Contemporary Long Term Care articles from February 2000

Contemporary Long Term Care archives from February 2000

Back to the future.
February 1, 2000... JUST WHEN I THOUGHT MILLENNIAL musings were behind me, I find myself once again thinking about the future. In January, just after we send this issue to the printer, we'll be joined by our new editor-in-chief. After an intensive search,...

IN BOX.
February 1, 2000... Residents pursue technological interests My heartfelt thanks for highlighting Beechwood Home's marvelous use of computer technology in the October (1999) issue of Contemporary Long Term Care ("Improving patient care"). Norm Haverkos, the...

It's official.
February 1, 2000... Last year was a loser for most long term care stocks, confirms a report issued January 4 by HealthCare Markets group. Health care stocks as a whole rose 18.7 percent, but those m the long term care sector dropped nearly 70 percent in 1999

Up, up, and away.
February 1, 2000... We keep spending considerably more on health care from year to year, says a report released by HCFA in early January. Spending increased 5.6 percent in 1998, the biggest jump since 1993's 8.7 percent hike.

Violent veterans.
February 1, 2000... A study in the January issue of the Journal of the American Geriatrics Society suggests that World War II and Korean war veterans who develop dementia may have sudden, violent outbursts related to post-traumatic stress disorder--if PTSD is left...

Of mouse and men.
February 1, 2000... Providers ease into Year 2000 IN THE END, THE COMPUTER GEEKS WHO created the Y2K problem by representing years using two digits instead of four, redeemed themselves by making it all better. Thanks to their extensive repair efforts, the...

High priorities.
February 1, 2000... States continue to target long term care STATE LEGISLATURES CONTINUE TO FOCUS on the needs of those in long term care, according to a survey of 48 states released in December from the National Conference of State Legislatures. Helping...

Mental cases.
February 1, 2000... Elderly shorted on mental health care TWO-THIRDS OF NURSING HOME RESIDENTS suffer from some type of mental disorder, yet most such long term care facilities fail to meet their needs, according to the first-ever Surgeon General's report on...

Back breaker.
February 1, 2000... Providers question cost, value of OSHA standard THE OCCUPATIONAL SAFETY AND HEALTH Administration has proposed a plan it says will save $9 billion by reducing work-related injuries. But the proposal, which would require certain employers to...

Fine prospects.
February 1, 2000... HCFA hones ability to fine nursing homes HCFA CRANKED UP ITS SURVEY AND ENFORCEment efforts with its release late last year of State Operations Manual (SOM) revisions. Nursing home operators now face immediate sanctions when they receive...

Budget battle in Massachusetts.
February 1, 2000... Nearly 2,000 demonstrators that included nursing home residents and their families gathered outside the state capitol in December to protest a Medicaid rate increase of $49 million proposed by Governor Paul Cellucci's administration. That...

New York boosts assisted living.
February 1, 2000... With the goal of making assisted living affordable to more New Yorkers, the New York State Housing Finance Agency has developed underwriting criteria for the financing of assisted living projects for senior citizens. While the HFA has had...

Medication Management in Assisted Living.
February 1, 2000... Medication Management in Assisted Living (ALFA University). This video, underwritten by Novartis Pharmaceuticals, features caregivers using best practices for assisting residents with medication administration. Emphasis is placed on...

Free Kit: How to Get Donated Supplies.
February 1, 2000... Free Kit: How to Get Donated Supplies (The National Association for the Exchange of Industrial Resources). This information kit tells not-for-profit nursing homes and other health care organizations that serve the elderly how to obtain donated,...

SNALF.com.
February 1, 2000... SNALF.com This new long term care Internet portal includes special sections for continuing education opportunities, job postings, peer forums, directories of government agencies and industry organizations, and vendor information. Portions of...

Design Details for Health.
February 1, 2000... Design Details for Health by Cynthia Leibrock (John Wiley & Sons). This hardcover book covers basics about lighting, color, and furnishings, as well as previously unpublished research on assisted living, dementia care, hospice, sub-acute, and...

Ode to Ruth.
February 1, 2000... A caregiver and resident become girlfriends AS I ENTERED THE HOSPITAL ROOM, THE THICK SMELL OF sickness and death slapped me in the face. I had been here many times, but today was different. As the heavy steel door slowly clicked shut...

Documentation hot spots.
February 1, 2000... Capture the right information and boost reimbursement GOOD DOCUMENTATION SKILLS HAVE ALWAYS BEEN IMPORTANT clinically speaking, but they take on new significance under Medicare's prospective payment system. Originally, the minimum data set,...

Don't overlook today's growth potential.
February 1, 2000... THERE'S PLENTY OF BAD NEWS IN ASSISTED LIVING TODAY: public company stocks are depressed, some major metropolitan markets appear to be saturated, new project fill-up is Slowing, and rate concessions are becoming commonplace. But don't be fooled...

The shift to palliative care.
February 1, 2000... New model can improve quality of life in long term care AS RESEARCHERS AND REGULATORS FINE-TUNE THEIR FOCUS ON improving the quality of life in long term care, the need for programs that address those needs is becoming increasingly...

Ka-Ching!
February 1, 2000... Are wound care costs clouding clinical judgment? Glenburn Home, a not-for-profit nursing facility in Linton, Indiana, uses state-of-the-art wound care treatments and care plans, says Susan Perigo, director of rehabilitation. But pressed for...

Setting the PACE.
February 1, 2000... To the officers of Grane Healthcare, owner of nine nursing homes and two assisted living facilities in western Pennsylvania, the handwriting is on the wall: Older people want to remain at home whenever possible. Meanwhile, state and federal...

Improving drug therapy.
February 1, 2000... What are your membership's main concerns today? Webster: Our overarching concern is that the elderly, irrespective of the care setting they reside in, need access to needed and appropriate medications. "Needed" relates to whether you treat...

Hyperlink headaches and other Web woes.
February 1, 2000... THE GROWTH OF THE INTERNET HAS BROUGHT NEW OPPORtunities to long term care. By establishing a Web site, providers can reach out to the community as never before through improved communication and marketing capabilities. But an...

Finding funding in 2000.
February 1, 2000... Government, private capital is still available THE LIQUIDITY SQUEEZE THA REARED ITS HEAD IN RECENT years will remain a serious obstacle for the publicly traded companies whose market value has plummeted over the past 12 months. Many...

Alterra's multipronged strategy.
February 1, 2000... Alterra Healthcare Corp. has embarked on several initiatives aimed at strengthening its capital structure and cash flow. The Brookfield, Wisconsin-based assisted living chain, whose stock at press time was trading at $7, off its 52-week high of...

CORPORATE LADDER.
February 1, 2000... Kuala Healthcare names prez kuala Healthcare has named Charles Shapiro president and CEO of the Englewood Cliffs, N.J.-based skilled nursing and assisted living company, and vice chairman of its Infu-Tech subsidiary. Before joining Kuala,...

IHS stock now on over-the-counter bulletin board.
February 1, 2000... Integrated Health Services' common stock last month began trading in January on the National Association of Securities Dealers' OTC Bulletin Board Service. The stock symbol is IHSV. The Sparks, Maryland-based nursing home chain had...

First senior housing grad program launched.
February 1, 2000... The first graduate program to focus on the business of senior housing and care is being formed through a partnership between the National Investment Center for the Seniors Housing & Care Industries (NIC) and the Johns Hopkins University School...

Greenbriar sells block of stock in New Life.
February 1, 2000... Dallas-based Greenbriar Corp., which owns and operates 30 retirement and assisted living communities, has sold a block of preferred stock in New Life Treatment Centers to Thomas Nelson for $4.3 million in cash. The asset is unrelated to...

Mercy earmarks $120M for development.
February 1, 2000... Mercy Continuing Care of Farmington Hills, Michigan, plans to develop five new assisted living and congregate care centers for middle-income residents in Michigan and Iowa. MCC, an affiliate of Mercy Health Services, is making an initial...

New Surfside expanding its subacute unit.
February 1, 2000... New Surfside Nursing Home of Far Rockaway, New York, is expanding its subacute unit from 16 to 24 beds. The unit features ventilator/respiratory services, including tracheostomy care, as well as intravenous care, wound management, hospice care,...

Long Island Care partners with Metropolitan Hospice.
February 1, 2000... Long Island Care Center, a 200-bed nursing home in Flushing, New York, has entered into a joint affiliation with Brooklyn, New York-based Metropolitan Hospice of Greater New York. The alliance will enable LICC to provide in-depth hospice care...

Willow Valley, Lancaster Health form alliance.
February 1, 2000... Willow Valley Retirement Communities and Lancaster Health Alliance are teaming up to develop prototype programs and practices for individuals with chronic illnesses. The 2,000-plus resident retirement community and the regional health system,...

Penacook Place joins IntegraCare network.
February 1, 2000... IntegraCare, a not-for-profit postacute provider network in eastern Massachusetts, has added to its member organization Penacook Place, an independent, not-for-profit 160-bed nursing and rehabilitation facility that serves the Greater Haverhill...

Sunrise closes $400M revolving credit line.
February 1, 2000... Fairfax, Virginia-based Sunrise Assisted Living Inc. has closed a $400 million revolving credit line to be provided by a 14-bank syndicate led by Bank of America. The credit facility represents and expansion of Sunrise's previous $250...

Caretenders completes $20M credit agreement.
February 1, 2000... Caretenders HealthCorp has completed a new $20 million revolving credit facility with BankOne Kentucky NA. This financing replaces credit agreement with Heller Financial Services and BankOne under which about $14 million in borrowing were...

Emeritus closed $25.9M financing.
February 1, 2000... Seattle-base Emeritus Assisted Living closed a $25.9 million financing transaction. The transaction represents a refinance of three owned communities and the acquisition financing for a community it has been leasing. The four communities have...

CNA announces 10-year rate guarantee.
February 1, 2000... Nashville, Tennessee-based CNA LTC, the long term care unit of CNA Financial Corp., has announced that all of its policies will now carry a guarantee of level premiums for 10 full years from the date of issue. CNA claims this is the longest...

Certification program launched for LTC insurance.
February 1, 2000... The Corporation for Long Term Care Certification Inc., in cooperation with the National Academy of Elder Law Attorneys, has introduced what it says is "the first certification program for insurance professionals who advise consumers on the...

Balanced Care to buy 24 ALFs from Meditrust.
February 1, 2000... Balanced Care Corp. has agreed to purchase the real estate assets of all 24 Outlook Pointe assisted living facilities it currently leases or manages from Meditrust Corp., a real estate investment trust, for $97.4 million, or about $65,200 per...

Extendicare sells six Florida SNFs for $40.5M.
February 1, 2000... Extendicare Health Services, the U.S. subsidiary of Markham, Ontario-based Extendicare Inc., has sold the shares of Florida 6 Healthcare Facilities, which owns and operates six Florida nursing homes totaling 763 beds, to Tandem Health Care of...

Merrill Gardens buys Texas-based TORCH.
February 1, 2000... Merrill Gardens, a Seattle-based owner and operator of senior housing communities, has agreed to buy TORCH Health Care through a merger with the Irving, Texas-based company. The combined company becomes one of the largest private senior...

Senior Care Group buys Florida SNF, ALF.
February 1, 2000... Senior Care Group acquired The Inn at Lakeshore Villas, a 156-bed assisted living facility and Lakeshore Villas Health Care Center, a 179-bed skilled nursing facility. The two facilities, located in Tampa, Florida, had been family-owned...

Denver-based REIT sells independent, assisted units.
February 1, 2000... AIMCO Properties, a Denver-based national apartment real estate investment trust, has sold tow buildings and a home health agency in Florida for $69.6 million. The purchaser was Classic Residence by Hyatt. Built in 1990, Casa Del Mar, a...

Westport Senior Living buys two Florida CCRCs.
February 1, 2000... Westport Senior Living Investment Fund, a Palm Beach Gardens, Florida, company that develops and acquires CCRCs, has purchased two Florida communities: University Village in Tampa and Freedom village in Bradenton. Both were opened in the...

Senior Care buys two Genesis adult day centers.
February 1, 2000... Cherry Hill, new Jersey-based Senior Care Centers of America has added two adult day health centers to its network. The centers, located in Voorhees, New Jersey, and Willow Grove, Pennsylvania were previously owned by Genesis ElderCare. ...

NHC buys two Florida health care centers.
February 1, 2000... Murfreesboro, Tennessee-based National HealthCare Corp., has purchased two long term care centers in Pensacola and Lake City, Florida. The centers, called Palm Garden, will be renamed HFC Health Care. The seller was Florida Convalescent Centers...

What a big heart you have!
February 1, 2000... A nursing home resident and a boy share a special friendship Kind, nurturing, social, loves to bake. Ruth Turner, an 89-year-old resident of The Milton & Hattie Kutz Home, a skilled nursing facility in Wilmington, Delaware had all of the...