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...
CMS posts alleged deficiencies on Nursing Home Care Compare
By
Alan C. Horowitz, Esq., RN
Jan 25, 2023
The Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services conveys its policies (and directives) through its Quality, Safety & Oversight (QSO) memos. On Jan. 18, 2023, CMS announced that beginning on Jan. 25, 2023,...
New year, new MDS, new resolve
By
Joel VanEaton
Jan 24, 2023
Where did 2022 go? And, hang on for the wild ride 2023 will be. So much lies ahead of us and we need to be prepared, starting with the MDS.
Do you (unfortunately) hear what I hear?
By
Jacqueline Vance, RNC, CDONA/LTC
Dec 20, 2022
It’s that time of year again. You can’t walk into a grocery store, mall or even a quick mart without listening to Christmas carols. I’ll admit I start listening to those Christmas carols right...
Home for the holidays: What does it mean for your patients?
By
Renee Kinder
Dec 15, 2022
Home, what does it mean to you? Home (ˈhōm) has many definitions: one’s place of residence; the social unit formed by a family living together a familiar or usual setting; congenial environment;...
An analysis of PREP Act immunity for LTC facilities
By
Norris Cunningham
Angela Rinehart
Dec 04, 2022
A host of lawsuits over the past two years involve nursing homes where patients or their estates allege that patients contracted COVID-19 due to the facilities’ negligence or failure to properly act. ...
Take me away — virtual reality (VR) coding rules for 2023
By
Renee Kinder
Dec 01, 2022
“Hey, you are the McKnight’s lady?” “The one that writes about rehab.” I am indeed. Those lines, during the past few months of conference season I have heard often. The questions also often come...
A word of warning: Beware of staffing ratio violations
By
Neville M. Bilimoria
Nov 21, 2022
We are all waiting to see the possibility of proposed rules over federal minimum staffing ratios in nursing homes. But with possible federal minimum staffing ratios looming, let’s make sure the government...
Let there not be light
By
Gary Tetz
Nov 17, 2022
It’s the first command in the Biblical creation story — let there be light. But if you’re working a night shift in a long-term care facility, I need you to stop reading this right now and go turn...
Inventive languages
By
Jacqueline Vance, RNC, CDONA/LTC
Nov 08, 2022
My family tells me that when I was a very little girl, I apparently had a proclivity for creating my own language that only my older sister could interpret. It took some coaching but eventually I adapted...