Pitfall: Facilities may forget that hospice admission triggers a significant change MDS.
If you're a hospice provider serving nursing home patients, you can help those facilities fill out their MDS assessments correctly.
Tip: For item A1800 (Entered From), facilities should select Code 07, Hospice "if the resident was admitted from a program for terminally ill persons where an array of services is necessary for the palliation and management of terminal illness and related conditions," states the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services' RAI User's Manual. The hospice must be state-licensed or Medicare-certified. The response includes community-based or inpatient hospice programs.
Plus: If an individual is enrolled in a home-based hospice program enter 07, Hospice, instead of 01, Community, for MDS item A2100 (Discharge Status), the Manual instructs. Again, state license or Medicare certification requirements apply.
Remember: Nursing homes must complete a significant change MDS when a patient elects hospice, even if they completed another MDS assessment recently.
