‘Prehab’ may fuel quicker post-acute recovery, lower costs
By
John O'Connor
Dec 16, 2019
Residents about to undergo surgery may fare better if they take several “prehab” precautions.
Irony dead? Not while we have Obamacare
By
John O'Connor
Jul 15, 2013
When the Obama administration recently announced it would push back the healthcare law’s employer insurance mandate for another year, many a long-term care operator rejoiced. I’m guessing there...
Medicare payment group changes name
By
John O'Connor
Apr 06, 2015
A Medicare payment watchdog group saddled with huge case backlogs and heavily criticized for causing delays in resolving reimbursement issues has changed its name and location on the web.
The Bigger Picture: A route to better hiring
By
John O'Connor
Aug 02, 2019
Even in good times, hiring qualified frontline workers is problematic for many skilled facilities.
Occupancy, absorption both climb in first quarter: NIC
By
John O'Connor
Jun 01, 2014
Skilled nursing facilities’ average occupancy rate continued to rise in the first three months of 2014, while absorption flipped into positive territory for the first time in almost a decade, according...
Dementia increases risk for hospital readmission by 20%
By
John O'Connor
Jun 01, 2014
Seniors are more likely to be rehospitalized within 30 days of discharge if they have dementia, and the risk increases if they are taking an antipsychotic medication, according to recently published research.
What are the scouts saying about your long-term care organization?
By
John O'Connor
Jul 25, 2014
There is no draft in senior living, nor really a need for one. But what if its three most dominant players were to be sized up? How might the scouts rate skilled care, assisted living and home care, respectively?...
Will the new mantra for nursing home operators be ‘quality over quantity’? Yes and no
By
John O'Connor
Apr 16, 2018
A new study from the Kaiser Family Foundation confirms a shift that most skilled care operators can relate to. While resident occupancy levels continue to bottom out, the new arrivals are in worse shape...
For long-term care, mixed news is good news
By
John O'Connor
Dec 14, 2020
Two headlines we ran Friday probably tell you most of what you need to know about the current state of long-term care.
The Big Picture: It’s time to rise up, LTC
By
John O'Connor
Oct 18, 2019
The late author Joseph Heller provided words that many long-term care operators still live by: “Just because you’re paranoid doesn’t mean they aren’t after you.” Whether most operators are paranoid...