One of my favorite lyrics from the musical “Ragtime” is “We can never go back to before.” The character Mother sings about no longer being a slave to societal expectations; she is confident, moving...
Physiatrists: Optimizing and expediting PAC
By
Lauren Evans
Aug 10, 2017
With Medicare essentially stamping “declined” on more and more attempts to discharge post-acute patients to inpatient rehab facility care, skilled nursing facilities have become the preferred...
Maintaining your COVID-19 library of materials
By
Jacquelyn Smith Clarke
Feb 07, 2022
As the pandemic progresses, we have become used to the constant upending of what we thought we once knew. From PPE guidance to testing and vaccines, the amount of information and how quickly it changes...
It’s time for care solutions, not excuses
By
Michael Wasserman
Jan 09, 2023
In February 2019, I wrote about the importance of fully engaging geriatricians and certified medical directors in the operations of nursing homes and chains. A month later, I shared my concern about a...
Culture shift starts with employee investment
By
Teresa Buchman, RN
Jan 15, 2015
Providing the highest quality care to our geriatric long-term care residents and short-term stay rehabilitation patients has been a major focus and investment throughout our organization. Our goal, from...
House needs to pass Medicaid legislation for nursing home residents
By
Alice Zahnow
Aug 09, 2010
Medicaid funding cuts threaten the quality of life nursing home residents deserve.
Tomorrow’s nursing homes must integrate palliative care
Jan 09, 2015
Palliative care, a form of patient-centered care focused on quality of life for the seriously ill, should be the standard of practice for all elderly patients with complex illness in nursing homes.
Short-handed or short-sighted?
By
Jean Wendland Porter
Feb 15, 2017
When we communicate that we are having staffing issues, whether or not that communication is correct, we are telling the residents and their families that we can’t do our jobs.
We’ve built it, but help isn’t coming fast enough
By
Brendan Williams
Mar 30, 2022
In the movie “Field of Dreams,” Karin Kinsella assures her father, Ray, that “people will come” to his farm’s baseball field as he faces foreclosure. Those of us who are long-term care advocates...
The unintended impact of Obamacare on SNFs
By
Eduardo Gonzalez
Dec 11, 2013
The Affordable Care Act, commonly known as, “ObamaCare,” is well understood to be in place primarily to assist Americans in need of healthcare insurance. It might be safe to assume then, that...