Contemporary Long Term Care articles from July 1999

Contemporary Long Term Care archives from July 1999

The business of care.
July 1, 1999... AT OUR SUBACUTE CARE '99 show this May, there was a lot of concern about prospective payment's effect on patient care. People traded tales of patients who aren't getting needed therapy, of people recovering from amputations who have to wait...

LETTER.
July 1, 1999... Building blocks I love your magazine and it is a big help to me in this field. I recently recommended that our hospital system build an assisted living building with adult day care and maybe an outpatient rehab. Some of my ideas came from...

Correction.(Correction Notice)
July 1, 1999... In the PPS Update supplement to our May issue, the "Calculating Medications Costs" chart should have given the medication costs for CA1 as $15.46. And in the chart "How Low Can They Go?" Vencor's 12/31/97 stock price should have been listed at...

Relief efforts.(preferred provider service law)
July 1, 1999... Provider groups lobby for interim PPS changes HCFA OFFICIALS SAY THEY WILL NOT CONsider any major modifications to PPS before 2001--after completing a study on the new payment system. But industry groups are stepping up efforts to obtain...

Home sick.(home care services)
July 1, 1999... A GAO report released at the end of May says that Medicare's new interim payment system for home health care providers hasn't harmed Medicare patients. The report warns, however, that some patients may have a hard time finding a care provider:...

Unprepared.(long term care)
July 1, 1999... Baby boomers seem to be betting that they won't need long term care. Only one in five of the adults surveyed by U.S. Bancorp Piper Jaffray say they plan to get long term care insurance.

A Voice to be reckoned with.(Medicare)
July 1, 1999... Gail R. Wilensky, PhD chair of the Medicare Payment Advisory Committee, issued a statement June 2 recommending that Congress restore some of the funding cut in the BBA. She called for "targeted and limited changes" to protect underserved...

Easy listening.(music therapy)
July 1, 1999... Music can help relieve pain, says study DOCTORS AND NURSES CARING FOR SURgical patients should encourage the use of music and relaxation techniques to decrease pain, say the authors of a new study. "It's an adjunct rather than a primary...

Stamp of approval.
July 1, 1999... JCAHO to accredit assisted living ASSISTED LIVING ACCREDITATION MAY BE coming your way. In May--on the heels of the federal scrutiny of the industry this spring--the Joint Commission on Accreditation of Healthcare Organizations approved the...

Cease and assist.(home care)
July 1, 1999... Home modifications are underfunded THE ELDERLY EXPERIENCE LESS PHYSICAL and mental decline and less pain and are admitted to hospitals less frequently and for shorter periods of time when they are provided with assistive devices and their...

Setting their sites.(Veterans' health care reform)
July 1, 1999... Millennium Act targets veterans' long term care FEDERAL LAWMAKERS ARE TAKING AIM AT AN ailing veterans' health care system with ambitious plans for reform. Authors of the Veterans' Millennium Health Care Act plan to target long term...

Joining forces.(medical foundations)
July 1, 1999... VA and Parkinson Foundation form alliance THE DEPARTMENT OF VETERANS' AFFAIRS and the National Parkinson Foundation (NPF) have teamed up to establish the National Parkinson Foundation--Department of Veterans Affairs Alliance to Cure...

Taking advantage.(health coverage)
July 1, 1999... Bill would automatically enroll QMBs and SLMBs MANY SENIORS WHO QUALIFY FOR MEDICAID payment of their Medicare copayments and premiums aren't taking advantage of the coverage, prompting lawmakers to attempt to ensure participation in a...

Back off.(ergonomics law)
July 1, 1999... Congress counters OSHA's proposed workplace ergonomic standards THE 0CCUPATIONAL SAFETY AND HEALTH ADMINISTRATION (OSHA) has encountered another roadblock to its proposed national standards on workplace ergonomics, which would apply to all...

Southern accent.(fraud in Florida)
July 1, 1999... Feds crack down on fraud in Florida GOVERNMENT OFFICIALS ARE JOINING FORCES to crack down on Medicare and Medicaid fraud in Florida. The U.S. departments of Health and Human Services and Justice, along with state and local law...

Cracking down in North Carolina.
July 1, 1999... New legislation in North Carolina gives the state Department of Health and Human Services the authority to investigate the history of adult care home owners before issuing them a new license. The category includes assisted living centers, rest...

National Most Service Years Award.
July 1, 1999... This award is granted annually to nursing assistants working in long term care by the National Twenty Year Club for Nursing Assistants. The 1999 award will be presented November 1 in Arlington, Virginia. CNAs with more than 20 years of...

Seniors Housing State Regulatory Handbook (American Seniors Housing Association).
July 1, 1999... This annual handbook summarizes state regulatory and licensure requirements for assisted living residences and continuing care retirement communities. Assisted living data includes mandatory and permitted services, regulated subjects, staff-ing...

Senior Housing Net.
July 1, 1999... This Web site houses a state-by-state directory of retirement communities, assisted living facilities, and nursing homes, including facility descriptions, photographs, and floor plans. It also has an information and resource center focused on...

Rough Crossings: Family Caregivers' Odysseys through the Health Care System (United Hospital Fund).
July 1, 1999... The UHF looks at the transition from institution to home or vice versa through the eyes of the family caregiver. It includes sections on changes in health status or care settings, cultural and religious matters, and admission to a nursing home....

Integrity Healthcare Recruiting Web site.
July 1, 1999... IHR specializes in executive search and interim and contract management staffing services for long term care facilities. At its Web site you can list openings at your facility or post your interest in a new position. It also has resources,...

Dealing With a Life Threatening Illness (L. Professional's Care).
July 1, 1999... This videotape focuses on the five stages of death and dying and includes a discussion of the caregivers' reactions during those stages. A separate video, Grief Loss and Hope, looks at those issues and offers insight into the grieving process....

SHOW TIME.
July 1, 1999... ACCLIMATIZING TO PPS WAS THE focus of this year's Subacute Care '99 showdown in the mile-high city. Despite the high altitude, attendees breathed easier than at last year's conference, with its frenzied anticipation of PPS. Still, most of the...

The past is always with us.
July 1, 1999... Grace Rudolph, a social worker at a Massachusetts nursing home, is a contributing writer to Contemporary Long Term Care. A resident's most treasured possession may be her memories MY FIRST DAY ON THE JOB AS A NURSING HOME SOCIAL worker...

Working the Web.
July 1, 1999... Wendy L. Bonifazi, RN, is a contributing writer to Contemporary Long Term Care. Massachusetts providers lobby for better online survey WHEN HCFA UNVEILED ITS NATIONAL NURSING HOME Database Web site last September, consumers welcomed...

OIG vey!
July 1, 1999... Gene Hardy is vice president of information technology of HEALTHeCLAIM.net, a Richmond, Virginia-based training and billing firm. Consolidated billing creates new liability risks MENTION "COMPLIANCE" TO A HOSPITAL ADMINISTRATOR AND...

Tailor made.
July 1, 1999... A contributing writer to Contemporary Long Term Care, Jim Moore is president of Moore Diversified Services, a Fort Worth-based senior housing and health care consulting firm, and author of Assisted Living 2000. The time is right to...

Rethinking rehab.
July 1, 1999... Phyllis A. Madigan is executive vice president of Navigator Health Group, a health services company based in Wellesley, Massachusetts. Make sure your rehab services suit the patients you serve LONG TERM CARE'S ROLE IN REHAB HAS EXPANDED...

EEOC raises the bar.
July 1, 1999... Ronald J. Andrykovitch is a director in the labor and employment and health care practice groups at the Pittsburgh-based law firm of Cohen & Grigsby. New guidance expands employer responsibility under the ADA IN MARCH, THE EQUAL...

WELCOME TO SOFTWARE SOLUTIONS.
July 1, 1999... ASSISTED LIVING is not yet what it will be But as the industry continues to refine itself, and as it matures and grows, facilities that can function economically and efficiently will win the greater market share. Experts predict a rosy...

RFP: Are You Asking the Right Questions?
July 1, 1999... You know you need software to run your assisted living facility. You've narrowed the list to two or three candidates. Now it's time to send out that RFP. Whoa! Those initials may stand for Request for Proposal, but they also stand for...

Where is Assisted Living Headed?(Statistical Data Included)
July 1, 1999... Demographics and Customer Satisfaction Indicate Assisted Living is a Growth Industry. THE HOME-LIKE ATMOSPHERE OF ASSISTED LIVING is proving to be a winning choice for seniors. The ranks of the elderly, age 85 and over, are projected to...

ALTERRA CASE STUDY.
July 1, 1999... "WE track every contact and prospect on the computer," says Faye Godwin, executive vice president of operations for Alterra, formerly Alternative Living Services, which serves 16,000 residents in 40 states. "We create a profile that includes...

YOUR MARKETING PARTNER.
July 1, 1999... WHAT TO LOOK FOR IN SUPPORT FROM YOUR SOFTWARE 1. MONITORING MARKETING REPORTS Monitor the efficiency of your marketing activities. * Pre-defined reports track the volume of contact activity by each marketing rep, including...

WHO'S REFERRING YOUR RESIDENTS?(Statistical Data Included)
July 1, 1999... REFERRAL SOURCES are the lifeline for any assisted living facility. Do you know where your residents come from? Are you targeting the most valuable referral sources in your marketing program? Where can you best direct your marketing efforts?...

The Face of the Future.
July 1, 1999... AS WITH ANY INDUSTRY that is rapidly developing, the general parameters of assisted living are bound to change over the next decade. Some areas to watch: * REGULATION. State-level government is casting its eye upon assisted living....

Can Your Software Build a Knowledge Base.
July 1, 1999... "THE computer is the vehicle for communication. It's the point of knowledge creation, the point of knowledge transfer, it's the method of data input from the community hack to the home office through incident reporting and demographics. This...

YOUR COMPUTER DO THE TALKING.
July 1, 1999... CREAT A NETWORK OF RESIDENT INFORMATION THE ABILITY TO COLLECT AND MANAGE the flow of information for each resident in all of assisted living's service areas is critical for care management, cost analysis, and billing. All areas must be...

PROFILING RESIDENTS.
July 1, 1999... A CASE STUDY "COMPUTER APPLICATIONS ARE ESSENTIAL in capturing the data and making it useful. On a macro level for the corporation, we've profiled about 700 of our residents in various facilities. Using that data, we can predict the health...

Efficiency = Good Information Management.
July 1, 1999... RAPID GROWTH AND FIERCE MARKET COMPETITION will ratchet up the demand for quality care and services. Facilities that can market effectively, create service/care plans that demonstrate good outcomes, and deliver cost-efficient services will...

HEALTHCARE IN ASSISTED LIVING OF THE FACILITIES RESPONDING TO THE ALFA STUDY.(Statistical Data Included)
July 1, 1999... HEALTHCARE IN ASSISTED LIVING OF THE FACILITIES RESPONDING TO THE ALFA STUDY, THE FOLLOWING PROVIDED MEDICAL SERVICES NURSING SERVICES...

THE WELLNESS MODEL.
July 1, 1999... "THERE IS A BIG DEBATE about whether assisted living is a medical model or a social model," says Luke Gregory, vice president of business development for LifeTrust America. "If you're taking care of 84 year old women who take six to nine...

Pay Check.(nursing salary)(Polling Data)(Statistical Data Included)
July 1, 1999... Contemporary's 1999 nursing and administrative salary survey Reduced reimbursement coupled with increased regulatory scrutiny in the nursing home business. Greater competition in the assisted living sector. These developments make one thing...

Proceed with caution.
July 1, 1999... Eugene W. Grace is president and Cheryl Kiekow is advertising and communications director for Minneapolis-based Grace Management, which develops, markets, and operates retirement and assisted living communities and communities for the memory...

NovaCare, Mariner get out of contract therapy.
July 1, 1999... NovaCare Inc. has sold its long term care contract rehabilitation business to Chance Murphy Inc., a new company affiliated with Integrated Health Services Inc., after struggling to regain profitability under PPS. IHS will operate the business...

CORPORATE LADDER.
July 1, 1999... Portland, Oregon-based Regent Assisted Living Inc. has named Louis Swart chief operating officer and Chuck Bergam national sales director. Chris Belford has been named regional manager for the Northwest region. The following general managers...

Alterra stock plummets on Q1 results, outlook.(Statistical Data Included)
July 1, 1999... Wall Street investors are an unforgiving bunch. Brookfield, Wisconsin-based assisted living provider Alterra reported revenues of $82.9 million for the first quarter ending March 31, a 78 percent increase over revenues of $46.5 million for the...

Leaders and Laggards.(Statistical Data Included)
July 1, 1999... How industry stocks fared from 5/1/99 through 5/31/99 May was a disappointing month for the long term care sector as investors openly fretted about the deteriorating fundamentals of most of the nursing home companies. The Raymond James Long...

Grand Court sells off properties to raise cash.
July 1, 1999... Boca Raton, Florida-based Grand Court Lifestyles Inc., a provider of independent and assisted living services, announced its first sale of controlling interests in multifamily properties. Grand Court received $12 million, including $5 million...

NewCare Health Corp. announces restructuring.
July 1, 1999... NewCare Health Corporation, an operator of nursing homes, assisted/independent living centers, and hospitals, announced a corporate restructuring to reduce operating losses. As of June 1, Lenox Healthcare of Pittsfield, Massachusetts,...

HCR Manor Care to buy $200M of company's stock.
July 1, 1999... The board of directors of HCR Manor Care Inc. has authorized the company to purchase up to $200 million of the Toledo, Ohio-based company's common stock on the open market or in private transactions. The purchases may be made from time to time...

M&A volume slides in first quarter.(mergers and acquisitions)(Statistical Data Included)
July 1, 1999... There were 23 mergers and acquisitions in the long term care sector in the first quarter ended March 31, down 36 percent from the prior quarter. Stephen Monroe, a partner at Irving Levin Associates Inc., the New Canaan, Connecticut-based...

At long last, Sunrise, Karrington merger closes.
July 1, 1999... The long-awaited merger of Fairfax, Virginia-based Sunrise Assisted living Inc. and Columbus, Ohio-based Karrington Health Inc., which was announced last October, finally closes with the approval of Karrington shareholders at a special meeting...

Canadian REIT completes acquisition of 11 U.S. SNFs.(Real Estate Investment Trust, skilled nursing facilities)
July 1, 1999... Toronto-based CPL Long Term Care Real Estate Investment Trust completed its agreement to acquire 11 nursing homes in Vermont, Connecticut, and New Hampshire representing total capacity of 1,354, for $76 million. The REIT has acquired an 80...

Senior Lifestyle grows by seven in Rhode Island.
July 1, 1999... Senior Lifestyle Corporation strengthened its presence in Rhode Island with the acquisition of Horizon Bay Retirement Corporation, a Rhode Island-based company that includes 858 independent, assisted living, and nursing units. The purchase...

Tenet sells off senior housing, nursing homes.
July 1, 1999... As part of a strategy to focus on its acute care hospitals and health networks, investor-owned Tenet Healthcare Corp. has sold two apartment complexes for seniors and a skilled nursing facility to not-for-profit Bethesda Health Group Inc.,...

ARC partners with Omnicare, LifeTrust.(American Retirement Corp.)
July 1, 1999... Nashville-based American Retirement Corporation will become a one-third equity partner in LifeMed LLC, a Nashville-based joint venture currently owned by Omnicare Inc. of Covington, Kentucky, and LifeTrust America Inc. of Nashville. ...

Genesis sues HCR over termination of Rx contract.
July 1, 1999... Genesis Health Ventures Inc. and its subsidiary Vitalink Pharmacy Services (doing business as NeighborCare) filed suits requesting injunctive relief and compensatory damages against HCR Manor Care Inc. The suits, which also name two of HCR...

Firms bid for contracts to fight Medicare fraud.
July 1, 1999... Twelve technology and accounting firms are competing for six Medicare fraud and abuse prevention contracts. The first of their kind, the newly designated contractors will expand HCFA's ability to investigate Medicare fraud and abuse by...

Ventas rebuffs Vencor's reconsolidation idea.
July 1, 1999... After posting a $12.4 million loss in the first quarter, Vencor CEO Edward Kuntz announced a pie-in-the-sky plan for boosting revenues: remerging with Ventas, which owns the hospitals and nursing homes that Vencor runs. The two companies have...

Freddie Mac does senior housing securitization.
July 1, 1999... Freddie Mac has done its first securitization of assisted living and senior facility multifamily mortgages. In this deal, a $55 million portfolio for Alterra, the nine mortgages averaged $6.1 million. Five were located in New York, two in...

Harborside obtains credit facility amendment.
July 1, 1999... Boston-based Harborside Healthcare Corporation, which operates 50 SNFs with 6,120 beds, has obtained approval from its lenders to amend its $250 million senior credit facility. The company previously announced that it expected financial...

NHI provides $9.2 million sale/leaseback.
July 1, 1999... National Health Investors Inc. of Murfreesboro, Tennessee, has entered into a sale/leaseback transaction with Alterra Healthcare Corporation of Brookfield, Wisconsin, for $9.2 million on three assisted living facilities. The three ALFs,...

Heller to acquire HealthCare Financial.
July 1, 1999... HealthCare Financial Partners Inc., a Chevy Chase, Maryland-based commercial finance company with $533 million in assets at March 31, and Heller Financial Inc., a Chicago-based commercial finance company with $14 billion in owned and managed...

ACTS closes $84.5M bond offering.
July 1, 1999... ACTS Retirement-Life Communities Inc , of West Point, Pennsylvania, completed a public offering of debt securities totaling $84.5 million. The financing included the issuance of tax-exempt bonds in Pennsylvania and Florida. "Historically...

Software.
July 1, 1999... The Y2K Project Manager helps small facilities assess, identify, and prepare for Year 2000 risks. Call 800-365-3263.

Charting system.
July 1, 1999... The LTC Link is an electronic medication administration record charting system that lets on see performance patterns and generates reports. Call 888-373-1100.

Pharmacy software.
July 1, 1999... The Eagle Pharmacy System is designed for long term care pharmacies. The software is year 2000 compliant. Call 8OO-762-9378.

Business systems.
July 1, 1999... The business systems here are just a few of the products designed to help you provide quality care and ensure sufficient reimbursement by running your operations more efficiently. In evaluating new products, consider the cost versus the...

OmniTrak tracks personnel.
July 1, 1999... OmniTrak tracks personnel and payroll matters such as attendance patterns, overtime, and absences on specific days or patterns of late arrivals. Call 888-484-6387.

Wound care.
July 1, 1999... Johnson & Johnson Medical's wound care software tracks patient data, gives a formulary for standardized care, and provides protocols. Call 800-255-2500.

Call system.
July 1, 1999... Jeron's emergency call system allows residents to contact staff with problems. In addition, it can display records. Call 800-621-1903.

Sentillion Links.
July 1, 1999... This software from Sentillion links other health care applications, allowing you to keep several applications open at once. Call 978-749-0022.

Garden.
July 1, 1999... The StandUp Gardens can be made finished or unfinished for indoor or outdoor use. Accessories include grow lights, a water garden kit, and an extra utility shelf. Call 800-867-8263.

Wheelchair.
July 1, 1999... This wheelchair from Medline Industries has a 250-pound weight capacity. It is also constructed to minimize wobbling. Call 800-633-5463.

Gel.
July 1, 1999... Sore No More's pain relieving gel is made of botanical extra and natural ingredients to ease sore joints; back, muscle, or arthritic pain; and inflammation. Call 800-842-6622.

Dryer.
July 1, 1999... Cissell's dryer can dry a 55-pound load in 21 minutes and includes several safety features. Call 502-587-1292.

Linking job and care quality.
July 1, 1999... Who are your members so far? Wilner: We're still a very new alliance, still at the pre-membership phase. But a lot of groups and individuals have been pouring a tremendous amount of effort and staff time into getting it off the ground,...

Kitchens.
July 1, 1999... Dwyer Products' custom compact kitchens can be designed to suit a range of needs. Call 800-348-8508.

Dinner rolls.
July 1, 1999... These individually wrapped rolls come in four shapes and flavors to suit different tastes. Call 800-676-4622.