A team of nationally recognized long-term care researchers from Brown University Stefan Gravenstein, MD, MPH, and Vincent Mor, PhD, are undertaking a large-scale quality improvement study to evaluate the impact of the annual influenza vaccine choice on long-term care facility residents’ hospitalization risk for the 2019-2020 influenza season. Nursing facilities that meet eligibility and agree to participate will be allocated …
CDC reminds clinicians to have a high suspicion for influenza and recommends rapid antiviral treatment of high-risk patients with suspected influenza. Summary The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) is issuing this health advisory to notify clinicians that influenza activity remains high in the United States, with an increasing proportion of activity due to influenza A(H3N2) viruses, continued circulation …
A new report by the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services Office of Inspector General determined that the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services’ (CMS’s) guidance to State agencies on verifying nursing homes’ correction of deficiencies and maintaining documentation to support verification needed to be improved. It was recommended that CMS take specific actions to (1) improve CMS’s guidance …
Read the NAB announcement below, this is a great opportunity for new Administrators to grow professionally! The 10th annual National Emerging Leadership Summit (NELS) for Health and Aging Services Executives will be held in Washington, D.C. from July 16 – 18, 2019. The three-day Summit, unique in its kind, is geared towards the enrichment of leadership skills for emerging health service …
Read the latest updates to Appendix Z of the SOM that reflect changes to add emerging infectious diseases to the definition of all-hazards approach, new Home Health Agency (HHA) citations and clarifications under alternate source power and emergency standby systems. https://healthcapusa.com/wp-content/uploads/2019/02/QSO19-06-ALL.pdf
Michigan Michigan’s Bureau of Professional Licensing (BPL) within the Department of Licensing and Regulatory Affairs (LARA) has revised the Pharmacy – Controlled Substances Rules and the changes are effective immediately. Below is a summary of the significant changes to the rules: R 338.3125 – Adds gabapentin to the schedule 5 drug list as a controlled substance. R 338.3135 – Opioid …
The CMS has said that some nursing homes have significantly lower weekend staffing. It’s been announced that those facilities will face at least 50% of off-hours surveys by state survey agencies on weekends, up from the previously required 10%. https://www.modernhealthcare.com/article/20181203/NEWS/181209994
As part of its continued commitment to the nation’s most vulnerable populations, the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) has launched the Civil Money Penalty Reinvestment Program (CMPRP), a three-year effort to reduce adverse events, improve staffing quality and improve dementia care in nursing homes. To aid teams with this effort, the CMPRP offers several free resources and opportunities …
BioSensics Announces a $4.3M Grant Award from NIH to Develop Tools for Continuous, Remote Monitoring of Cognitive Decline Dr. Joseph Gwin, Vice President of Research and Development at BioSensics, announced a $4.3M grant award from the National Institutes of Health (NIH) during his presentation at DPharm: Disruptive Innovations to Advance Clinical Trials last Tuesday. With this grant award, BioSensics will …
