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Long-Term Care Survey Alert

Quality of Care:
6 CARE MYTHS THAT CAN DERAIL RESIDENT CARE AND SURVEYS
continues to disseminate more evidence- based practices through its Webcasts and surveyo... Read more
Survey Management:
COUNTERACT SURVEYORS' 'TALL TALES' ABOUT NURSING HOMES
The facility might be wise to take pictures of the resident’s preexisting pressure... Read more
Resident Assessment:
DEPRESSION MISCONCEPTIONS STAND IN THE WAY OF ASSESSMENT
Be honest: Do you secretly expect nursing home residents to be a little depressed or sad... Read more
Resident Care Documentation:
SIDESTEP FEDERAL CRACKDOWN ON FALSE DOCUMENTATION
Federal regulators are now targeting falsified resident care records, so make sure your ... Read more
Regulatory Compliance:
WATCH OUT FOR SUBTLE FORMS OF 'CHARTING PARTIES'
The stereotypical idea of “charting parties,” where nurses with four differe... Read more
Best Practices:
BATHE RESIDENTS WITHOUT FIGHTS OR F TAGS
Expect surveyors to take a closer look not only at how you’re bathing residents, b... Read more
Best Practices:
5 WAYS TO REDUCE PAIN DURING THE BATH
Nurse researcher JoAnne Rader discovered that the bathing time uncovers a lot of unrecog... Read more
Survey Management:
CAN YOU ASK SURVEYORS NOT TO COME BACK?
What nursing home provider hasn’t occasionally felt like showing a surveyor the do... Read more
Regulatory Trends:
HHS COMMITTEE RECOMMENDS KEY SURVEY, MDS REFORMS
Life could get a lot easier for nursing homes if the Health & Human Services’ ... Read more
Pharmacology:
BEXTRA LINKED TO LIFETHREATENING SKIN CONDITIONS
If a resident taking Bextra develops a skin rash, stop the medication immediately. That&... Read more
Drug Inventory Management:
ONLINE CENTER PROVIDES DRUG SHORTAGE GUIDANCE
If your long-term care facility is having difficulty keeping certain meds in stock, chec... Read more
Alzheimer's Disease:
BEHAVIORAL SYMPTOMS BIGGEST COST DRIVER IN ALZHEIMER'S CARE
Here’s one study finding that nursing homes could write the book on: Behavioral sy... Read more
TURN SURVEYORS INTO ALLIES WHEN IMPLEMENTING INNOVATIONS
Is your facility planning on doing something new to improve residents quality of life? If... Read more
MESSY OR INCOMPLETE RECORDS COULD MEAN FAILING MARKS
Its 11 p.m. the night before the survey: Do you know where your residents records are? Su... Read more
HIPAA RECORD VIOLATIONS CAN LEAD TO SURVEY CITATIONS
Come April 14 of next year, surveyors can cite your facility for not identifying and keepi... Read more
TAKE STEPS TO DETECT DELIRIUM BEFORE ITS TOO LATE
Mistaking a case of delirium for dementia is a potentially lethal assessment error that yo... Read more
DELIRIUM PROTOCOLS IMPROVE RESIDENT AND SURVEY OUTCOMES
When it comes to delirium, one of the best clinical and survey tools you can produce is a ... Read more
AVOID F TAGS FOR NEW DINING APPROACHES
If your facility is implementing nontraditional dining, make sure surveyors dont end up d... Read more
FEDERAL REGS OFFER LEEWAY TO HONOR RESIDENTS MEALTIME ROUTINES
When it comes to accommodating residents mealtime preferences and routines, federal regul... Read more
DIRECTED SETTLEMENTS A WIN-WIN PROPOSITION
The governments eagerness to cite and fine nursing facilities actually pulls money out of ... Read more
INDUSTRY LEADERS JOIN CMS FOR NHQI LAUNCH ON NOV. 12
The Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services rolled out the Nursing Home Quality Ini... Read more
CMS AT CROSSROADS:
WILL THE AGENCY VOTE QUALITY OVER PUNISHMENT?
The Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services recently hosted a Webcast on resident qua... Read more
CMS RELEASES DRAFT UPDATE TO RAI USERS MANUAL
When it comes to the minimum data set, your facility needs the latest information to ensu... Read more
CDC PUBLISHES FINALIZED HANDWASHING GUIDELINES
The days of soap and water for hand hygiene are over, at least for the most part. The Cent... Read more
NURSING HOMES MUST POST STAFFING NUMBERS ON JAN. 1
Nursing facilities will be ringing in the New Year with another new reporting requirement... Read more
RESEARCH TIES COMMON INFECTION TO ALZHEIMERS DISEASE
A common infection may trigger Alzheimers disease or at least hasten its progress, accord... Read more
Quality Improvement:
BEWARE OF CONFIDENTIALITY LOOPHOLE WHEN WORKING WITH YOUR QIO
Quality improvemnet organizations can be a big help to nursing facilities looking to shi... Read more
Quality Initiative:
RELATIONSHIP BETWEEN QUALITY IMPROVEMENT ORGANIZATIONS AND STATE SURVEY AGENCIES CRITICAL TO NHQI SUCCESS
Nursing facilities might find their relationship with quality improvement organizations... Read more
Regulatory Compliance:
THE OPPORTUNITY TO SELF-DISCLOSE POSES ADVANTAGES
Say the quality improvement organization tells you to report what it views as a "substan... Read more
Quality Measures:
CMS SHEDS LIGHT ON NATIONAL QUALITY MEASURES
The Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services recently shared some key information ab... Read more
Care Plan Management:
CONSOLIDATE RESIDENT PROBLEMS AND SKIP AN F279 TAG
What do anxiety, confusion, poor adjustment to nursing home placement and psychotropic d... Read more
Survey Appeals:
SET RECORD STRAIGHT WITH IDR
Nursing facilities can benefit from informal dispute resolution to challenge deficienci... Read more
Survey Appeals:
INFORMAL DISPUTE RESOLUTION: SELF ASSESSMENT TOOL
Considering informal dispute resolution? Nursing home providers should ask themselves t... Read more
Accreditation:
NEW YEAR HERALDS EASIER ACCREDITATION PROCESS
Long-term care accreditation for nursing facilities will be a lot easier when the Joint ... Read more
Accreditation:
ACCREDITATION AS MANAGEMENT ENHANCEMENT STRATEGY
Some facilities use accreditation as a strategy to make sure they're on track with resid... Read more
Infection Control:
CMS APPROVES STANDING ORDERS FOR FLU AND PNEUMONIA SHOTS
With the flu season upon us, the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services just made ... Read more
Survey Preparation:
GET YOUR DOCUMENTS IN A ROW ON SURVEY DAY
Survey day is not the time to look or feel disorganized. One of the most effective ways ... Read more
Infection Control:
BEAN SPROUTS DANGEROUS
Here's one "health" food that is probably best left off your facility's menu in raw or c... Read more
Clinical Studies:
MORE STAPH FOUND IN LARGER NURSING HOMES
Elderly residents living in large nursing homes or infacilities with many long-term res... Read more
State News:
PROBE OF SEX OR SURVEY SANCTIONS SCANDAL WIDENS
The Federal Bureau of Investigation and state attorney general's office have joined the ... Read more
Clinical Studies:
NURSES OVERESTIMATE RISK OF PAIN-KILLER ADDICTION
Nurses are good at assessing their patients' pain, but they still have an exaggerated fe... Read more
Survey Management:
LESSONS LEARNED FROM A SURPRISE IJ CITATION
Waterman Village in Mt. Dora, FL had no idea what was coming last September when surv... Read more
Quality Initiative:
PILOT QUALITY INITIATIVE A STEADY RIDE FOR MOST FACILITIES
If the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services' pilot Nursing Home Quality I... Read more
Quality Measures:
CMS SELECTS QUALITY MEASURES FOR NATIONAL REPORTING
The Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services has selected chronic and post-acute qu... Read more
Quality Initiative:
FACILITIES GET TO PREVIEW QM SCORES BEFORE CMS POSTS THEM
While the national Nursing Home Quality Initiative has been pushed back until after th... Read more
Quality Assurance:
CMS CONTINUES QUEST FOR VALID QUALITY MEASURES
Wanted: quality measures that truly tell if a nursing facility is providing good care.... Read more
Resident Safety:
DONT LET BED SIDE RAILS BE A FAST TRACK TO DECERTIFICATION
How do surveyors view bed side rails? As immediate jeopardy if a resident suffers a s... Read more
Risk Management:
JCAHO PROVIDES 6 STRATEGIES TO ENSURE BED SIDE RAIL SAFETY
The Joint Commission on Accreditation of Healthcare Organizations released a sentine... Read more
Infection Control:
CMS TRAINING MAY PAVE WAY TO CRACKDOWN ON VACCINATION SHORTFALLS
Where the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services' training efforts go, surve... Read more
LTC Financing:
ADD-ON DROP COULD SINK SKILLED NURSING FACILITIES, STUDY SAYS
Unless Congress acts fast, temporary Medicare payment add-ons that were first given to ... Read more
Quality Oversight:
CMS DIRECTS STATES ON HOW TO SPEND CIVIL MONETARY PENALTIES
Ever wonder what states do with the civil monetary penalties they collect from faciliti... Read more
Quality of Life:
MEASURING QUALITY OF LIFE FOR VISION-IMPAIRED RESIDENTS
Vision impairment and blindness reduce the quality of life for many nursing home reside... Read more
Alzheimers Disease:
RESEARCHERS DISCOVER POSSIBLE NEW TARGET FOR ALZHEIMERS TREATMENT
What's in an enzyme? Perhaps a new target for the battle against Alzheimer's disease. ... Read more
Survey Management:
OPPOSING STRATEGIES CAN TURN AROUND A LOSING SURVEY
Every survey is a gamble. That’s because no matter what kind of winning hand you t... Read more
Survey Appeals:
A SURVEY SUCCESS STORY AFTER THE FACT
No luck convincing surveyors to put up their citation pads during the exit conference? ... Read more
Survey Data Management:
WHAT TO DO WHEN CMS' 'NURSING HOME COMPARE' SITE IS WRONG
It’s painful enough to see negative survey or quality performance information abou... Read more
Survey Reporting:
FORMER OPERATORS' SURVEY SINS AND DOT-COM SITES HAUNT NURSING FACILITIES
Providers and nursing home organizations are lobbying for a number of reforms to protect... Read more
Care Plan Management:
UNCAN 'CANNED' CARE PLANS TO AVOID QUALITY CITATIONS
Caveat care planners: If your facility uses a prefabricated or “canned” care... Read more
Resident Assessment:
IMPROVE DIETARY ASSESSMENT -- BEFORE SURVEYORS FORCE YOU TO
Here’s food for thought: Nursing assistants in a recent study assessed resident me... Read more
Survey Preparation:
HOW SURVEYORS CALCULATE FOOD AND FLUID INTAKE
Ready to do some math? If you really want to get inside the mind of a surveyor, consider... Read more
Resident Nutrition:
3 TIPS FOR IMPROVING RESIDENT DIETARY INTAKE
Residents not eating or drinking enough? Try these simple strategies: 1. Check with th... Read more
Quality Initiative:
PARTNERSHIPS KEY TO NURSING HOME QUALITY INITIATIVE
Providers recently got a heads up on the federal quality nursing home quality initiative... Read more
Quality Initiative:
CMS BROADCAST TO EXPLAIN QUALITY MEASURES
Mark your calendars: On Sept. 20, the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services plans... Read more
Clinical Research:
AROMATHERAPY MAY CALM RESIDENTS WITH DEMENTIA
The aroma of lemon balm may be just what the doctor ordered for agitated residents with ... Read more
Survey Studies:
CMS SET TO STUDY SURVEY INCONSISTENCY
Wish someone would finally do something to improve the consistency and accuracy of surve... Read more
Medicare Reimbursement:
MEDICARE TO PAY FOR E-STIM WOUND TREATMENT
Wound coverage is about to improve for residents with difficult-to-treat ulcers. Under... Read more
Quality of Care:
HOW TO PROVE A PRESSURE ULCER IS UNAVOIDABLE
Even the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services agrees: not all pressure ulcers c... Read more
Quality of Care:
AVOID THESE 6 MISTAKES IN PRESSURE ULCER MANAGEMENT
Surveyors aren't likely to decide that a resident's new or nonhealing pressure ulcer is ... Read more
Federal Initiatives:
NEW DAVE INITIATIVE WILL TRIGGER SURVEYS
If nursing facilities are most concerned about the havoc that the upcoming national ... Read more
Clinical Assessment:
WHEN TO SUSPECT A NON-PRESSURE ULCER
All wounds are not created equal. And all the pressure relief in the world won't heal a ... Read more
Federal Initiatives:
USE THREE-PRONGED APPROACH TO PREPARE FOR DAVE
Are you ready for DAVE to start looking at your facility's minimum data sets? That's... Read more
FACTS ABOUT DAVE
What and How: The Data Assessment and Verification (DAVE) initiative is a central appro... Read more
Staff Recruitment:
THINK 'OUT OF THE BOX' TO ATTRACT, KEEP STAFF
If your facility has a staffing crisis or high turnover, it's time to get a recruitment... Read more
Staff Management:
WORKING SHORT COMPLAINTS CAN BRING SURVEY DISASTER
Is your facility grapevine always rattling with complaints about short staffing, even t... Read more
Federal Developments:
MEDICARE PACKAGE CONTAINS PARTIAL SNF GIVEBACK
A Medicare prescription drug benefit and reform package passed by the House of Represen... Read more
Pharmacology:
CRUSHING PILLS CAN BE LETHAL
Did you know that crushing nitroglycerin pills could cause an explosion in your facility... Read more
Clinical Developments:
NIGHTLIGHTS COULD PREVENT DIABETIC BLINDNESS
The simple act of leaving a light on may save some diabetics' eyesight, a new study sugg... Read more
Program Evaluation:
STUDY GIVES EDEN ALTERNATIVE MIXED REVIEW
The Eden Alternative, the popular program that brings nature into nursing homes, may no... Read more
Clinical Developments:
PET THERAPY REDUCES RESIDENTS LONELINESS
Elderly patients may benefit from even short "pet therapy" encounters, a new study sugge... Read more
Clinical Nutrition:
VITAMIN E-RICH DIETS MAY PROTECT AGAINST ALZHEIMERS
Legumes for lunch? It might be a good idea in the light of a new study showing that a di... Read more
Staffing Strategies 8 STRATEGIES TO STAVE OFF A STAFFING TAG
When does a nursing facility have enough  staffing, according to federal regulation... Read more
Best Practices CMS EXPERT SHARES BEST PRACTICES ON NUTRITION AND HYDRATION
When it comes to meeting residents’ needs for nutrition and hydration, facilities ... Read more
Survey Management SKIP THE DIGNITY TAGS FOR DINING
Is your facility’s dining experience meeting residents’ need for dignity (F2... Read more
Clinical Issues SURVEYOR SAYS:
DON'T DITCH THE WATER PITCHERS
What if a resident isn’t ingesting her calculated  “cc” requireme... Read more
CLIA Compliance CMS TO SURVEY WAIVED LAB TESTING IN SNFS
Nursing facilities that wave off those “waived”  lab testing requiremen... Read more
Quality Initiative FINE-TUNE YOUR PAIN ASSESSMENT FOR QUALITY MEASURES
How many of your facility’s residents would  tell a surveyor today that they ... Read more
Survey Management JCAHO PAIN STANDARDS PROVIDE FRAMEWORK FOR ALL FACILITIES
Even nonaccredited nursing facilities can  benefit from the Joint Commission on Acc... Read more
Quality Initiative CREATE A PAIN-FREE PICTURE OF YOUR FACILITY
Artful pain assessment will give a true picture  of residents experiencing uncontro... Read more
Minimum Data Set CMS RELEASES LATEST ROUND OF MDS Q&AS;
To code or not to code those chewing or swallowing  problems: That’s the ques... Read more
Clinical Developments BROCCOLI KILLS ULCER-CAUSING BACTERIA
Here’s a reason to dish up the broccoli casseroles at your facility. A study publi... Read more
Clinical Developments COX-2 INHIBITORS MAY IMPAIR BONE HEALING
The popular COX-2 inhibitors such as Vioxx and Celebrex may not be the drugs of choice t... Read more
Consumer Reporting CALIFORNIA LTC REFORM ADVOCATES LAUNCH WEB SITE
Nursing home reformers are adding themselves to the roster of organizations posting info... Read more
Clinical Developments EYE DROPS CAN DELAY GLAUCOMA ONSET IN HIGH-RISK RESIDENTS
Long-term care providers may be able to help stave off glaucoma in residents with elevat... Read more
Infection Control LEGIONNAIRES' DISEASE STRIKES PHILADELPHIA NURSING HOME
Legionnaires’ disease has reared its ugly head again, this time in a suburban Phil... Read more
Resident Safety JCAHO ASKS LTC RESIDENTS TO 'SPEAK UP'
The Joint Commission on Accreditation of Healthcare Organizations is now focusing its na... Read more
Survey Management:
GET A HEAD START ON NATIONAL QUALITY INITIATIVE
Another round of "quality outing" is on the horizon, and it promises to give surveyors an... Read more
Survey Developments:
RISK ADJUSTMENT COULD MAKE ALL THE DIFFERENCE UNDER NEW
Will the national rollout of the nursing home quality initiative take into account your f... Read more
Survey Strategies:
DIG DEEP TO EXPLAIN QUALITY OUTCOMES
Once the government's national nursing home quality initiative goes live in October, fac... Read more
Abuse Detection:
WATCH OUT FOR CONDITIONS THAT MIMIC ABUSE
You know that Mrs. Jones always has bruises on her arms and legs because she takes a bl... Read more
Risk Management:
WHEN THE RESIDENT HAS A BRUISE: HOW TO HEAD OFF AN ABUSE INVESTIGATION
When it comes to a bruise, pictures are not only worth a thousand words: they can head of... Read more
Survey Compliance:
GET YOUR POC ON THE FAST TRACK TO COMPLIANCE
The best time to plan your plan of correction is long before your facility has to do one.... Read more
Risk Management:
KEEP POCS FROM BECOMING AMMUNITION FOR TRIAL LAWYERS
A plan of correction written with a tone of "mea culpa" may please surveyors, but it's... Read more
Resident Assessment:
CMS REDUCING MEDICARE ASSESSMENT BURDEN
Nursing home providers will soon have the option to spend less time doing Medicare MDS ... Read more
Survey Reporting:
COMPLAINT INVESTIGATIONS ADDED TO WEB SITE
Following criticism from key lawmakers about the content of the Nursing Home Compare site... Read more
Clinical Developments:
VITAMIN C SHOWN TO PROTECT SKIN FROM CANCER, AGING
Researchers now believe Vitamin C long touted for its healing powers can protect the sk... Read more
Clinical Developments:
CARDIOVASCULAR DISEASE LINKED TO HIGHER DEMENTIA RISK
A new study shows a definite link between cardiovascular disease and dementia, including ... Read more
Pain Management:
GUIDELINES ON PAIN AND AGING INTRODUCED
An American Geriatrics Society panel presented new guidelines for treating pain in aging ... Read more
Clinical Developments:
CLINICAL TRIALS TO START ON PLAQUE BUSTER DRUG
A new drug targeting the "sticky" brain deposits or plaques seen in the brains of people ... Read more
Survey Management
QUALITY MEASURES USED IN PILOT QUALITY INITIATIVE Chronic Care Quality Measures (Residents... Read more
Public Relations
TIPS FOR EXPLAINING QUALITY INITIATIVE TO CONSUMERS 1. Encourage consumers to view the p... Read more
Survey Management:
10 THINGS NEVER TO SAY OR DO DURING A SURVEY
Have you ever really put your foot in your mouth during a survey, hoping surveyors would ... Read more
Quality of Care:
NEW MEDICARE RESOURCES CAN IMPROVE YOUR DEMENTIA CARE
Its the best news that facilities struggling to provide good dementia care on limited re... Read more
Alzheimers Disease:
GET TO SURVEYORS BOTTOM LINE ON ALZHEIMERS CARE
Is your facilitys dementia care ready for surveyors who have citations on their minds? Su... Read more
Survey Management:
GET SURVEYORS ON YOUR PAGE WITH DEMENTIA SERVICES
Sometimes even the best dementia care program wont make surveyors happy, especially if th... Read more
Alzheimers Disease:
USE VERBAL, NONVERBAL CUES TO HELP SLOW ADL DECLINE
Functional decline is an inevitable effect of Alzheimer's disease and other forms of pr... Read more
Fall Management:
MAKE SURE YOUR FALL PROTOCOLS DONT FALL SHORT
Talk about double jeopardy. Surveyors not only hand out F tags for falls, they will c... Read more
Survey Appeals:
ALJ RULINGS PROVIDE INSIGHT INTO WINNABLE APPEALS
To appeal or not to appeal: That's the big decision when your facility disagrees with su... Read more
Risk Management:
HEAD OFF CITATIONS, LIABILITY CAUSED BY TEMP STAFF
A nurse from a temporary agency leaves a resident unattended in the bathtub and he slip... Read more
Federal Developments:
LEGISLATION WOULD MAKE SURVEYS KINDER, GENTLER EXPERIENCE
Legislation introduced in Congress March 20 would transform surveys into a more collabora... Read more
Federal Developments:
CMS GIVES GREEN LIGHT TO FEEDING ASSISTANTS
Nursing facilities will get some staffing relief under a proposal unveiled late last mont... Read more
Abuse Prevention:
SURVEYORS GET MARCHING ORDERS ON ABUSE REPORTING
Expect state survey agencies to do a better job reporting resident abuse to law enforceme... Read more
Risk Management:
FACILITIES GET LIABILITY INSURANCE BREAK FOR MATTRESS SYSTEM
A new campaign claims that a highly touted new mattress and treatment system appears to b... Read more
Quality Improvement:
QI PROJECT RESULTS WONT PLEASE ALL FACILITIES
The results of the pilot project to share new nursing home quality measures with the publ... Read more
Pharmacology:
ACE INHIBITORS MAY IMPROVE SENIORS STRENGTH
ACE inhibitors may do more than lower blood pressure and ease cardiac overload. Researche... Read more
Survey Management:
CONDUCT SURVEY DRILLS TO LESSEN FEAR FACTOR
When it comes to surveys, often the biggest thing your facility has to fear is fear itsel... Read more
Oral Health:
TAKE THESE 6 STEPS TO IMPROVE RESIDENTS ORAL HEALTH
Nursing facilities that neglect residents oral health leave themselves wide open to surve... Read more
Oral Health:
EXPLORE VARIOUS MODELS FOR PROVIDING DENTAL SERVICES
Nursing facilities aren't disputing that elderly nursing home residents should be gettin... Read more
Oral Health:
WATCH OUT FOR THESE F TAGS FOR ORAL HEALTH DEFICIENCIES
Surveyors have been instructed to consider the following F tags for the statement of defi... Read more
Infection Control:
FOOD TEMPERATURE A NEW HOT SPOT FOR IMMEDIATE JEOPARDY
Infection control generally conjures images of nursing staff taking a patient's temperat... Read more
Infection Control:
INFECTION CONTROL CHECKLIST FOR THE KITCHEN
Raymond Otero, an infection control consultant in Richmond, KY, suggests facilities mai... Read more
Abuse Prevention:
THE INSIDE SECRETS FOR SCREENING NURSING APPLICANTS EFFECTIVELY
Selecting the right nursing staff is the most important step a facility can take toward p... Read more
Accreditation:
NEW JCAHO CERTIFICATION PROVIDES OPPORTUNITY FOR SPECIAL CARE PROGRAMS
Does your nursing facility have a cutting edge dementia care, pain management or other t... Read more
Infection Control:
CDC DRAFT HAND HYGIENE GUIDELINES SKIP THE SOAP
If your facility staff associates clean hands with lots of water and lather, that may be ... Read more
Federal Developments:
GAO URGES STRICTER REPORTING FOR RESIDENT ABUSE
Nursing home providers should get ready to face tougher reporting requirements for incid... Read more
Survey & Certification:
NURSING HOME COMPARE SITE COULD REPORT MORE VIOLATIONS
Many nursing home providers worry that Web sites give the public too much information ab... Read more
Staffing:
HHS CONCLUDES STAFFING RATIOS NOT CURRENTLY FEASIBLE
The second half of the long-awaited Department of Health & Human Services nursing hom... Read more
Survey Enforcement:
SURVEYORS PREPARE FOR NEW SOM INSTRUCTIONS
Heads up, nursing homes: The Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services is busy updati... Read more
Clinical Developments:
STEM CELLS REVERSE STROKE EFFECTS
Researchers are getting closer to developing ways to repair the human brain, and treatmen... Read more
Clinical Developments:
FOLIC ACID MAY KEEP ALZHEIMERS AT BAY
A folic acid deficiency that has been linked previously to an increased risk of Parkinson... Read more
Pharmacology:
STUDY SUGGESTS ANNUAL OSTEOPOROSIS TREATMENT EFFECTIVE
An annual intravenous osteoporosis treatment may stave off the bone-thinning disease that... Read more
Staffing:
AHCA OFFERS CNA SCREENING TEST
Theres no crystal ball that can tell you whether or not your best staff will stay at your... Read more
Survey Management:
PREPARE CNAs FOR SURVEYS IN THESE 4 DEFICIENCY-PRONE AREAS
The devil is in the details - and so are most survey deficiencies. Oftentimes faci... Read more
Survey Management:
INDIRECT CARE STAFF ALSO REQUIRE SURVEY PREPARATION
When it comes to survey preparation, remember to keep indirect care staff in the loop, or... Read more
Abuse Prevention:
BREAK THE CODE OF SILENCE BEFORE ITS TOO LATE
Do your nursing assistants "see no evil, hear no evil" when their coworkers sometimes beh... Read more
Policies and Procedures:
UNREASONABLE POLICIES CAN BACK YOUR FACILITY INTO AN F TAG
A strong set of policies can be your best defense against the whims of surveyors but tho... Read more
Care Planning Strategies:
DONT SET THE BAR TOO HIGH FOR CARE PLANS
If you dont take your facilitys resources and limitations and those of your residents in... Read more
Infection Control:
CDC ANTIMICROBIAL CONTROL INITIATIVE PROVIDES FUTURE SURVEY BLUEPRINT
The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention is targeting infection control practices t... Read more
Infection Control:
CDCS 12-STEP PLAN TO REDUCE ANTIMICROBIAL RESISTANCE
1. Vaccinate. 2. Get the catheters out. 3. Target the pathogen. 4. Access the experts 5. ... Read more
Risk Management:
DISCLOSE RISKS TO SUCCEED UNDER NEW JCAHO REQUIREMENT
Is the Joint Commissions upcoming self-disclosure requirement a plaintiff lawyers wildest... Read more
Alzheimers Disease:
MENTALLY STIMULATING ACTIVITIES WARD OFF ALZHEIMERS DISEASE
A new study suggests there might indeed be some truth to the "use-it-or-lose-it" theory o... Read more
State Developments:
FLORIDA MEDICAL DIRECTORS SPEAK OUT AGAINST GRANNY CAMS
The Florida Medical Directors Association recently spoke out against use of so-called "... Read more
Studies and Surveys:
COMPANY RELEASES NURSING HOME GRADES
Wichita, KS is the worst city in the United States for those who reside in nursing homes,... Read more
Oral Health:
SURVEY FOCUS ON DENTAL HEALTH MAY SOON HAVE BIGGER BITE
Open wide, nursing homes: The American Dental Association is calling attention to the ora... Read more
Clinical Developments:
CHRONIC MILD DEPRESSION HARD ON OLDER ADULTS IMMUNITY
Nursing facilities now have another reason to screen and treat elderly residents for dep... Read more
Quality Indicators:
TRACK THESE TOP QIs BEFORE SURVEYORS DO
Quality indicators may seem like a burden, but smart facilities recognize them as ble... Read more
Restorative Care:
SUREFIRE STRATEGIES TO RESTORE YOUR RESTORATIVE CARE PROGRAM
If your facility identifies a system-wide problem with the quality of its restorative n... Read more
Restorative Care:
MAKE SURE YOUR FACILITY GETS PAID FOR RESTORATIVE CARE
Getting paid for restorative services means your facility will have more resources to inv... Read more
Abuse Prevention:
A CULTURE OF CARING CAN ABUSE PROOF YOUR FACILITY
Some work cultures are a recipe for frustration and abuse. And if resident abuse occurs ... Read more
Accreditation:
GET READY FOR PATIENT SAFETY STANDARDS IN 2003
Hopefully, nursing facilities were taking good notes as they watched hospitals impleme... Read more
Quality Care:
TASK SEGMENTATION CAN HELP RESIDENTS MASTER ADLS
Is your nursing facility helping residents break down tasks required to perform activiti... Read more
Abuse Prevention:
TRAIN THE TRAINER SESSIONS RAISE THE BAR FOR FACILITIES
"Train the trainer" sessions on abuse and neglect conducted this year by the Centers for... Read more
Staff Management:
TEACH STAFF THE SECRET TO MAINTAINING CONTROL
That old adage about counting to 10 when you're about to lose control is still good advi... Read more
Risk Management:
BIOTERROR THREAT REQUIRES NEW RISK MANAGEMENT FOCUS
Does your facility view bioterrorism as a remote threat? If so, you may not be takin... Read more
Clinical Research:
NEW TOOL COULD REDUCE HOSPITALIZATION OF NURSING HOME RESIDENTS
Clinicians often wish they had a crystal ball to predict which residents with pneumonia ... Read more
Survey Violations:
DC NURSING HOMES UNDER FIRE FOR SURVEY VIOLATIONS
Long-term care facilities in the nation's capital are the targets of a scathing congress... Read more
Staffing Legislation:
MINNESOTA LAW SPELLS TEMP RELIEF FOR NURSING HOMES
A new Minnesota law is providing some relief for nursing homes gouged by temp agencies c... Read more
Clinical Research:
RESEARCHERS IDENTIFY LEADING CAUSE OF GASTROENTERITIS
Scientists may have cracked the mystery surrounding the cause of the pervasive gastroen-... Read more
Clinical Research:
STUDY SAYS FOLIC ACID MAY PROTECT FROM PARKINSONS
Researchers at the National Institute on Aging have come up with another good reason to ... Read more
Available Years:  2002