Packing for New Jersey to help Bernie (my father-in-law, whom I was honored to call “Dad”) navigate his transition from hospitalization to SNF, something told me to pack a suit.
Bingo: The road to ruins or the road to riches?
By
Steven Littlehale
May 21, 2018
Grandma sure liked her bingo. She excelled at bingo and most card games. Even in games that seemed to involve no skill at all, Grandma almost always emerged the winner.
Why standardization?
By
Steven Littlehale
Mar 05, 2015
There’s a saying that “If you can’t measure it, you can’t manage it.”
Copernicus update! The Earth now revolves around ICD-10 codes
By
Steven Littlehale
Oct 03, 2018
In the past, our skilled nursing world has revolved around a sun of its own, known as resource utilization groups (particularly the lucrative high-therapy ones). Now, however, according to the details...
Which matters most: Social media or Five-Star?
By
Steven Littlehale
May 27, 2022
Recently my colleague Ken Kelley, MS, OTR/L, RAC-CT, a clinical consultant/reimbursement specialist, posited something about Five-Star ratings that I hadn’t considered. He suggested that, in general,...
Who else is using Five-Star? (Who isn’t?)
By
Steven Littlehale
Apr 14, 2016
I continue to be struck by how deep Five-Star has worked its way into the countless nooks and crannies of our industry. It’s far beyond what the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services intended...
Resolving that tension between clinical and financial leadership
By
Steven Littlehale
Jan 27, 2020
It’s time to give purchasing agents more room to operate in long-term care. Here’s why, and now here’s a group that can help their efforts.
Portmanteau, a PDPM parody, part Deux
By
Steven Littlehale
Jun 24, 2019
Through humor we directly confront Patient-Driven Payment Model myths and nonsense, as well as offer key “aha!” moments that ultimately lead to success under PDPM. Never wanting to hold back, or otherwise...
How good does your data need to be?
By
Steven Littlehale
Jan 29, 2018
It’s a loaded question: How good does your data need to be? If we’re honest with ourselves, we must admit that we’re not perfect. Nor are the systems we create to help minimize error...
When technology fails us: ‘We talk’
By
Steven Littlehale
Dec 19, 2016
Driving my Grandma to one of her favorite restaurants to celebrate a significant birthday (she prefers that I don’t specify which) offered me an important lesson in communication.