Is ‘person-centered care coordinator’ the next must-have staff member?
By
Tim Mullaney
Apr 22, 2014
Long-term care operators take note: You soon could fail residents, anger family members, increase survey deficiencies, drop Nursing Home Compare stars and lose money unless you hire a Coordinator of Coordinators.
Special surveys on dementia care, Minimum Data Set coding will launch by mid-year, CMS announces
By
Tim Mullaney
Apr 22, 2014
Surveyors will scrutinize dementia care and Minimum Data Set coding in an upcoming pilot program to test more expansive oversight of these areas, the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services recently announced.
Charges that Omnicare disguised nursing home kickbacks as charitable contributions can proceed, federal...
By
Tim Mullaney
Apr 22, 2014
A whistleblower can keep pursuing his allegations that long-term care pharmacy Omnicare funneled payments to nursing home owners through so-called charitable donations, U.S. District Court Judge Robert...
States can designate more nursing homes in urgent need of quality improvement, government says
By
Tim Mullaney
Apr 22, 2014
The federal government is reactivating the special focus facility program for nursing homes with quality issues, the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services has announced. The program was minimized due...
Nursing home administrators do not believe that pay-for-performance improves care quality or facility...
By
Tim Mullaney
Apr 21, 2014
Most nursing home administrators do not believe that pay-for-performance initiatives lead to improved resident care or stronger bottom lines, according to findings recently published in the Journal of...
Former CNA gets 16-year prison sentence for stealing nursing home residents’ identities
By
Tim Mullaney
Apr 21, 2014
Three former nursing home aides are facing prison time for stealing residents’ identities and conning the government, state and federal authorities announced Thursday.
Aggression strongly signals pain only when dementia reaches advanced stages, researchers find
By
Tim Mullaney
Apr 21, 2014
For a person with dementia, the link between aggressive behavior and physical pain is strong only in the condition’s advanced stages, University of Florida researchers have found.
Long-term care facilities approach 80% worker flu vaccination rate after handing power to regional pharmacy,...
By
Tim Mullaney
Apr 18, 2014
Fourteen long-term care facilities in Pennsylvania dramatically increased their staff flu vaccination rate by having a regional pharmacy take over the process, according to a report issued Thursday by...
RACs were ‘most improved’ healthcare auditors for getting back money in 2013, government...
By
Tim Mullaney
Apr 18, 2014
Medicare Recovery Audit Contractors dramatically stepped up their overpayment recoveries last year, returning nearly $487 million more to the government than they did in 2012, according to a new report...
Septicemia, urinary tract infections rank high on latest list of hospital readmissions causes
By
Tim Mullaney
Apr 17, 2014
Two infectious conditions common in long-term care settings — septicemia and urinary tract infections — were among the top causes of hospital readmissions for Medicare beneficiaries in 2011, according...