OASIS Alert

You have a lot to consider when responding to OASIS items M1840 — Toilet Transferring and M1845 — Toileting Hygiene. Keep these tips from Pat Jump with Rice Lake, Wis.-based Acorn’s End Training & Consulting in mind to help boost your accuracy:

• Be sure to actually watch the client perform the tasks involved in these items.
• Carefully complete a safety check of the home, including the location of bathrooms.
• Note any physical or sensory impairments affecting the client such as poor vision, cognitive impairment, balance or range of motion issues.
• Remember that assistance includes stand-by assistance.
• Consider the client’s ability regardless of the presence or absence of a caregiver. If the client is able to safely get to and from the toilet and transfer with assistance, your answer to M1840 should be response “1 — When reminded, assisted, or supervised by another person, able to get to and from the toilet and transfer” even if there is no caregiver in the home.
• Keep in mind that M1845 includes both personal hygiene ability and managing clothing.
• Consider what the client is able to do on the day of assessment. If the ability varies, consider what the client’s ability is more than 50 percent of the time.
• If the client needs assistance on any activity listed within the item, select response “2 — Someone must help the patient to maintain toileting hygiene and/or adjust clothing” for M1845.