At last. I haven’t worn a mask in public in months, I’m starting to see friends again, I’m eating in restaurants again, and my new normal is the old normal. Life is good. There’s some hesitation...
Start the year smiling
By
Julie Thorson
Jan 03, 2024
Let’s start the year boldly! I, Julie Thorson, the top expert in nothing and a leader who still has a lot to learn, declare 2024 the year of smiles. Not “pleasant, I look nice on LinkedIn”...
Want to build a strong IPC program? You need to get creative.
By
Buffy Lloyd-Krejci, DrPH, CIC
Apr 10, 2024
It’s truly remarkable to reflect on the four years that have passed since the onset of the COVID-19 outbreak. Throughout this time, profound lessons have been learned about infection prevention and...
Staff shortages — what’s the opportunity?
By
Susie Mix
Oct 18, 2023
Amid some good news in healthcare hiring as we recover from the pandemic, staff shortages involve a range of difficult challenges that will persist for years. Among other factors, it’s difficult to find...
Armed intruder and active shooter preparedness in LTC facilities
By
Stan Szpytek
Steve Wilder
Oct 09, 2023
The Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) requires skilled nursing facilities to plan for emergencies and disasters to protect the vulnerable population they serve. The regulations cited in Appendix...
Planning for the ‘consequences’ of identified hazards at a long-term care facility
By
Stan Szpytek
Feb 26, 2024
Good emergency planning practices and regulatory compliance mandate that long-term care facilities identify the potential threats, perils, and hazards that can adversely impact operations both from an...
The art of the pandemic
By
Jean Wendland Porter
Mar 26, 2024
Anyone who was working in healthcare in 2020 knows it was a rough year. When the lockdown happened, my staff with young children didn’t have daycare anymore. They didn’t have school anymore. The grandparents...
Baseline proficiency for success with managed care payers
By
Susie Mix
Mar 11, 2024
Setting up a building with proficiencies in working with managed care payers is a key to success at this midpoint of the 2020s. Fifty-one percent of Medicare-eligible Americans are covered by Medicare...
The real cost of SFF inclusion
By
Annette Sanders
Mar 18, 2024
Since the onset of the pandemic, and more especially over the last two years, regulators have been cracking down on skilled nursing facilities. Research has shown that between 2015 and 2023, the share...
An alternative view on anti-staffing mandate legislation
By
Carrie Leljedal
Mar 15, 2024
“Infinity and beyond” may be a rallying cry for Buzz Lightyear, yet when it comes to staffing and the welfare of the elderly and disabled in nursing homes. the system in our country is going backward....