“Don’t resuscitate this patient; he has a living will,” the nurse told Dr. Monica Williams-Murphy, handing her a document. Williams-Murphy looked at the sheet bearing the signature of the unconscious 78-year-old man, who’d been rushed from a nursing home to the emergency room. “Do everything possible,” it read, with a check approving cardiopulmonary resuscitation. Misunderstandings involving documents meant to guide …
Collaborative initiative reduces 30-day hospital readmissions
An article from healio.com reports on the study of The Enhanced Care Program, a collaborative initiative between physicians, nurse practitioners and other medical staff to help patients discharged from an acute care facility transition to a skilled nursing facility. Read about the program and the study’s findings here.
Long-Term Care Facilities Invited to Join Antibiotic Stewardship Program
Get the resources and training that your facility needs to run an effective antibiotic stewardship program by joining a 12-month national project. Beginning in December 2018, the AHRQ Safety Program for Improving Antibiotic Use provides participating long-term care facilities with antibiotic use guidelines, expert coaching, online education, improvement tools, patient education materials, and more to help you prevent harms associated with antibiotics, such …
Congratulations to HealthCap® Members who were awarded the 2018 Silver National Quality Award!
We are proud to recognize the 2018 Silver Award recipients who are HealthCap® members. The American Health Care Association and National Center for Assisted Living (AHCA/NCAL) bestowed this honor on 166 skilled nursing care centers and assisted living communities. We applaud the 15 HealthCap® members who achieved this distinction! Applicants must have earned a Bronze Award to be eligible for …
Policy Memorandum for the Requirement to Reduce Legionella Risk in Healthcare Facility Water Systems Available for Download
According to the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS), the bacterium Legionella can cause a serious type of pneumonia called LD in persons at risk. Those at risk include persons who are at least 50 years old, smokers, or those with underlying medical conditions such as chronic lung disease or immunosuppression. Outbreaks have been linked to poorly maintained water systems …
Heat-related health dangers for older adults
As we age, our ability to adequately respond to summer heat can become a serious problem. Older people are at significant increased risk of heat-related illnesses, known collectively as hyperthermia, during the summer months. Hyperthermia can include heat stroke, heat edema (swelling in your ankles and feet when you get hot), heat syncope (sudden dizziness after exercising in the heat), …
Study on nurses’ evidence-based practice competencies indicates major deficits
Melnyk BM ; Gallagher-Ford L ; Zellefrow C; et al. The first U.S. study on nurses’ evidence-based practice competencies indicates major deficits that threaten healthcare quality, safety, and patient outcomes. Worldviews Evid Based Nurs. 2018; 15: 16-25 https://psnet.ahrq.gov/resources/resource/32076
Corporate Compliance Update
Focus on Exploitation Our policy defines “exploitation” as taking advantage of a resident for personal gain through the use of manipulation, intimidation, threats or coercion. (See Administrative SOP, “Abuse and Neglect Prohibition Policy”). There has been a tremendous focus on this issue by both the survey and criminal authorities. It is important for all staff to be able to define …