Post-Hospitalist Archive
How Post-Hospitalists Decrease Health Care Spending
The benefits of post-hospitalists cannot be overstated. These specialized physicians have proven to enhance the quality of care, make facilities compliant with ever-changing regulations and decrease health care spending. How does one type of skilled physician decrease health care spending? Being dedicated to post-acute and long-term care facilities Many physicians divide their time between hospitals,Read the Rest…
Top Reasons for Hospital Readmissions from SNFs
When it comes to hospital readmissions, there’s a fine line between being cautious and being careless. One in five elderly persons is readmitted to the hospital within 30 days of leaving, according to the federal government. Not only is this a disconcerting fact for the patients’ sake, but also financially destructive. Hospital readmissions from MedicaidRead the Rest…
What is a Post-Hospitalist Program: The Newest Medical Specialty
Health care is changing rapidly, leaving some traditional facilities scrambling to find solutions that meet the new standards of care being set by Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS). While much of the change is seen as positive strides within geriatric health care, many facilities have settled in vastly uninterrupted, inefficient tactics for decadesRead the Rest…
Advanced Technology in Post-Acute Care May Pose Threat to Traditional Facilities
Year after year technology continues to progress in the health care industry—and for good reason. Advanced technology not only improves the quality of care that medical professionals are able to provide, but it also enhances the overall experience for patients. “Technology is providing [the world] with an unprecedented opportunity. We have the opportunity to createRead the Rest…
Affordable Care Act Puts Post-Acute Care Facilities under Increasing Scrutiny
Improved healthcare for patients and substantial Medicare savings are the motivations behind the Affordable Care Act’s call for increasing scrutiny of post-acute care facilities; long-term care facility owners and operators need to take notice. Revised nursing home rating systems President Obama signed the Improving Medicare Post-Acute Care Transformation Act (IMPACT) Oct. 6 changing the wayRead the Rest…
Better Care Lower Cost Act Provides Care for Chronically Ill Seniors
The fastest growing portion of Medicare enrollees is also the most expensive group to provide services to. The Better Care Lower Cost Act is intended to create substantial Medicare savings while improving care for these patients who typically have multiple chronic conditions. The numbers are astounding: Medicare beneficiaries with two or more chronic conditions accountRead the Rest…
9 Tips for Creating Better Communication at Your Health care Facility
Although the Internet has increased the number of communications we initiate and respond to in any given day, it has done little for the quality of communication – and the poor skills have begun to spill out into the workplace. Miscommunication can be the root cause of a myriad of problems and, when it comesRead the Rest…
Defining Long-Term Patient-Centered Care
Patient-centered care considers the individual patient’s needs, preferences and values when making healthcare decisions. This patient-focused approach may seem like common sense, but the truth is, that it is relatively new to the long-term care industry. The term patient-centered care, was first coined in 1991 following a survey that asked recently hospitalized patients what partRead the Rest…
High rates of nursing staff turnovers have surprising benefit for facilities
High rates of nursing staff turnovers have been an issue in the long-term care industry for decades. Studies show, that for Certified Nurse Assistants (CNAs), the most common type of caregiver in long-term care, turnover can exceed 100%. For other nursing home staff it isn’t much better. For RNs, Licensed Vocational Nurses turnover rates canRead the Rest…
Patient-Centered Care Approach Tops List of Changes Coming to Long-Term Facilities
A combination of increasingly high costs, alarming statistics, Affordable Healthcare Act requirements and an aging generation of Baby Boomers has forced the long-term care industry to evaluate and adjust the way it provides services to post-acute care patients. An increasing number of patients have their healthcare coverage through an ACO or MCO, which have theirRead the Rest…