new $1.5 million Designated Therapy Wing sprang up from pure determination — to elevate service and care levels, to increase marketability and ...
How to do it…
How to do it ... antipsychotics management
Start with root cause analysis, says Denise Wassenaar, RN, MS, LNHA, MatrixCare. Remember that antipsychotics are not FDA- approved for behavioral symptoms in dementia.
A day in the life
Extending Sulpician reverence
The Rev. Leo Larrivee lends a special touch to life around his Charlestown continuing care retirement community in Catonsville, MD
I couldn't live without...
I couldn't live without ... Redilearning
Consistency in staff training can be a difficult — if not impossible — task, especially for providers with multiple sites, such as Advanced Healthcare solutions.
Technology
Data security concerns still haunt Medicare contractors
Information security at nine selected Medicare administrative contractors, at least as of two years ago, was improving, but deficiencies remain, according to a report from ...
Opinion
Passion over page views
I love technology. I'm using some right now. It's technology, after all, that translates brain waves and finger twitches and makes it possible for me ...
Company news
Ventas has record quarter, unveils SNF spin-off plans
Real estate investment trust heavyweight Ventas flexed its muscles during the first quarter of 2015 as it reported record revenues and a plan to spin ...
A Mercy-LSS deal is near
Pending board approval of both organizations, Mercy Hospital St. Louis was preparing to transfer the ownership of 120 skilled nursing beds on its campus to ...
Vendor news
Latest dehydration tool is a pressurized fluid reservoir
Despite dozens of studies on dehydration in the elderly, little research offers conclusive advice on how to solve the problem. A new device hopes to ...
Practitioner tool updated for mobile use
PointClickCare released its latest version of an ePrescribing and Physician Encounters line at the AMDA - The Society for Post-Acute and Long-Term Care conference in ...
Editor’s desk
4th Tech Awards program a perfect chance to thrive
I've learned after many years of covering long-term care that certain things are sure to arouse providers' anger — over-regulation, under-payment and reckless media accounts ...
Profile
Profile: Diane Carter
When Diane Carter was 14 years old, she volunteered as a candy striper at a nursing home near her home in Denver.
