As the baby boomer generation ages, long-term care is seeing an emergence of care facilities and policies that are designed to bring care equity to residents who are lesbian, gay, bisexual or transgender. How have you taken proactive steps to make sure your caregivers are educated in cultural acceptance? Read More »
Five years of data from Center for Medicare & Medicaid’s largest experiment in performance-based reimbursement are mixed, but physician groups succeeded in slashing the costs for dual-eligibles. Read More »
What started out as a comparative analysis on reimbursement rates related to catheter-based urinary tract infections (CAUTIs) has opened a huge can of worms concerning hospital datasets and their reliability as performance measurements. Read More »
Dementia treatments and memory care regimens have come a long way—if we can first get past the biggest initial obstacle: Patient-centric denial. Read More »
The healthcare system has taken three large steps toward longitudinal care—and toward embracing long-term/post-acute care’s role in that picture. Progress on the Meaningful Use stages and templates for the new Continuity of Care Document were among the highlights. Read More »
In a milestone report released today, the Institute of Medicine (IOM) analyzes why the U.S. healthcare system needs a new business-based attitude, and why it struggles to learn from its own data. Read More »
Senior living providers often discuss occupancy rates. They live or die by rates and the mix that is tied to them in order to make the proforma work. What If we changed the discussion from "What is your occupancy rate?" to "Do you have a waiting list?" The discussion becomes less about percentages and more about the customer experience. Read More »
The best way to reduce the cost of trips to the ER and doctor’s office is to stay home. One study finds that remote health monitoring technology is ripe for home care and non-hospital care locations like assisted living. Read More »
In March 2013, the majority of nursing home residents will experience a radical change—no more government checks in the mail. Long-term care facilities should start now to educate their staffers and their residents on the new electronic direct deposit system. Read More »
Seniors housing has staged a recovery from the dark days of 2006. Today, lenders have money to deploy and developers and owners have plans on the drawing board to make senior living and attractive and quality option for the new generation of older Americans. Read More »
The American Health Care Association has added a new technology tool for long-term care facilities to analyze their quality performance and to help reduce hospital readmissions. Read More »
When it comes to getting Medicaid assistance for long-term care costs, too many rule variations among the states have created a chaotic system, a GAO report concludes. Read More »
We’re still enjoying the vestiges of summer, but it’s never too early to begin educating elderly residents about influenza risks and the importance of vaccinations. Read More »
Here’s your chance to realize your community’s design potential with RESCUE ME—a program created by our sister publication, Environments for Aging, to bring communities and designers together to demonstrate the impact of renovated space in the LTC environment. Read More »
One more reason to consider shedding those extra pounds: A neurology study suggests that obesity can contribute to reduced cognition in later life. Read More »
As Medicare and Medicaid programs grow, the insurance market is spending billions to get a larger slice of the government-backed healthcare markets. Read More »
Online marketing has skyrocketed in recent years and if you, long-term care provider, have yet to dip your toes into the Web waters, now’s the time if you hope to get a leg up on your local competition. Read More »
The Center for Medicare & Medicaid's requested extension for the ICD-10 transition hasn’t been made official yet, but providers shouldn’t waste any time continuing their planning. Read More »
No one ever said being a long-term caregiver is easy. At times, it’s downright olympic. Going for the gold takes teamwork, dedication and … well, a sense of humor. Read More »
Ryan Frederick, founder and principal of Point Forward Solutions, shares with Long-Term Living magazine his strategies for transitioning senior living facilities into the spaces consumers will want tomorrow. Read More »
Pennsylvania's Keystone Beacon community helped develop a software program that can sort through MDS 3.0 and prepare resident care records for electronic submission Read More »
Seniors in seven states soon will need prior authorization for powerchairs under Medicare. The homecare industry voices its disappointment in the lack of physician documentation standards for authorization. Read More »
Home healthcare agencies are the focus of $5 million in suspect Medicare claims, according to this week's report from the Office of Inspector General. Read More »
In this week's blog, John Derr, RPh, discusses the importance of harmony between clinical design and information technology. Successful implementation of transitions of care and longitudinal health records will require bringing both the clinical side and the technology side into the future together. Read More »
Read about the regions and job titles that pay nursing home employees the most in the annual nursing home payscale survey, released this week. Read More »
The principals at three: living architecture maintain that one can incorporate hospitality design features at any phase of a senior living community’s life—from early planning through current status to future expansions. Their critical takeaway: One can never afford a dull community. Read More »
The Department of Health & Human Services has released the LTC chapter in the national plan to reduce infections: C. difficile and urinary tract infections are the first of many high-priority targets. Read More »
