May 2013 34 5 Issue of McKnight's Long Term Care News

Top news stories from the May 2013 issue of McKnight's Long-Term Care News.

News

Room charge rises to $84k

Long-term care providers have been able to sustain modest room-rate hikes, according to the 10th annual Cost of Care Survey from insurance company Genworth.

Obama's cuts draw hot provider rebuke

President Obama's proposed budget is dead in the water as long-term care providers see it. They stand to lose $81 billion over 10 years if ...

Tech stars to be recognized

Applications are now being accepted for the second annual McKnight's Excellence in Technology Awards program.

Antipsychotic goals missed, officials say

Skilled nursing facilities are expected to have missed their overall goal of reducing off-label use of antipsychotics by 15% for 2012, but they should continue ...

Drug withdrawals are advised

Providers should be taking most of their dementia residents off antipsychotics — and can generally do so without fear of relapse to dementia-related behaviors — ...

AGS reverses aspirin vote

Elderly people with type 2 diabetes should not take aspirin to prevent cardiovascular disease, according to draft guidelines from the American Geriatrics Society. This reverses ...

Early dementia, diabetes linked

Diabetics are at risk of developing dementia earlier and dying sooner, according to research in the American Journal of Epidemiology.

Sequester cuts are bringing changes to survey process

The Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services will change some nursing home survey procedures in response to budget cuts from sequestration, according to memos released ...

SNFs' role in end-of-life care is growing

The number of people dying in hospitals decreased 8% from 2000 to 2010 even as overall hospitalizations rose, suggesting nursing homes, hospices and home health ...

Features

Flex bathing for all

Most long-term care nursing assistants would agree that giving residents baths or showers is one of the most difficult aspects of caregiving. It also can ...

Clarifying designs

The housing and care of Alzheimer's disease and dementia patients has been on a roll. The recent progression of designs and elements has led to ...

60 Seconds with...

60 seconds with ... Audrey Weiner, DSW, MPH, president and CEO of Jewish Home Lifecare

Q: You've been using technology in novel ways at Jewish Home Lifecare. What's the key to getting seniors to use technology to help improve their ...

Ask the care expert

Ask the care expert ... about tracking pressure ulcer prevalence

Our facility tracks facility-acquired pressure ulcers, but I would also like to report pressure ulcer prevalence among the residents. I am not clear about the ...

Resident care

Fish oil may bolster immune responses, study asserts

In another boost for fish oil, a study has found it enhances the function of B cells, which can benefit immunocompromised individuals.

Stomach acid drugs raise risk of C. diff

Stomach acid is often treated with medications such as Pepcid, but that could put long-term care residents or hospitalized patients at risk for Clostridium difficile, ...

Ask the treatment expert

Ask the treatment expert ... about 'micro movements' in bed

I recently read an article addressing the movement of patients while in bed. It was conducted in the United Kingdom and contains valuable information.

Wound care

Learning on the fly: Unlikely target for wound care found

What do a nursing home resident's skin and a fruit fly's exoskeleton have in common? At first glance, not much. But it turns out that ...

Investigators find wound healing 'switch'

Researchers recently identified a molecular "switch" mechanism that takes place during successful wound care healing. The discovery is likely to aid in the understanding of ...

Ask the nursing expert

Ask the nursing expert ... about improving turnover rates

I have been in my director of nursing position at my new job for about three months now and I find that our turnover rate ...

Nursing

Guidance on conversations could help nurses, residents

Nursing leaders should curb 'lateral hostility' by addressing incidents as soon as they occur, advises a recent article in American Journal of Nursing. In a ...

Meditating leads to compassion: study

Meditation can make people more compassionate, according to a new study. Researchers from Harvard University and Northeastern University looked at whether meditating could lead to ...

Ask the payment expert

Ask the payment expert ... about the observation stay loophole

We've had problems with residents being caught in the hospital "observation stay loophole." What can we do to ensure they qualify for coverage at our ...

Payment & policy

CMS fact sheet gives rules on 'maintenance' caregiving

The Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services has issued a fact sheet, that clarifies the conditions the terms under which "maintenance therapy" will be covered ...

CMS eases doc delegation

Skilled nursing operators now have greater flexibility in allowing non-physicians to do certain tasks. The Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services clarified what may be ...

Ask the legal expert

Ask the legal expert ... about mandating flu shots

We've decided that next flu season we're going to mandate our staff members get flu shots. Are we on firm legal ground?

Legal Matters

Judge lets kickback case vs. therapy provider go forward

A whistleblower lawsuit involving a nursing home chain and therapy providers in Missouri can move forward, a federal judge has ruled. The False Claims Act ...

County not liable for lax workers: judge

Even if county nursing home workers provide poor care, the county is not liable unless the inadequate care results directly from an official policy or ...

Having my say

Beyond memory care

There has been a trend of late to refer to specialized care of individuals with dementia as "memory care." I understand the need for a ...

An LTC shrink's mind

These are the initial posts of the popular new McKnights.com blog "The World According to Dr. El." See more from her at McKnights.com.

Design

Putting first things first

A recipe for a complicated nursing home renovation: Take one facility that hasn't been updated in 45 years, add a strict budget and keep residents ...

How to do it…

How to do it ... Mortgage financing

FHA-backed mortgages are becoming popular with long-term care facilities as conventional banks are increasingly uncertain about the impact healthcare reform and financing will have on ...

A day in the life

Flag day comes early

Activities Director Pat Roza didn't go to a big box store to replace the tattered American flag at the 62-bed Elant at Wappingers Falls nursing ...

I couldn't live without...

I couldn't live without ... McKesson's Six Sigma team

Thanks to McKesson's Six Sigma team, Allcare Pharmacy was able to make several workflow and process improvements, says Allcare Pharmacy COO Stephen Carroll.

Technology

Report: IT for long-term care on the rise, needs nurturing

Information technology adoption and exchange of health information across the long-term care and post-acute continuum "has not yet reached broad scale adoption," but "promising" IT ...

ITUpdate

A growing number of healthcare providers are adopting mobile technologies, a new study by IT trade organization CompTIA has found. A survey of 375 healthcare ...

Opinion

A not-so-joyful noise

I'm sure you remember the old joke: "Why are nursing homes so noisy? Because we forget people actually live there." Oh sorry, that's not a ...

Company news

Aviv finally finds success with $279M initial public offering

Aviv REIT Inc. netted nearly $279 million in an initial public offering of common stock. The Chicago-based company first tried to go public in 2008 ...

New name for Advocat Inc.

Advocat Inc., which operates 48 skilled nursing centers, changed its name to Diversicare Healthcare Services as of March 15. Its facilities already operated under the ...

BusinessBriefs

Benedictine Health System President and CEO Dale M. Thompson will retire in December. Thompson is a former president of the American Health Care Association.

Vendor news

Judge: Expert testimony not needed in spa tub death suit

The estate of a woman who died in an Emeritus Corp. senior living community may pursue wrongful death and medical malpractice claims without providing expert ...

MS drug Tecfidera approved, awaited

The approval of Biogen Idec's MS therapy Tecfidera follows months of breathless Wall Street hype, and it looks like doctors are psyched for the drug, ...

CompanyBriefs

Pfizer must pay $142 million for the marketing and prescribing of epilepsy drug Neurontin for unapproved uses, a federal appeals court has ruled. The justices ...

Business & Marketing

Re-visit the IPS

The primary document governing investment decision making by fiduciaries is the investment policy statement (IPS). The fiduciaries are the board and finance committee members, as ...

The big picture

The real labor problem

Long-term care operators are understandably giddy about the sudden prospect of immigration reform. Such a change holds the promise of a larger labor pool at ...