UPDATE Weekly

The next CMS Skilled Nursing Facilities (SNF)/Long Term Care (LTC) Open Door Forum (ODF) is scheduled for Thursday, November 17th at 2:00 PM ET. The proposed agenda includes:

I. Opening Remarks
II. Announcements & Updates
• Flu Announcement
• SNF Payment Model Research update
• SNFTherapyPayments@cms.hhs.gov
• Payroll Based Journal (PBJ) Update
— o PBJ Policy Questions: NHStaffing@cms.hhs.gov
— o PBJ Technical Questions/Issues: NursingHomePBJTechIssues@cms.hhs.gov
— o PBJ Web site
• Update on implementation of Phase 1 of the Requirements for Participation for Long Term Care Facilities
• Nursing Home Convergence Strategic Plan
III. Open Q&A

Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) Open Door Forums will now be available through Podcasts. Please visit
https://www.cms.gov/Outreach-and-Education/Outreach/OpenDoorForums/PodcastAndTranscripts.html. Allow a week or so to get it posted.

To participate on the call, dial (800) 837-1935 and reference Conference ID 44695728. Encore is an audio recording of this call that can be accessed by dialing (855) 859-2056 and entering the Conference ID. Encores for ODFs held on Thursdays can be accessed the following Monday. The recording is available for 3 business days. For ODF schedule updates and registration, visit the CMS Web site at http://www.cms.gov/OpenDoorForums.

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The List of Excluded Individuals/Entities (LEIE) has been updated to reflect changes made in October 2016. For additional information on the LEIE and to access this updated information, click here.

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If you were unable to join Friday’s American Health Care Association (AHCA) call with CEO Mark Parkinson regarding the 2016 election results, you may now listen to a recording of the call here. The recording is available on ahcancalED in the LearnED category > Popular Now > 2016 Election-Mark Parkinson. Please note, you will need login credentials to access the recording. If you need assistance, please e-mail educate@ahca.org.

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Alliant Quality wants to encourage SNFs to keep signing up for the National Collaborative – or SPACE. Alliant recommends having as much time as possible to get started on Quality Assurance Performance Improvement (QAPI) improvement work and improving facility quality measures in a systems approach to improve their five star and composite scores.

Alliant Quality is the Medicare Quality Innovation Network (QIN)-Quality Improvement Organization (QIO) for North Carolina. Under contract with the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS), Alliant Quality invites your nursing home to participate in a collaborative designed to ensure that every nursing home resident receives the highest quality of care.

The Collaborative offers an exciting opportunity to learn from high performing nursing homes regarding their processes as they pertain to consistent/permanent staff assignment, teamwork and communications, leadership, regulatory compliance, clinical models, and quality of life indicators. The Collaborative aligns national nursing home quality initiatives and partnerships such as the Advancing Excellence in America’s Nursing Homes Campaign, The Partnership to Improve Dementia Care, and QAPI. Targeted focus areas will include increasing mobility, decreasing unnecessary use of antipsychotics in residents with dementia, decreasing potentially avoidable hospitalizations and decreasing healthcare acquired infections and conditions.

When ready to register, click here for the Participation Agreement and fax or e-mail it back to Lisa Klemis, contact information is on the Participation Agreement. For more details, e-mail Jennifer Brock at Jennifer.Brock@area-F.hcqis.org or call (678) 527-3417.

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With more than 100 activities and care plans for long term care residents, there’s an activity that suits each resident’s distinct needs, no matter what the clinical condition or cognitive limitation. Inside this book, you’ll find:

• Dozens of comprehensive activity plans for every type of resident
• Simple explanations of corresponding CMS regulations
• Chapters devoted to residents with unique activity needs, including Alzheimer’s and dementia residents, bariatric residents, short-term stay residents, non-ambulatory residents, and more.

Each activity provides concise and specific steps that will help make it a success. Several variations, adaptations, modifications, and hints for customizing the activity to your facility are also offered. Bonus CD-ROM included! Each of the activities, forms, and care plans found in this book can also be accessed on the companion CD-ROM. Take this CD-ROM with you to any location and provide your residents with meaningful activities to foster a higher quality of life.

To order, visit http://www.AHCApublications.org or call (800) 321-0343. Fax orders may also be placed at (800) 869-5605.

Product # 8131
AHCA Members (on-line price) $129.00

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This brochure outlines what physical restraints are, when they should be used, rules and regulations concerning restraints, and making decisions about using them. To order, e-mail your request to Donna Snyder at donnas@nchcfa.org.

• NCHCFA Member: $30.00 per 100 brochures plus tax and shipping
• Non-Members: $60.00 per 100 brochures plus tax and shipping

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Numerous solutions for patient monitoring, but which works best?

http://www.modernhealthcare.com/article/20160902/TRANSFORMATION01/160829935

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The average woman uses her height in lipstick every 5 years.

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