Judge dismisses HIPAA claims arising from Omnicell laptop theft
By
Tim Mullaney
Jan 06, 2014
Individuals do not have the right to sue healthcare providers under the Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act simply because their personal information was compromised, a federal judge recently...
Hand hygiene prior to donning gloves is unnecessary, study finds
By
Tim Mullaney
Jan 06, 2014
Performing hand hygiene prior to putting on gloves may not be a necessary practice, suggests recently published research in the American Journal of Infection Control.
CMS proposes more rigorous emergency preparedness rules for long-term care facilities
By
Tim Mullaney
Jan 03, 2014
Long-term care facilities would have to meet more comprehensive emergency preparedness guidelines, under a newly proposed rule from the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services.
Wound care research is poor, shows little progress toward advanced treatments, analysis finds
By
Tim Mullaney
Jan 03, 2014
Research into wound care treatments is generally of poor quality, providing scant evidence of successful new therapies that might replace support stockings as the standard, according to Johns Hopkins researchers.
Nursing assistants most vulnerable to C. diff contamination on hands, research shows
By
Tim Mullaney
Jan 03, 2014
Healthcare workers frequently have Clostridium difficile spores on their hands after providing routine care for an infected person, and nursing assistants have by far the highest incidence of contamination,...
Jimmo guidance: Document whether therapy is for restoration or maintenance before providing care
By
Tim Mullaney
Dec 20, 2013
In seeking Medicare reimbursement, skilled nursing facilities should not claim that therapy was to maintain a patient’s condition if documentation reflected only an improvement goal, according to...
Five-Star Ratings do not predict quality of life for residents without dementia, survey finds
By
Tim Mullaney
Dec 20, 2013
The government’s Five-Star system for rating nursing homes does not reflect the quality of life experienced by residents with preserved cognition, according to newly published research.
House bill would offer lump-sum Medicare payments to hospitals, post-acute providers
By
Tim Mullaney
Dec 20, 2013
Skilled nursing facilities and other post-acute providers would be eligible to participate in a Medicare bundled payment system proposed in a House of Representatives bill unveiled Thursday.
Good Samaritan faces charges over resident death linked to 50 falls
By
Tim Mullaney
Dec 20, 2013
An Iowa skilled nursing facility has been charged with wrongful death for allegedly allowing a resident to fall dozens of times prior to her death, which was brought on by a fall.
Senators weigh need for individual mandate in long-term care financing reform
By
Tim Mullaney
Dec 19, 2013
Senators and a panel of experts wrangled over whether effective long-term care reform hinges on a federal mandate for all individuals to buy some type of LTC insurance, at a Special Committee on Aging...