Literature Review

Home care providers need to step up worker safety initiatives, experts sayMcKnight's Home Care; by Adam Healy; 5/14/24In the aftermath of the Occupational Safety and Health Administration’s citing of Elara Caring for failing to protect a worker killed on the job, safety and legal experts are urging providers to be proactive about implementing worker safety practices. “We have been seeing a rather significant uptick in workplace violence issues in the home-based care industry,” Angelo Spinola, an attorney at Polsinelli, told McKnight’s Home Care Daily Pulse, in a statement. “We highly recommend that providers take proactive steps to implement home-based care specific policies and procedures and conduct workplace trainings that address common issues such as what to do if a client is acting erratically, how to report unsafe conditions in the home [such as an unsecured firearm], de-escalation techniques, etc.”

Owner of home health services agency and parent of disabled child arrested for Medicaid provider fraudFL Office of the Attorney General; 5/15/24Tallahassee, FL - Attorney General Ashley Moody’s Medicaid Fraud Control Unit announced the arrest of the owner of a home health services agency and a parent of a disabled child for Medicaid provider fraud. Latrena Marie Thomas is the owner of A River’s Journey, a home health care agency with residential home care facilities located in Yulee and Jacksonville. Thomas is accused of hiring non-licensed individuals to provide hands-on personal care services to Medicaid recipients. In addition, Thomas paid Donald Ray Adams II, a parent of a disabled Medicaid recipient, to provide medically licensed care for his own child. In total, Thomas fraudulently billed Medicaid claims for 30 distinct medically needy Medicaid recipients, which caused a total loss of more than $1.6 million.

Nurse resilience, decompression off balance: Press GaneyBecker's Clinical Leadership; by Erica Carbajal; 5/14/24Nurses have a hard time disconnecting from work, and may benefit from additional workplace resources that support them in doing so, according to findings from a new Press Ganey report on nurse resiliency. ... Below are four key findings from the report:

Biden announces ‘major step’ toward reclassifying marijuanaThe Hill; by Joseph Choi; 5/16/24The Biden administration announced Thursday it had initiated the formal rulemaking process to reschedule marijuana to Schedule III from its Schedule I designation that it has held for more than 50 years. CBS website maps states where marijuana is legal for recreational and / or medical use.

If you get up in the morning and think the future is going to be better, it is a bright day. Otherwise it is not. ~ Elon Musk

[Old news] Consumer Alerts added to the Nursing Home Compare website and the Five Star Quality Rating SystemCMS; 10/7/19Adding an “abuse icon” to facilities cited for abuse: Every nursing home resident deserves be treated with respect at all times. Abuse is never acceptable and CMS is very concerned about incidents related to abuse (including neglect and exploitation) in nursing homes. ... As part of this strategy, we want to make it easier for consumers to identify facilities with instances of non-compliance related to abuse. To do this, in October 2019, we are adding an icon to highlight facilities that meet the following criteria: 1) Facilities cited for abuse where residents were found to be harmed (Scope/Severity of G or higher) on the most recent standard survey, or on a complaint survey within the past 12 months; or 2) Facilities cited for abuse where residents were found to be potentially harmed (Scope/Severity of D or higher) on the most recent standard survey or a complaint survey within the past 12 months, and on the previous (i.e., second most recent) standard survey or on a complaint survey in the prior 12 months (i.e., from 24 months ago to 12 months ago).Publisher's Note: With apologies for "old news", this was "new news" to me - i.e., that Care Compare for Nursing Facilities includes a "red stop hand" and a "yellow triangle warning" to warn consumers of poor performers. When might this be added to Care Compare for Hospice, and what criteria might be used?

‘Cuddle therapy’ ponies help bring joy to patients and staff at local hospice[London] Bedford Independent; by Emily Moriarty-Jones; 5/18/24The patients and staff of Sue Ryder St John’s Hospice in Moggerhanger were excited to be greeted by two very special guests recently, when Teddy and Mouse, a pair of ‘cuddle therapy ponies’ came for a visit. Those being cared for at the hospice, as well as their families and Sue Ryder staff were given the chance to pet, brush and interact with the placid pair.

Hospitals Are Refusing to Do Surgeries Unless You Pay in Full FirstWall Street Journal; by Melanie Evans; 5/9/24Now, more hospitals and surgery centers are demanding patients pay in advance. Advance billing helps the facilities avoid hounding patients to settle up. Yet it is distressing patients who must come up with thousands of dollars while struggling with serious conditions. Heather Miconi has seven weeks to come up with $2,000 to pay for surgery her daughter needs to breathe more easily. Merritt Island Surgery Center in Merritt Island, Fla., billed Miconi in advance of the adenoid and tonsil surgery. If she can’t pay for the surgery before it is scheduled to take place next month, the procedure will be put off. Miconi, whose insurance won’t cover the cost because she has a high deductible, works three jobs and doesn’t have savings to cover the cost. She is now appealing to strangers through a GoFundMe campaign for help. For years, hospitals and surgery centers waited to perform procedures before sending bills to patients. That often left them chasing after patients for payment, repeatedly sending invoices and enlisting debt collectors. Those who can’t come up with the sums have been forced to put off procedures. Some who paid up discovered later they were overcharged, then had to fight for refunds. Among the procedures that hospitals and surgery centers are seeking prepayments for are knee replacements, CT scans and births.

‘Great Resignation’ becomes ‘Great Reshuffle’ of American jobsMcKnight's Senior Living; by Kathleen Steele Gaivin; 5/16/24After a record number of workers left their jobs in the early part of the decade in what was known as the “Great Resignation,” the American workforce has entered a period now dubbed the “Great Reshuffle,” according to the World Economic Forum. “While quit rates remain high, hiring rates continue to outpace them as many workers have been transitioning to other jobs in search of an improved work-life balance and flexibility, increased compensation, or a strong company culture,” the US Chamber of Commerce reported.

The Private-Equity Deal That Flattened a Hospital Chain and Its LandlordWall Street Journal; by Jonathan WeilFollow; 5/7/24Cerberus made a big profit, but Steward went bankrupt and its landlord suffered big losses. In the spring of 2020, Cerberus Capital Management was faced with a tricky financial situation. It owned a struggling hospital chain that needed $400 million to dig out of a deep financial hole, but Cerberus wanted to sell rather than invest more. The deal helped shape much of what followed for Steward Health Care System over the next four years, culminating this week in the Chapter 11 filing of Steward, one of the biggest hospital bankruptcies in U.S. history. ... The 2020 deal paved the way for Cerberus to sell its majority stake in Steward to the hospital chain’s chief executive and others and lock in an eventual $800 million profit. It bought time for the CEO and new majority owner, Dr. Ralph de la Torre, who received a big cash payout himself the next year.

Caring for young caregivers, a hidden populationSTAT; by Kimia Heydari, Romila Santra; 5/9/24Of the estimated 48 million caregivers in the U.S., an estimated 14 million are under the age of 24. The growing burden of unpaid caregiving is increasingly falling on young people.

Teleios recognized as one of the best places to work in healthcare in 2024Press release; by Claudia Polancich; 5/14/24Hendersonville, NC May 14, 2024: Teleios Collaborative Network (TCN) has been selected by Modern Healthcare as one of the 2024 Best Places to Work in Healthcare.  The complete list of this year’s winners, in alphabetical order, is available at ModernHealthcare.com/BestPlacesList. 

Beyond medicine: 'Being Mortal' challenges healthcare's approach to death and dying SwiftTelecast; by Shawn Butlere; 5/11/24 This video from the “Frontline” series, titled “Being Mortal,” follows Dr. Atul Gawande as he explores the complex relationships between doctors, patients, and end-of-life decisions. Based on his best-selling book “Being Mortal,” Gawande discusses how medical training often falls short in preparing doctors for the realities of death and dying. The documentary highlights personal stories, including Gawande’s own experiences with his father’s illness and death, to illustrate the challenges in balancing hope with realistic outcomes and the importance of quality life in the face of terminal illness.