In observance of the Independence Day holiday, Long-Term Living will take a break from publishing news, articles and blogs on July 4. We'll be back Thursday, July 5. Read More »
Long-Term Living talks with Front Porch CEO Gary Wheeler about helping not-for-profits (NFPs) survive these challenging economic times.People and organizations need to do more with less. For stand-alone NFP organizations, this has become increasingly difficult. Read More »
LEED certification is by no means a new concept, but in the LTC industry, many owners and operators have been tentative to embrace the concept and make it work on a large scale. Here's one owner that has done just that. Read More »
For most families, entry into a nursing home is like being teleported onto a strange new planet. The arrival is often swift and unanticipated, and the customs are foreign and frequently unnerving. Consider what services you can offer to improve the experience of anxious family members. Read More »
Leaders digest: So the ACA stays. What now? Long-Term Living’s editors speak with leaders in the long-term and post-acute care industry the day the Supreme Court decision is announced. Read More »
CONTINUING COVERAGE: Healthcare organizations and agencies react to this morning’s Supreme Court decision to keep the Accountable Care Act in place, deeming it constitutional. (Updated 5:20pm EDT) Read More »
BREAKING NEWS: Supreme Court has decided the Affordable Care Act will stay in place. The majority voted to keep individual mandate and the right for Congress to offer funding for state reform programs. Read More »
Private pay has become the holy grail of long-term care, and a powerful combination of industry leadership and political action is opening up access for the consumer to new funding options. Every owner of a life insurance policy has the legal right to convert their policy to pay for long-term care while still alive—but too few consumers and LTC industry professionals are aware of this fact. Read More »
Last spring (May 2011), the Office of the Inspector General (OIG) published a report titled, "Medicare Atypical Antipsychotic Drug Claims for Elderly Nursing Home Residents." Here is what medical directors practicing in long-term care had to say about the appropriate prescribing of antipsychotic medications. Read More »
Cutting-edge organizations that are effectively meeting the challenges of caring for an aging population with acquired brain injuries are implementing strategies that promote good health and quality of life by actively engaging both mind and body. Read More »
Solving the problem of hospital readmissions will take much more than follow-up calls at home. Each link in the care chain has quality improvements to make, say health IT experts at the 2012 LTPAC Health IT Summit. Read More »
With the federal government’s escalating war on healthcare fraud and abuse, long-term care operators are on high alert in their efforts to be compliant in documentation and reporting. A leading educator pounds home the need for documentation and compliance. Read More »
The stability in nursing care market fundamentals continues, as occupancy remains essentially flat, according to NIC MAP. In 1Q12, nursing care occupancy was 88.2 percent, which is unchanged from the prior quarter and a 30 basis point decrease in the past year. Read More »
NASL’s Cynthia Morton shares insights on Congressional legislation and CMS innovation projects with attendees at this week’s eHDS User Group meeting. Read More »
While not every prospective adverse event can be mapped out with anticipated responses and scenarios, there are steps owners and providers can take, especially in the first 24 hours after a serious event, to better protect residents, their families and employees. Read More »
Consumer empowerment is on the rise, and HIT leaders explain why the LTPAC industry is looking with new eyes at another potential data source for electronic health records: the residents themselves. Read More »
In community life, physical spaces help or hinder communication. Room configurations have a definite impact on how people communicate and interact within that space. Read More »
Today’s morning sessions at the LTPAC HIT Summit included the “Roadmap for 2012-2014” and the meaningful use keynote by Deputy National Coordinator for Programs and Policy Judy Murphy, RN. Both share how far we’ve come in the last two years, and how much further we need to go. Read More »
Another leading federal health insurance regulator takes industry knowledge and expertise to private health insurer. Does he know something about SCOTUS we don't? Read More »
I am back to square one with shabby looking AFOs. I am going to contact my former orthotists for their input. But, I may have to go to a different orthotic company to get the braces I want. Read More »
AANAC’s Judi Kulus provides a roadmap through the maze of recent MDS 3.0 updates and errata releases, while pointing out some potential pitfalls in handling resident interviews, assessments, file error correction and queries to CMS. Read More »
Owner/operator, management contractor or lessee, how you approach business risks depends upon what side of the coin you fall. Business risks (and strategies) differ depending on a facility’s business model. Read More »
Another bitter battle is brewing on Capitol Hill over how to prevent student loan interest rates from increasing from the current 3.4 percent to 6.8 percent on July 1, and believe it or not, nursing homes and other long-term care facilities may be asked to help pay the tab. Read More »
In Texas, an innovative approach by academia and the long-term care industry to improve the culture of long-term care offers CNAs education to improve their skill levels and professionalism. With this background in critical thinking, they can begin to take their first steps on the career ladder. Read More »
Can religion add quality to life in advanced age? Can it do so when dementia sets in? Ethnographic evidence, abundantly found in long-term care, speaks of the salutary contribution religion makes in advanced age. Read More »
With the growing use of electronic data in healthcare to improve quality of care and lower provider costs, more long-term care organizations are making the transition from paper medication administration records (MARs) to electronic medication administration records (eMARs). Read More »
When it comes to building a team, forget corporate retreats and singing “Kumbaya” around the campfire. Here are five practical, easy-to-incorporate strategies you can use at your nursing stations starting today. Read More »
Experts at this week’s International Society of Advance Care Planning & End of Life Care conference discuss medical ethics, caregiver responsibilities, and a culture of avoidance when it comes to end-of-life care decisions. Read More »
In my years as a med nurse, unit manager and DON I always enjoyed working with hospice. My experience was that they were also there for the resident and staff. That is why hospice belongs in long-term care. Let us help you help the resident. Let’s collaborate and share the load. How can we help you today? Read More »
A resident’s withdrawal from life’s opportunities does not have to be a permanent condition. How can you help a resident who is unhappy, has lost interest in life, or has become testy and difficult? Read More »
