Hospital Home Health articles from February 2005

Hospital Home Health archives from February 2005

CMS programs tackle the chronic care costs of Medicare patients: home health agencies use case management experience to get involved.(Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services)
February 1, 2005... With 15% of Medicare patients representing 75% to 80% of Medicare costs, it is no surprise that Section 721 of the Medicare Modernization Act calls for the development of chronic care improvement organizations that address the management of...

HIPPA: Q & A.(Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act)(questions and answers)(Column)
February 1, 2005... Question: What are the deadlines for compliance with the HIPAA security rule? Answer: For all covered entities, other than small health plans, the compliance deadline is April 20, 2005, says Robert W. Markette Jr., an Indianapolis...

Know how to avoid gaming the system.(Legal ease: understanding laws, rules, regulations)(guidelines for home health managers)
February 1, 2005... Home health managers have responded admirably to an increasing emphasis on compliance in recent years. Routine compliance activities in home health agencies now include verification of data, pre-billing reviews, reviews to identify...

Work environment may hasten nurse retirement: flexibility and accommodations would help.
February 1, 2005... Work stress and dissatisfaction with the work environment may hasten the retirement of aging nurses, according to a study by the Center for American Nurses, an Austin, TX-based affiliate of the American Nurses Association. Almost half...

Communication is key to client satisfaction: tips for communicating about pain management.(health care industry)
February 1, 2005... Everyone who works in health care has a list of ideas for what needs to be done to improve client satisfaction, but one theme appears to be a common thread throughout: communication. "Communication is always a challenge," says Jan Jones,...

AHRQ tool measures patient safety skills: encourage professionals to support change.(Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality)
February 1, 2005... Patient safety is on everyone's minds these days, but how do you know how well your organization already is doing on this topic? One way is a tool offered by the Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality (AHRQ), an arm of the Department of...

Public reports on quality measures to increase: improve processes with team approach.
February 1, 2005... Public reporting of quality measures is likely to increase in the near future, and hospitals should get ready, asserts Carolyn Scott, director of collaborative services and CEO work groups for clinical excellence with VHA Inc., an Irving,...

U.S. flu activity is on the increase, CDC says.(Centers for Disease Control and Prevention)(Brief Article)
February 1, 2005... Flu activity has risen steadily in the United States since mid-December and does not appear to have peaked, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) reported. The agency strongly encouraged people in flu vaccine priority groups...

CMS announces project to pay for flu medicines.(Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services)(Brief Article)
February 1, 2005... Seniors who get the flu can get assistance to help pay for antiviral medicines under a demonstration project announced by the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS). "There are prescription drugs that have been proven to prevent...

California web site offers free resources.(home health agencies and long term care facilities)
February 1, 2005... California families and caregivers now have even greater resources available to them for making difficult long-term care decisions. An expanded CalNHS.org features detailed information on 834 home health agencies and 172 licensed hospice...

CE questions.(continuing medical education)(Brief Article)(Correction Notice)
February 1, 2005... In the January 2005 issue, the CE questions and answers were numbered incorrectly. They should have been numbered 13-16. The correct answers should have been: 13. C; 14. D; 15. D; 16. A. We apologize for any confusion. 17. Why does Jim...