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Regulation Knowledge and Survey Preparation
-- Hutchinson -- July 13th
Still time to register! This insider guide's
workshop will educate participants about regulations and format of the
regulatory manuals. Processes will be explained to assist key staff
members in learning regulations and the survey process. Participants
will develop an overall understanding of the intended outcome of the
regulatory /survey process. For a brochure and registration form, click
HERE.
(Article submitted by Denise
Howell.)
Where the Heart Is . . . A Retreat for CNA's
July 8th -- Hays, Kansas
July 26th -- Wichita, Kansas
This retreat will focus on the importance of oral hygiene care for your
residents. CNAs will learn how oral care for residents fits into their
role as care givers. Barbara Gonzalez, RDH, MHS lead the first session
“The Importance of the Senior Smile” and Maggie Smet, RDH will be next
describing the Mobile Preventative Oral Hygiene Clinic. There will be
many excellent tools and products that participants can take back to
their organizations to help them provide the best oral care possible.
The final session of the day is presented by Nathan Reigier, PhD, Prairie
View Mental Health Clinic. This presentation reflects on the meaning
of change as life becomes more complex and challenging more rapidly
than ever before. This lively and entertaining presentation will introduce
participants to the Six Stages of Change. Through active audience interaction
and humorous personal anecdotes, Dr. Regier will demonstrate how change
does not come "one size fits all".
This retreat was designed to impart a great deal of information to CNAs
for the lowest possible registration fees. If you send two registrations
at the regular price ($39 TLC members, $60 KAHSA members)
the third registrant is free. For a brochure and registration form,
click HERE.
(Article submitted by Denise
Howell.)
Directors of Nursing Retreat - July 27 - 28,
2005 - Great Bend
Join your colleagues to learn and grow professionally and re-energize
for the important work you do in a true retreat atmosphere designed
especially for Directors of Nursing. A focus will be on leadership,
management and communication. You will also have opportunities for pampering
and relaxing: choose from a relaxing head and neck massage, a reflexology
demonstration, facials, aromatherapy, and learning to make quick and
healthy meals with Chef Herb Lewis.
This meeting will be very small, to keep the retreat-like atmosphere,
so get your registrations in early! Click HERE
to download a brochure and registration form. (Article
submitted by Denise Howell.)
Advance Care Planning Course for Facilitators
-- August 4 – 5, 2005 -- Hays, KS
The Kansas LIFE Project and the NW Kansas Area Health Education Center
present "Respecting Choices" which is a comprehensive Advance
Care Planning Program developed in 1993 by Gundersen Lutheran in LaCrosse,
Wisconsin. Through this curriculum, critical strategies will be presented
that will facilitate the replication and individualization of the Lacrosse
experience. Participants will receive a training manual and reading
assignments in advance of the workshop. For more information, contact
Ruby Jane Davis at (785) 628-6128 or Stacie Ogborn at (316) 263-6380.
Visit KAHSA's
Education Calendars today!
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Kansas Nursing Facility Medicaid Rate Facts
- Medicaid providers operate 306 nursing facilities
and 42 hospital-based long-term care units.
- There is at least one Medicaid provider in each
county.
- The statewide average occupancy rate for Medicaid
providers is 85.2%.
- The statewide average Medicaid occupancy rate
for providers is 56.4%.
- The average rate as of July 1, 2005 is $112.49
representing a 4.63% increase of July 2004 rates.
- Over one hundred providers received a Quality
& Efficiency Outcomes Incentive Factor.
(Article submitted by
Edwina Glass.)
Expedited Review Process Replaces Demand Bills
The expedited review process or the CMS Beneficiary
Notices Imitative (BNI) allows beneficiaries or their authorized representatives
receiving services the right to appeal a pending discharge from a period
of covered care to the Kansas Foundation for Medical Care (KFMC). It
is effective per regulation July 1, 2005 and affects home health, hospice,
comprehensive outpatient rehabilitation facility (CORF), skilled nursing
facility (SNF) and swing beds. The process is as follows: The beneficiary
should notify KFMC of the appeal by noon the day before termination
is to occur. KFMC will then request three documents from each provider:
1) Generic notice of termination, 2) Detailed notice of termination,
and 3) Portions of the beneficiary's medical record. The provider will
be required to send this information to KFMC the same day contact
is made. Turnaround time for the entire process will be 72 hours.
Exceptions may occur based on timing of the review request. Review can
occur seven days a week, so it is important to educate weekend staff
of this change and possible request. Vera VanBruggen, KDOA recommends
that each provider establish a Medicare committee made up of the MDS
Coordinator, therapists and other key individuals. This group should
meet weekly to determine the status of each beneficiary. KFMC mailed
an all-inclusive manual to providers on June 27, 2005. Members should
locate this information in your buildings and keep the information accessible
to key Medicare staff.
Resources for more information:
- Contact Jeanne Bridgewater at KFMC at 1-800-432-0407
or at 785-273-2552.
- CMS
Beneficiary Notices Initiative (BNI) overview, notice templates,
and frequently asked questions.
- Preliminary Instructions: Expedited Determinations/Reviews
for Original Medicare -- To learn more click HERE.
- AANAC Website
provides an excellent overview, however it is limited to members only.
(Article submitted by Dana
Weaver.)
Medicare Part D News
CMS has decided to begin sending nursing homes monthly messages on Medicare
Part D through the electronic channel homes use to send in their MDS
data. Click HERE
to see the first message. AAHSA communicated to CMS that this means
of communication may be faulty because it is not a direct line to administrators.
However, CMS officials say they have no other means of getting to every
nursing home. We will continue to alert you about these messages.
(Article submitted by Debra
Zehr.)
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Way to go Bethany Home Association in Lindsborg
on their recent zero deficiency survey. Congratulations to Marlin Johnson
and the staff at Bethany Home.
Member Networking -- A Must in Today's Aging
Services Field!
AAHSA has implemented several listservs that allow members to discuss
issues important to you and are relevant to a variety of care levels.
KAHSA encourages you to sign up for a forum that is of interest to you
by clicking HERE.
A brief outline of available forums is as follows:
- Alliance: Discuss and share information
including management, marketing, and business opportunities.
- Assisted Living: Discuss issues related
to the field, including policy and legislation information.
- CCRC: discuss issues related to the field
and federal policy and legislation.
- Home and Community Based Services: Discuss
HCBS services including policy, funding, regulatory and operational
issues.
- Home Health: Discussion and dissemination
of Medicare policy and regulations.
- Human Resources Director: Discuss human
resources development, staffing and workforce issues.
- Housing Management: HUD-subsidized and
market-rate affordable housing providers; this listserv is meant to
facilitate member-to-member discussions of hot topics, discretionary
implementation options/experiences and other facility management concerns.
It may also be used to disseminate information on latest HUD operational
requirements.
- Housing Policy: The range of potential
topic addressed by listserv members is very broad, from legislation
and regulations to the "hows" and "whys" of housing
financing, preservation, modernization and marketing.
- Marketing PR: Get advice and share success
stories about topics relating to marketing and public relations. The
listserv includes periodic media opportunities postings and marketing/public
relations tools.
- Nursing Facilities: A forum for discussion
among AAHSA nursing home members regarding operational and policy
issues.
(Article submitted
by Dana Weaver.)
Preventing Scald
Injuries
According to the Burn Foundation, it takes only 1 second
for water at 156°F to cause a third degree burn, 5 seconds for water
at 140°F, and 15 seconds at 133°F. Data from the National Center for
Health Statistics shows that an average of 61% of people who die of
hot water scalds are at least 65 years old. Here are some tips to help
prevent scalding injuries:
- Comply with KAR 28-39-162(h)(1)(G) which sets maximum
water temperatures in clinical areas at 120°F, and minimum water temperatures
in dietary and laundry areas at 120°F.
- Train residents and staff to turn the cold water first,
then add hot.
- For older people, tie a ribbon around the cold faucet
as a reminder to turn it on first.
- Provide older adults with lightweight, easy-to-handle
cooking utensils.
- Allow food cooked in a microwave to cool before eating.
- Turn pot handles toward the back of the stove.
- Place hot beverages toward the center of the table.
The National Fire Protection Association has published
a resource to assist with education on this topic. For more information
on Remembering When: A Fire and Falls Prevention Program for Older
Adults visit www.nfpa.org
and click on “Learning” in the blue menu bar across the top of the page,
then “Public Education” in the drop down box. (Article
submitted by Debra Zehr.)
Dear DON,
I have a charge nurse who is taking narcotics for
a chronic pain condition. So far I have not noticed any problems with
her ability to give care and provide supervision but I'm wondering if
there could be a liability concern here. Signed DJS
Dear DJS,
A nurse who works in a clinical setting and takes narcotics for any
reason may compromise patient/resident safety, risk his/her job, jeopardize
his/her nursing license, and if a patient/resident is injured, face
a malpractice claim. A nurse who takes narcotic analgesics and has a
non-clinical job, such as an insurance reviewer, is less likely to face
these risks because the position is one not providing direct care. I
would encourage the nurse to have a re-evaluation of the condition that
prompted the prescription for a narcotic analgesic and seek other methodologies
to treat the pain. Perhaps such things as physical therapy and weight
loss would reduce the intensity of pain so that an NSAID would be effective.
Is there a non-clinical position she could be transferred to while the
reevaluation takes place? You do not want to loose a valuable employee
nor do you desire this person to continue indefinitely on a narcotic
because of the tolerance factor. (Article
submitted by Carol Moore.)
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