Glenwood Gardens, Bakersfield, Calif., a Brookdale Senior Living independent living community, is defending one of its nurses who refused pleas by a 911 operator to perform CPR on an elderly woman who later died, saying the nurse was following policy, according to news reports. Read More »
Site security, recognizing and defusing aggressive behavior and workplace violence prevention are topics that should be integrated into every facility’s training regimens. Read More »
On August 13, 2008, CMS published a final rule requiring all long-term care facilities to have automatic sprinkler systems installed throughout the facility. The deadline for compliance with the new regulatory requirement is August 13, 2013. On February 7, CMS issued a proposed rule that would extend the August 13, 2013 deadline. Read More »
The tragic events surrounding the deadly nightclub fire that happened over the weekend in Brazil should remind occupancies of all types to focus on fire safety every day of the year. Read More »
Each year, hundreds of people die in fires caused by heating equipment, including portable space heaters, according to the National Fire Protection Association. While prohibited in smoke compartments where residents are present in skilled nursing facilities, portable electric space heaters continue to find their way into LTC facilities of all types. Read More »
When tidal surges and flood waters from Superstorm Sandy damaged or completely washed away homes this past November, many independent, elderly homeowners began to rethink their housing and safety options. Read More »
Safety and security is a matter that every type of LTC facility should take very seriously. Assuming that seniors are immune from the type of violence that was witnessed at Sandy Hook Elementary School is a mistake. Read More »
Creating a detailed emergency response plan—and keeping it updated—is crucial to safeguarding your organization’s residents, staff and property. These disaster planning checklists can help you manage risk and keep your staff ready for anything. Read More »
I challenge LTC providers to think of creative ways to develop solid and meaningful relationships with their community’s first responders and providers of other essential services that will be mutually beneficial in good times as well as bad times. Read More »
A good percentage of disaster management is “getting your ducks in a row.” Most of this involves establishing appropriate relationships that may be premised on contacts, formalized agreements and memorandums of understanding with vendors of essential services and other facilities that may be needed to provide evacuation and relocation assistance during the disaster recovery phase. Read More »
The Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services has granted blanket waivers for New York and New Jersey after Hurricane Sandy, easing the regulations required of long-term care and other health providers. Read More »
An emergency response meeting held by the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services answers some questions on coping with the aftermath of Hurricane Sandy in New York, but many issues remain for long-term and acute care facilities in other states. Read More »
Health and Human Services (HHS) Secretary Kathleen Sebelius today declared a public health emergency for New York City. This declaration allows HHS to waive or modify certain Medicare, Medicaid and Children’s Health Insurance Program requirements. Read More »
Several nursing homes in the Rockaways area of New York City, which were heavily impacted by Hurricane Sandy, struggled with flooding and damaged generators, according to a report in The New York Times. Read More »
Updated 11:05 p.m. Thousands of LTC facilities evacuate the coastline from Maryland to New York as Hurricane Sandy sets her sights on inland states. Read More »
The danger of complacency and not performing the necessary “due diligence” as it relates to the installation and maintenance of your facility’s generator(s) and emergency power systems can lead to catastrophic failures. Here are five tips to help ensure that your emergency power system performs to its maximum potential at all times. Read More »
A full moon, high tides and colliding storm systems are conspiring to create a “perfect storm” that will bear down on the East Coast next week. Long-term care facilities should initiate their disaster plans now. Read More »
Crisis communications doesn’t have to make you cringe. If you plan accordingly and understand how to protect your reputation in a crisis, you can successfully navigate the situation and avoid the potentially negative impact an unexpected event could have on your long-term care organization. Read More »
Planning for an emergency at your LTC facility must start at home so your organization can help protect one of its most valuable resources--employees and their families. Read More »
When operational changes occur, it is critical to review and update your community’s emergency plans to help ensure that the changes have been incorporated into these essential documents. Read More »
Fire, flood, tornado, earthquake and tidal waves are just a few of the ways nature asserts itself to remind us of its power. Are you prepared to care and protect your residents if you get in Mother Nature’s way? The OIG doesn’t think so according to a recent study. Read More »
While not every prospective adverse event can be mapped out with anticipated responses and scenarios, there are steps owners and providers can take, especially in the first 24 hours after a serious event, to better protect residents, their families and employees. Read More »
AARP and Microsoft Corp. have teamed up to offer a free online health record to AARP’s 40+ million members. The tool gives residents and their family members a single online repository for vital health information, and it will assist those who are designated caregivers of loved ones. Read More »
The top award from the American Society of Healthcare Publication Edi, one of four awards Long-Term Living received for 2011 content, recognized its journalistic achievement for the story “Hurricane Irene Tests Healthcare Disaster Response Plans.” Read More »
Despite the estimated 92 percent of the nation’s 16,000 nursing homes that have emergency disaster plans, there are still shortcomings, according to a recent OIG report. Read More »
While it is clear that gaps exist in emergency preparedness on all levels of healthcare, a great deal of progress has been made in long-term care that may not be adequately reflected in this recent OIG report. Read More »
In its recommendations, OIG suggested CMS add more specific emergency planning protocol to existing federal requirements for nursing home disaster preparedness. Read More »
