Infection control: Ounce of prevention is worth a pound of cure
By
Joe Crowley
Jun 17, 2015
One of the bigger buzz terms flying around healthcare circles is prevention plans.
Goodbye, Colbert . . . hello, flu
By
Tim Mullaney
Dec 23, 2014
In honor of Stephen Colbert’s recently ended run on Comedy Central, I’d like to address some “truthiness” I’ve recently spotted, which I believe could harm long-term care...
Loopholes to help you track Medicare Part B therapy billing
By
Shelly Mesure, MS, OTR/L
Feb 06, 2013
Every time we send our patients to the hospital for rehab-related tests, exams or services, these services are billed to Medicare Part B, and, therefore, reduce our cap allowances. Any small oversights...
No rockets’ red (or blue) glare
By
Gary Tetz
Oct 29, 2012
Like sitting in a tub of hot cocoa on the shore of an enchanted mountain lake while listening to a choir of violin-wielding angels. That’s about how it felt to spend some quality time last week at...
Why it’s impossible to maintain prior levels of care quality, and what to do about it
By
Eleanor Feldman Barbera, Ph.D.
Apr 24, 2018
Residents and their family members are likely to expect that when they enter long-term care, staff members will provide compassionate medical treatment. Instead, what they frequently find are stressed...
Working on how to communicate in facilities
By
Eleanor Feldman Barbera, Ph.D.
Nov 14, 2014
Transitions between care settings are getting more scrutiny than ever before. So thank goodness for new guidelines designed to help smooth them out. Still, we need all the help we can when it comes to...
His passion is LTC policy and funding, thank goodness
By
James M. Berklan
Feb 11, 2016
There is an unusually strong fire in Doug Burr that keeps him going, and for this, long-term care providers everywhere should be thankful.
Likelihood of hospice use may vary by where you live
Aug 21, 2015
We tend to paint hospice with broad strokes. A new study indicates how it can vary by states, with Oregon emerging as the best example of a place that seems to be doing it right.
What ‘do everything’ can mean
By
Angelo E. Volandes, M.D.
Feb 04, 2015
The day I met Mrs. Bartlett at my hospital, she was an 89-year-old long-stay nursing home resident with moderate-to-severe dementia who was being transferred to my hospitalist service for shortness of...
A story to promote empathy in dementia care
By
Tim Mullaney
Oct 22, 2013
Earlier this month, I was excited to learn that one of my favorite writers, Alice Munro, had been awarded this year’s Nobel Prize in Literature. To mark the honor, The New Yorker republished one...