It’s not easy work and not as glamorous as other positions, so finding and keeping quality staff carries that much more importance.
New policy triggers rehab mode change
By
John O'Connor
Mar 01, 2012
Individual therapy services are seeing a huge spike across skilled care settings, according to a new Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services report. The shift seems to reveal how a change in payment rules...
Analytically Speaking: CMS Quality Measures for MDS 3.0
By
Steven Littlehale
Feb 17, 2012
At first, the MDS 3.0 Quality Measures do not appear to be very different from those based on MDS 2.0. But “the devil is in the details” and nearly every measure that seems familiar is different...
Nursing home group doesn’t support mandatory flu vaccines for workers
Feb 13, 2012
The largest nursing home association in the country agrees that influenza vaccine should be offered to all healthcare workers but it stops short of endorsing a recommendation by a federal advisory panel...
Effectively screen those residents
By
Shelly Mesure, MS, OTR/L
Feb 09, 2012
It’s not much of a surprise that many therapists are excellent at everything in their job — except screening.
Social Security recipients cannot opt out of Medicare, appeals court rules
Feb 09, 2012
Senior citizens who receive Social Security benefits cannot opt out of Medicare and rely solely on private insurance, a federal appeals court ruled Tuesday.
No pain = all gain
By
Julie Williamson
Feb 01, 2012
When it comes to dispensing pain relief meds to residents, the old methods are no longer viewed as sufficient. Better medication management is key.
Increasing length-of-stay
By
Shelly Mesure, MS, OTR/L
Jan 30, 2012
Length-of-stay — LOS — is one of those management reports that often leaves administrators and upper management bewildered. If you increase LOS, you essentially increase your census.
Managing the clinically anticipated Medicare Part A length of stay
By
Kris Mastrangelo, OTR, MBA, LNHA
Jan 26, 2012
The Medicare adjustments of fiscal year 2012 have left the long-term care profession discussing and debating care strategies to ensure success and mitigate the reductions in reimbursement. A key indicator...
Congress returns to full action; focus turns back to therapy cap process, docs and State of the Union
Jan 20, 2012
The U.S. Senate ends its recess Monday, six days after the House reconvened. That sets the stage for more intense lobbying over healthcare spending and other measures, including the Medicare Part B therapy...