Nursing homes have better pain and catheter management if leaders have more credentials, study finds
By
Tim Mullaney
Oct 23, 2014
Nursing homes led by administrators and directors of nursing with higher levels of education and certification have better outcomes on some key quality measures, according to recently published findings.
Long-term care providers might need to change pain management to cut opioid use, MedPAC analyst says
By
Tim Mullaney
Oct 15, 2014
Long-term care and other providers might have to alter their pain management practices if changes discussed at a recent Medicare Payment Advisory Commission meeting come to pass.
Staff understanding of MDS Quality Indicators is ‘mediocre at best,’ study finds
By
Tim Mullaney
Mar 04, 2014
Frontline staff in long-term care facilities generally do not have a firm grasp on Minimum Data Set Quality Indicators, largely due to a lack of involvement with the MDS, according to a recently published...
Ground-level falls lead to high rates of SNF admission, return trips to the hospital, study finds
By
Tim Mullaney
Feb 12, 2014
Even if they do not hit the ground from a great height, elderly people who seek hospital care for a fall commonly go on to a skilled nursing facility, according to a recently published study. These seniors...
Taking multiple medications does not pose a major hospitalization risk for those with numerous conditions,...
By
Tim Mullaney
Jan 21, 2014
For some people, taking many different kinds of medication does not increase the risk of being hospitalized as much as some healthcare professionals may believe, according to recently published research...
Ensuring nursing home quality is a top challenge for HHS in 2014, inspector general says
By
Tim Mullaney
Dec 18, 2013
Promoting quality care in long-term care settings is one of the top management challenges facing the Department of Health and Human Services in the next year, according to a report from the agency’s...
CMS announces declining readmission rate for Medicare patients, credits Affordable Care Act
By
Tim Mullaney
Dec 09, 2013
Improved transitions between acute and post-acute settings are partly responsible for continuing nationwide declines in hospital readmission rates, according to the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services.
Florida jury hands down $1.1 billion award in nursing home lawsuit
By
Tim Mullaney
Jul 24, 2013
A jury has awarded $1.1 billion in damages to the family of a Florida woman who received poor nursing home care prior to her death in 2007. The amount is believed to be one of the highest ever leveled...
Extendicare to sell US businesses for $870 million
By
Tim Mullaney
Nov 10, 2014
Extendicare will sell nearly all of its U.S. operations to an investor group in an $870 million deal, the Canada-based long-term care company announced Friday.
Gun threats at nursing home get resident’s husband 41-month prison sentence
By
Tim Mullaney
Feb 06, 2014
An Oregon man faces 41 months in prison after threatening to shoot nursing home workers, the U.S. District Attorney’s Office for the District of Oregon announced Tuesday.