“The only way to assure there is enough staff in a skilled nursing facility is to implement a minimum staffing requirement.” When you hear or read statements like this from a member of Congress, a...
Staff retention today, staff retention tomorrow
By
Jean Wendland Porter
Apr 04, 2023
A recent Washington Post article caught me where I live. It wasn’t about the impact of inflation, the current geopolitical climate in Europe, or the role of microplastics in our food. This article...
Will you pass CMS’s new schizophrenia MDS audits?
By
Steven Littlehale
Mar 31, 2023
In 2016, the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services started focused on-site surveys to address the issue of erroneous coding of schizophrenia in nursing homes. More recently, the agency began conducting...
Don’t be a ‘Dumb A – – ’
By
Jacqueline Vance, RNC, CDONA/LTC
Mar 28, 2023
Let’s be honest here: There is such a thing as a stupid question, or ask. I would say especially if you are a reporter! I don’t think that’s just my bias. I was working in a small border town in...
March, the summer solstice, and social determinants of health
By
Joel VanEaton
Mar 21, 2023
Daylight-saving time is finally here! I look forward to the day in March that it arrives starting June 21 every year. What’s June 21 you ask? Why, it’s the summer solstice. The summer solstice is...
Bad survey? Call your medical director
By
Neville M. Bilimoria
Mar 20, 2023
I recently won a case against state surveyors and I learned something new… again. The surveyors were adamant that the facility neglected a resident, and cited violations of policies, and criticized...
If only nursing homes were banks
By
Brendan Williams
Mar 17, 2023
I went to high school in Iowa, where 19 nursing homes closed in 2022 alone. Surely, you might think, this has prompted a federal response.It isn’t. Instead, the federal government has chosen to bail...
Let’s talk about Candida auris and why, as a leader, you need to act
By
Martie Moore
Mar 10, 2023
The headlines in the NY Times, Wall Street Journal and other publications say it all: In my conversations across the nation, I have asked many leaders what they are doing to prevent the introduction...
Healthcare burnout may not be what you think
By
Jean Wendland Porter
Mar 07, 2023
The New York Times recently published an op-ed about how healthcare workers are “burned out” from multiple factors, including decreased staffing, pandemic challenges and increased regulatory oversight....
New nursing home inspection reporting creates questions for facilities
By
Christine Burke Worthen
Lily Shannon
Mar 06, 2023
The Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services implemented a new policy on Jan. 25, 2023, which requires the nursing home industry to publicly post “disputed facility inspection results” on a government...