A new report from the Office of Inspector General accuses skilled nursing facilities (SNFs) of misusing their Medicare payments, since more than one-third of SNFs don’t fulfill—or even create—the care plans and discharge goals required for their residents. Read More »
Modern detergents and new laundering technologies have prompted the Center for Medicare & Medicaid Services to revise the laundry notes under F tag 411. Read More »
At times, health conditions, such as quadriplegia, can have some unusual manifestations on other parts of the body. Are they the result of an existing condition or a symptom of another health issue? Don't ignore spots, rashes, discoloration and other changes as Kathy Mears can verify. Read More »
In many LTC facilities, nurse aides and practical nurses don't always have the benefit of regular contact with physicians and registered nurses. Do your NAs and PNs have the training they need to recognize skin conditions and administer the best wound care? Read More »
Bathing a person with Alzheimer's or other dementias can be a challenge and a frustration for the individual and the caregiver. Cindy Keith, RN, BS, is a certified dementia practitioner, lecturer and trainer. Her practical advice can ensure that frayed nerves, tempers, and emotions will not "bubble" up to ruin what should be a pleasurable experience. Read More »
How many of your residents have some sort of incontinence? More than you think. Improper assessment and MDS 3.0 coding of incontinence can result in inadequate treatment for residents, costly overuse of incontinence products and payment issues for caregivers. Read More »
One law firm has created a website to educate consumers about nursing home neglect—and to give them easy access to lawyers who specialize in eldercare neglect cases. Will other states follow suit? Read More »
Several recent studies show varying levels of success for infection-reduction programs, including efforts to curb MRSA, CLABSI and CAUTI rates. But the jury is still out on whether healthcare-associated infection (HAI) programs are making progress because of Medicare's new policies—or in spite of them. Read More »
Bathing is a regular part of routine hygiene and good skin care, but for a person with Alzheimer’s or other dementias, it can be an upsetting, even terrifying, experience. Read More »
Staff overload could cost your facility plenty, as one research center draws a direct relationship between burnout and healthcare-associated infections. 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 »
Pressure ulcers are painful and dangerous for residents and costly for facilities. Next year, PUs are going to cost facilities even more. Learn how to improve wound care intervention to protect your patients and manage risk. Read More »
Sore feet, ingrown toenails and sore are no laughing matter. Whether young or old, foot problems can plague anyone. Recent data show that a staggering number of Americans age 21 and older have had one or more foot problems. 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 »
Picture a bedsore. Stare at it. Now, focusing on that same image, re-label it “skin failure.” Suddenly, the identical wound no longer looks or ‘feels’ the same. Here are suggestions for modifying commonly used words and phrases to clarify what is communicated to residents, families and others. Read More »
Congratulations to the fourth of five Leaders of Tomorrow award winners profiled this week: R. Gary Sibbald, BSc, MD, FRCPC (Med) (Derm), MEd, professor of public health and medicine, University of Toronto, Ontario. Read More »
The cost of incontinence care in the United States averaged $19.5 billion in 2004, and by one estimate the annualized cost of women's nursing home admissions due to urinary incontinence was $3 billion, according to AHRQ. Read More »
Age alone is not the only contributing factor to pressure ulcer development. It is also about the inconveniences of old age such as impaired mobility, poor nutrition, changes in mental status or chronic diseases. High blood pressure, heart disease and diabetes affect blood flow to organs including the skin, increasing the risk of pressure ulcers. Read More »
Martha Sparks, PhD, GCNS-BC, NGNA Fellow There are four types of urinary incontinence (stress, urge, overflow, functional) and multiple types of Read More »
Facility staff empathizes with the pain and discomfort of the resident with incontinence, but they frequently do not have the opportunity to discuss Read More »
One of the rewards of editing Long-Term Living is fostering friendships and professional kinship with providers, clinicians, academics, and policy Read More »
When MDS 3.0 went into effect in October 2010, Section M: Skin Conditions was immediately perceived as a special challenge. It was not simply that Read More »
At a glance… Long-term care providers must ensure that their skin tear procedures and practices reflect the current literature and clinical Read More »
At a glance… The Skin Changes at Life's End panel has compiled a consensus statement. Ten statements were issued concerning geriatric skin meant Read More »
The Wound, Ostomy and Continence Nurses (WOCN) Society recognizes and supports the fact that a pressure ulcer evaluation represents one aspect of a Read More »
