Don’t let residents throw their oral care under the bus
By
Joel Glicksman, D.D.S.
Jul 26, 2013
I hear it all the time: “I’m too old; I don’t want to fix my teeth.” Older patients easily give up on their oral health not realizing the importance of teeth to their overall health....
The naked truth about aging is quite an eye opener
By
John O'Connor
Jul 26, 2013
The great South African golfer Gary Player has found an interesting way to gain additional media “exposure.” The septuagenarian was recently seen gracing the cover of ESPN The Magazine. And...
High points from HIT summit provide provider lessons
Jul 24, 2013
To participate in these new payment models, LTPAC providers will need to evaluate their health IT infrastructure and make successful deployment a priority.
Dementia memoir pulls the reader in
By
Elizabeth Newman
Jul 23, 2013
There’s a secret about attending conferences like the recent American Library Association: Occasionally you may be gifted with advance reader copies of publications.
Nursing home operators get a little respect
By
James M. Berklan
Jul 18, 2013
Attitude determines altitude. You make your breaks. People are about as happy as they make their minds up to be. They’re all somewhat overused yet admirable sayings people live by. Nursing home operators...
HIPAA, electronic health records & the data breach waiting to happen
By
Eugene Solomon
Jul 17, 2013
Many providers don’t realize the general insurance policy they have in place may not cover HIPAA fines or additional costs. In fact, many policies specifically exclude the sorts of fines and expenses...
Taking care of Medicare and Medicaid’s dual-eligibles: A job for Super- , er, Ombudsman
By
Tim Mullaney
Jul 16, 2013
Giving long-term care stakeholders a reason to cheer, California recently requested a federal waiver to implement Cal MedConnect, a demonstration project meant to improve care coordination for people who...
MDS data quality: Things are not always as they seem
By
Steven Littlehale
Jul 15, 2013
Open up the hood and look at the engine. Does the data scrubbing module focus only on standard CMS coding and consistency checks and the “RUG” items, or is it more robust and emphasize clinical...
Reducing learned helplessness in LTC
By
Eleanor Feldman Barbera, Ph.D.
Jul 11, 2013
John O’Connor’s recent post on the pain/depression cycle raised some interesting points about depression in long-term care. Reducing learned helplessness that is often seen in depression is...
Insurance, the elderly and what to do next
By
James M. Berklan
Jul 11, 2013
No sane person can criticize someone who admits being confused about how medical insurance should be funded, especially for seniors. Last week, a pair of innocently juxtaposed stories highlighted the struggle...