CMS opens visitation to nursing homes after year of isolation
By
Alicia Lasek
Mar 11, 2021
“Facilities should allow responsible indoor visitation at all times” — no matter the vaccination status of resident or visitor, the agency now says. Its action follows the remarkable, apparent...
Boosters on the way: LTC residents, healthcare workers may top fed’s list after CDC approves 3rd shot
By
Alicia Lasek
Aug 16, 2021
The Biden administration has secured 100 million COVID-19 vaccine doses as part of a strategy to provide additional shots to already vaccinated priority groups this fall, investigators have been told....
Second dose of mRNA vaccine is safe after acute allergic reaction to first, investigators say
By
Alicia Lasek
Jul 27, 2021
The CDC has recommended that people who have a reaction to the Pfizer or Moderna vaccines take the Johnson & Johnson vaccine as a second shot. But the new study suggests that this “mixed” series of...
PPE shortage reported by one-fifth of nation’s nursing homes
By
Alicia Lasek
Jun 11, 2020
A slow and incomplete federal response is largely to blame, investigators claim.
Addressing at-home hazards may cut falls risk by a quarter, Cochrane Review finds
By
Alicia Lasek
Mar 13, 2023
It takes more than a checklist of hazards to make a difference in reducing falls risk in seniors, the authors say.
Seniors who use video chat less likely to report symptoms of depression
By
Alicia Lasek
Apr 07, 2020
Seniors who communicated via video chat were about half as likely to report depressive symptoms than those who did not, say researchers.
Hiring full-time clinical staff a steadily growing trend in U.S. nursing homes
By
Alicia Lasek
Dec 09, 2021
Nurse practitioners top the list of hires as facility operators attempt to reduce care disruption and increase timely response to staff members’ medical questions, investigators say.
Fed’s booster OK too late? Nursing home loses 8 to coronavirus outbreak this fall
By
Alicia Lasek
Nov 17, 2021
A Connecticut nursing home has weathered a facility-wide COVID-19 outbreak that has sickened 89 residents and staff. Booster shots were not yet authorized when the first cases appeared, the operator reports.
Relaxed regulations lead to spike in telehealth use, nursing homes report
By
Alicia Lasek
Nov 12, 2020
Continued telehealth expansion under Medicare will be good for residents’ well-being, and may help administrators keep pace with other healthcare sectors, according to the Columbia University School...
Feds must ramp up efforts against antibiotic resistance: GAO
By
Alicia Lasek
Apr 27, 2023
Federal health agencies must urgently tackle key measures of a plan to curb the rising threat of antibiotic-resistant organisms, according to new testimony released by the Government Accountability Office...