Month: April 2013

4 ways technology enhances employee learning and resident care

Learning management systems can improve training for employees and ease the documentation headaches for administrators during accreditation site visits by automating the training schedules and tracking course completion. Read More »

SNFs soon may face penalties for avoidable readmissions

Next year, in an effort to improve quality of care, skilled nursing facilities may share the penalties already levied to hospitals for 30-day Medicare hospital readmissions. Read More »

Parkinson’s disease organizations unite to raise awareness of the need to participate in clinical trials

Clinical trials serve a crucial role in bringing new medications and treatments to the people who suffer from various disease. But it takes people willing to take the time to participate. Recently, 16 international organizations have banded together to encourage participation in Parkinson's disease trials. Read More »

Southern seniors have greatest chance of high-risk prescribing

Medicare Advantage seniors living in the southeastern states have a much higher chance of being prescribed “risky” medications, reveals a new study from researchers at Brown University. Read More »

Managing the next flu season

Long-term care has weathered the recent flu epidemic, but now is the time to instill good habits among personnel in anticipation of the next viral invasion. Read More »

Expediting background checks

Background checks for caregivers are important, whether working for a facility or an individual, but can you afford to wait until you get the report? Read More »

EFA 2013: Lighting design strategies to improve health

Proper lighting provides much more than adequate visibility and pleasant aesthetics. A detailed look at light’s effect on circadian rhythms suggests that designers can play a significant role in improving health for long-term and post-acute care residents. Read More »

$91.5 million elder neglect verdict stands

The punishment fits the crime, as a circuit judge upholds the damages levied against a skilled nursing facility that is part of a billion-dollar LTC corporation. Read More »

Study: Copper surfaces can control resistant infections

A recent study shows that copper-based surfaces can kill microbes, even resistant strains of healthcare-acquired infections (HAIs). Read More »

EFA 2013: Making space for hospice in the care continuum

Continuing care trends are increasingly involving hospice within the whole care campus, instead of tucking away the hospice in a stand-alone building in a proverbial corner of finality. Read More »

Obama budget will cut Medicare but boost Medicaid and mental health

President Obama's new budget, released by the White House Wednesday, includes plenty of cuts, but also contains a few surprising increases. Read More »

Obama proposes $7.6 billion increase in vets’ LTC benefits

President Obama has proposed a $152.7 billion budget to expand access to healthcare, eliminate disability claim backlogs and end homelessness for veterans.  Read More »

Assisted living 2013: On the upswing

Two top industry executives share their insights on assisted living’s climate and trends. Assisted living survived the economic downturn and the collapse of the housing market intact and it is geared up and ready to continue moving forward. Read More »

Survey: Nursing home costs approach $84,000 a year

Long-term care costs are on a steep upward trajectory while home healthcare services are rising at a much more gradual pace, according to The Genworth 2013 Cost of Care Survey. Read More »

EFA 2013: Resident-centered care in China

With more than 180 million elders and growing, China is being forced to reconsider its senior care environments. Architects and designers are challenged to create facilities that best meet senior needs while respecting cultural expectations. Read More »

EFA 2013: Demand for affordable senior housing soars. No end in sight.

Presbyterian Senior Living in York, Pa. operates an integrated retirement community that combines market rate with affordable housing. Read More »

EFA 2013: Designing for daily life with dementia

You can’t design one facility that’s perfect for meeting the needs of all dementia residents, says Retreat Healthcare’s Lena Smith. But understanding the disease, its forms and the various stages can help inform spaces that are adaptable and sensitive to residents and caregivers alike. Read More »

EFA 2013: Consumers drive trends in aging-friendly housing market

Designing and building for an aging population is the same as designing and building for the general population, but with more considerations, more variations and more restrictions Read More »

Living in communities with more than a bed and a view

Professionals change their thinking on long-term care to focus on creating communities that serve the human needs of an aging population. Read More »

Silent locks & access control in LTC

As LTC design spaces become more “open,” access control becomes a much more important part of LTC facility strategy.  Read More »

Respiratory bugs and chicken soup

Whether it’s the flu, a cold or other respiratory ailment, one good, old-fashioned remedy has brought comfort and relief from symptoms for generations. Read More »

Conference keynote: What makes your residents happy?

Sunday’s Environments for Aging keynote speaker Margaret Wylde, president and CEO of ProMatura Group, urged architects and designers to re-examine what they think older residents want out of their living communities. Hint: It’s not bocce ball or bingo. Read More »

Dementia care cost is projected to double by 2040

A new study reports the cost of treating Alzheimer's and other forms of dementia at $109 billion, making it more expensive to society than either cancer or heart disease. Read More »

Technology reaches further into long-term and post-acute care policy

Health information technology and long-term care, once rarely found in the same conversation, are now topics of discussion within multiple policy-making bodies and workgroups. Read More »

CMS releases guidelines on delegated nursing roles in SNFs

A new Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services document clarifies what tasks physicians may delegate to nurses within nursing homes serving Medicare and Medicaid residents. Read More »

SNFs included in Rhode Island’s first nurse residency program

In addition to hospitals and clinics, nursing homes will be a practice setting in a newly developed Rhode Island nurse residency program. Read More »

Ensign Group adds three more SNFs in Texas

While some skilled nursing facilities are being sold off due to budget cuts, the Ensign Group seems to be on a buying spree. Read More »

New research looks at effects of traumatic brain injury in older adults

Considerable opportunity exists to improve interventions and outcomes of traumatic brain injury (TBI) in older adults, according to three studies published in the recent online issue of NeuroRehabilitation.    Read More »

One-on-one with…. Ruta Kadonoff

Senior Editor Pamela Tabar talks with Ruta Kadonoff, vice president of quality and regulatory affairs for the American Health Care Association/National Center for Assisted Living (AHCA/NCAL), about quality in long-term care—and why being able to measure it will be important for business. Read More »

2% Medicare payment reductions begin today

The waiting is over. No resolution to the budget crisis means that sequestration begins—today. Long-term care facilities will feel the effects upfront, but a quieter casuality might be healthcare's information technology and data-sharing initiatives. Read More »