Amid some good news in healthcare hiring as we recover from the pandemic, staff shortages involve a range of difficult challenges that will persist for years. Among other factors, it’s difficult to find...
Armed intruder and active shooter preparedness in LTC facilities
By
Stan Szpytek
Steve Wilder
Oct 09, 2023
The Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) requires skilled nursing facilities to plan for emergencies and disasters to protect the vulnerable population they serve. The regulations cited in Appendix...
It’s me. I’m the problem.
By
Gary Tetz
Oct 05, 2023
Sadly, I didn’t get to the American Health Care Association convention this year. Actually, it’s been a full decade since I last personally attended one of these auspicious gatherings, Now, lest...
Making sense of two approaches to the skilled nursing quality assurance privilege
By
Mario C. Giannettino
Sep 01, 2023
Skilled nursing facilities are required by law to have quality assessment and assurance committees to maintain and improve safety and quality in their facilities. The documents created and used by the...
Patient care-related electrical equipment inspection and maintenance requirements
By
Stan Szpytek
Aug 28, 2023
Skilled nursing facilities are compelled by regulatory compliance to provide residents, staff and visitors with a safe environment of care. Providers occasionally receive deficiencies for conditions...
Decrease costs and boost morale by fostering a culture that prioritizes infection prevention and control
By
Buffy Lloyd-Krejci, DrPH, CIC
Aug 07, 2023
Before the COVID-19 pandemic struck, infection prevention and control (IPC) in long-term care facilities was usually relegated to the sidelines. If it was focused on at all, IPC often fell squarely on...
Infection control without adding staff — it’s not just a fluke
By
Mary Cole
Jul 26, 2023
In a recent letter to leaders in Congress, the Association for Professionals in Infection Control and Epidemiology (APIC) highlighted the “astonishing lack of attention to infection prevention and control...
Are we done with COVID? Is COVID done with us?
By
Jean Wendland Porter
Jul 25, 2023
At last. I haven’t worn a mask in public in months, I’m starting to see friends again, I’m eating in restaurants again, and my new normal is the old normal. Life is good. There’s some hesitation...
Insurgence of leveled contracts
By
Susie Mix
Jul 14, 2023
By now, we’re all pretty familiar with the fact that managed care is altering the post-acute care payor mix with Medicare Advantage plans. This is a byproduct of national policy, intended to offset our...
Vulnerabilities with fire protection and life safety systems
By
Stan Szpytek
Jun 12, 2023
Life safety in skilled nursing facilities that provide care and compassion to some of our nation’s most vulnerable residents is in part based on the presence of sophisticated fire protection and life...