Contemporary Long Term Care articles from March 2007

Contemporary Long Term Care archives from March 2007

Business sense.(OFF THE TOP)(nursing homes change and become more patient friendly)(Editorial)
March 1, 2007... When I first entered the long-term care world, the fashion at the time was to create a more home-like environment. Throw a few lace doilies around, add a dog and some china ornaments, and voila!--you've got a home-like nursing home. That's...

Congress urged to waive Part D copayment.(INDUSTRY UPDATE)(National Coalition for Assisted Living)(Brief article)
March 1, 2007... The National Coalition for Assisted Living (NCAL) asked Congress in late January to waive the Medicare Part D copayment for dually eligible seniors, in a statement submitted during a Senate Special Aging Committee hearing. NCAL said in a press...

Long-term care staffing crisis looms.(INDUSTRY UPDATE)(Allen Rosenbloom of Alliance for Quality Nursing Home Care predicts)(Brief article)
March 1, 2007... The long-term care industry will face a critical staffing shortage due to demand for workers, said Allen Rosenbloom, president of the Alliance for Quality Nursing Home Care, in an Alliance press release. The industry will require approximately...

Genesis HealthCare sold for $1.7 billion.(INDUSTRY UPDATE)(Formation Capital Corp. and JER Partners acquire Genesis HealthCare Corp.)(Brief article)
March 1, 2007... On January 16, Genesis HealthCare Corporation announced that Formation Capital and JER Partners will acqire the company in a $1.7 billion deal. In an all-cash transaction for $63 per share, Genesis will keep its name but now operate as a...

Opposition arises to MedPAC's inflation decision.(INDUSTRY UPDATE)(Alliance for Quality Nursing Home Care opposes Medicare Payment Advisory Commission)(Brief article)
March 1, 2007... The Alliance for Quality Nursing Home Care issued a statement voicing its dissatisfaction with the Medicare Payment Advisory Commission's (MedPAC) resistance to an annual inflation adjustment for skilled nursing facilities (SNFs) and to freeze...

Sunrise to recast 2005 financial statement.(INDUSTRY UPDATE)(Sunrise Senior Living Inc.)(Brief article)
March 1, 2007... In a notice released January 15, Sunrise Senior Living, Inc., stated that it is weeks away from submitting its recast 2005 financial statement information to the Securities and Exchange Commission. The McLean, VA--based company also announced...

CMS clears up medical gas storage.(INDUSTRY UPDATE)(Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services)(Brief article)
March 1, 2007... CMS issued a survey memorandum on January 12 regarding storage requirements in nursing homes for small quantities of medical gas, which also clarified how to determine whether a medical gas container is "in use." The memorandum stated that up...

Pharmacy takes on new strategy in acquisitions.(INDUSTRY UPDATE)(Chemrx acquires Salerno's Pharmacy )(Brief article)
March 1, 2007... CHEMRX, the nation's fourth largest privately owned long-term care pharmacy, announced January 17 that it acquired Salerno's Pharmacy. Involving 2,500 beds that the Pennsylvania based Salemo's previously service& the deal brought the Long...

Administrator guilty of involuntary manslaughter.(INDUSTRY UPDATE)(Alzheimer's Disease Alliance of Western Pennsylvania)(Brief article)
March 1, 2007... In February, an Allegheny County (PA) jury convicted a former nursing home administrator of involuntary manslaughter and sentenced her to 22-44 months in prison, stemming from the death of an Alzheimer's-afflicted resident. In October 2001, the...

Medicare program on GAO's high-risk list.(INDUSTRY UPDATE)(Government Accountability Office)(Brief article)
March 1, 2007... Medicare is still considered a high-risk program for fraud and abuse because of the fiscal challenges caused by its design, rising healthcare costs, and the arrival of the baby boomer generation. This is according to a report published in...

State fee for nursing homes gets another convert.(INDUSTRY UPDATE)(Brief article)
March 1, 2007... Maryland was the latest state to propose a state fee for nursing homes--one that would, in theory, boost Medicaid reimbursements and allow facilities to hire more staff and buy new equipment. The state's Health and Mental Hygiene secretary,...

NIC survey shows senior living industry gains.(INDUSTRY UPDATE)(National Investment Center)(Brief article)
March 1, 2007... Occupancy rates among senior living industry providers swung in the right direction in 2006, and the National Investment Center for the Seniors Housing Care Industry (NIC) had the lowdown. NIC announced its third-quarter survey results...

The calendar.(Calendar)
March 1, 2007... Conferences March 8-9 American Association of Nurse Assessment Coordinators National Spring Conference Philadelphia, PA www.aanac.org March 19-21 American Association of Homes and Services for the Aging Future of Aging...

Double the options from ADC.(WHAT'S NEW)
March 1, 2007... The American Dryer Corporation offers two times the opportunity to meet laundry needs with double the range of ADC products in every price category. Customers can choose from a full spectrum of dryers, including the traditional AD Line, which...

Manage workflow with Artromick eMAR.(WHAT'S NEW)
March 1, 2007... The Artromick eMAR is a complete workflow and management system that sets itself apart with intuitive user interface and common sense function. The Artromick eMAR ensures enhanced workflow efficiency, medication charting accuracy, and a safer...

Purell's foam sanitizing solution.(WHAT'S NEW)
March 1, 2007... Germs are everywhere. Soap and water aren't. Purell, America's #1 brand of hand sanitizer, comes in a nonaerosol foaming formula. It kills 99.9% of the most common germs that may cause illness with a thick, rich foam that stays in your hands....

Shower advantages with Melanie.(WHAT'S NEW)
March 1, 2007... The Melanie Shower System was created to meet the growing need for a convenient and effective resident bathing solution. Research has shown that incontinence accidents occur in more than 85% of showers, but the Melanie unit comes equipped with...

Blue Chip's exceptional cushioning.(WHAT'S NEW)
March 1, 2007... The Pre-Vent Hex Gel Bariatric mattress, created by Blue Chip Medical Products, Inc., is the culmination of extensive research and testing, and offers maximum protection to guard against the incidence of pressure sores. Pre-Vent Hex Gel...

Lonseal offers GreenVinyl[TM].(WHAT'S NEW)
March 1, 2007... Ever mindful of the environment, Lonseal, Inc.--maker of innovative flooring and vertical surfacing--now manufactures sustainable, high-performing, resilient sheet-vinyl products, through its GreenVinyl[TM] program. New formulations in product...

First we try, then we trust: how to offer staff just enough guidance to succeed.(Viewpoint essay)
March 1, 2007... The style of management in many nursing homes has come a long way over the past decade or so. Until recently, management was a top-down, "I'm the boss so do as I say" model. Decisions were made at the top by the administrator, who passed them...

The secrets of cash flow: the 10 ways your facility is pouring money down the drain.(Cover story)
March 1, 2007... If only the bottom line didn't amount to everything in a skilled nursing facility (SNF), and quality care was the only thing that mattered to sustaining its operation. But it's reality: Most SNFs can't afford to miss out on valuable...

Design for the times: how to select an integrated facility design team without tearing your hair out.(DESIGN FOR THE TIMES)
March 1, 2007... If you've been working in the long-term care market for a while, you know that "culture change" and "building green" are today's buzzwords You may also be acutely aware that the current physical plant of your facility is in need of...

Restraint alternatives unbound: a good-sense framework for reducing the use of physical restraints in your facility.(RESTRAINT ALTERNATIVES UNBOUND)
March 1, 2007... Long-term care facilities are between a rock and a hard place when it comes to restraint reduction versus fall prevention--or so it seems. The majority of residents in long-term care facilities are frail, medically complex, and often...

Pseudoaddiction is a drug reality: the nursing home medication problem you may not know you have.
March 1, 2007... Pseudoaddiction is a delicate issue, especially when you consider the potential for survey and legal problems. Although the term was first introduced in 1989, many healthcare professionals have never heard it used. But you probably have...

The finer points of the RAI: how effective leadership can deliver quality care and proper reimbursement.(resident assessment instrument)
March 1, 2007... Accurate and effective use of the Resident Assessment Instrument (RAI) in skilled nursing facilities has many significant benefits, including providing proper reimbursement, improving quality of care, increasing survey compliance, and...

The good, the bad, and the ugly: growing your facility's relationship with the media in the healthiest manner possible.
March 1, 2007... Every nursing home wants to project a positive image and engage the media enough to report on its accomplishments. But what happens if your facility has a tainted past? Perhaps, there's that one survey that left a black mark on your facility's...

The C. diff dilemma: handling an increasingly powerful menace.(Clostridium difficile)
March 1, 2007... In September 2006, a roundtable of infection control (IC) experts from all over the country convened in San Francisco. Their goal was to discuss the prevention, diagnosis, and treatment of Clostridium difficile infection, better known as C....

"Number one? Who, me?".(THE BREAKROOM )(Yone Minegawa becomes the world's oldest person)(Brief article)
March 1, 2007... --Yone Minegawa, at presstime the world's oldest living person at age 114, speaking to the Associated Press from her Tokyo nursing home after learning on January 30 that the previous recordholder had passed away. Of note: the world's...

A fifth of turnover, with a chaser of regret.(THE BREAKROOM)(trend in healthcare workers)(Brief article)
March 1, 2007... Job-seeker Web engine CareerBuilder.com released its annual job forecast survey, citing that close to 20% of all healthcare workers will quit their jobs in 2007. Seventeen percent of respondents in the healthcare field reported that they were...

Long-term care insurance: do try this at home?(BY THE NUMBERS)(facts)(Brief article)
March 1, 2007... According to the American Association for Long-Term Care Insurance, 34% of elderly Americans who claim benefits from long-term care insurance policies used them to cover in-home care in 2006 30% of the payments went for assisted living costs...

Poll.(THE BREAKROOM)
March 1, 2007... One of the big long-term care topics this year is compliance with the Deficit Reduction Act of 2005. During a recent HCPro audioconference on the same topic, listeners were polled as to how far along their skilled nursing facilities (SNF) were...

Sign o' the times?(THE BREAKROOM)(medicaid program finds less takers )(Brief article)
March 1, 2007... New identification and citizenship requirements designed to keep illegal immigrants out of the Medicaid program have catalyzed a drop in program enrollment in six states, including Wisconsin, Virginia, Kansas, Iowa, Louisiana, and New...