UPDATE Weekly

Congressman Mark Walker (NC-06) toured Clapp’s Nursing Center on Monday, December 14, along with representatives of NCHCFA. The visit allowed the Congressman to see first-hand the care skilled nursing facilities provide to residents and to discuss issues facing the long-term care industry.

Cheryl Clapp-Coleman, owner of Clapp’s Nursing Center and Immediate Past Chair of the NCHCFA Board of Directors, spoke with the Congressman about the unique challenges faced by skilled nursing facilities in today’s regulatory and financial climates. The dialogue focused on the Five-Star rating system and Congressman Walker’s bill that would condition a nursing home’s eligibility for a Section 232 FHA loan upon its CMS quality rating. The discussion also included the recent changes to the federal law governing civil money penalties. Mrs. Clapp-Coleman added, “We are proud to have Congressman Walker visit us at Clapp’s Nursing Center. This event is an opportunity to have a good conversation about the high quality skilled care that nursing facilities provide to today’s residents, how it’s measured, and the implications for our industry and those we serve.”

Congressional visits have been ongoing throughout the years, as they are an effective way to demonstrate the high quality, cost-effective and preferred care that North Carolina skilled nursing facilities provide. If you are interested in hosting a facility tour, please contact Adam Sholar, adams@nchcfa.org or Eric Kivisto, erick@nchcfa.org.

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The NCHCFA Annual Convention and Trade Show, The Art of Caring, will be held February 21-24, 2016 at the Sheraton Greensboro Hotel at Four Seasons/Joseph S. Koury Convention Center in Greensboro, NC! Call the Sheraton at (800) 242-6556 to make your room reservation. Identify that you are with “NC Health Care Facilities Association 2016 Convention” to receive the group discounted rate.

To view the entire 2016 Annual Convention & Expo Schedule CLICK HERE! Registration materials will be available next week.

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This will be the last issue of UPDATE for this year. UPDATE will not be published on December 23rd, or December 30th, 2015, but will resume its normal schedule on January 6th, 2016. The staff of the North Carolina Health Care Facilities Association wishes you Happy Holidays!

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The North Carolina Health Care Facilities Association would like to thank our 2016 Gold Convention Hosts for supporting the upcoming Annual Convention & Expo – The Art of Caring. Be sure to visit Blue Ridge Pharmacy at booths 531 & 632 and Southern Pharmacy at booths 501 & 503 on Tuesday, February 23rd during Expo 2016 – The Art of Patriotism.

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Electronic submission of staffing data through the Payroll-Based Journal (PBJ) is required for Long Term Care Facilities beginning July 1, 2016. To prepare, nursing homes should register to submit data to meet this requirement and maintain compliance.

• Obtain a CMSNet User ID for PBJ if you do not already have one for other Quality Improvement and Evaluation System (QIES) applications
• Obtain a PBJ QIES Provider ID for Certification And Survey Provider Enhanced Reports (CASPER) reporting and PBJ system access

An introduction to the PBJ system and step-by-step registration instruction are available on QTSO eUniversity, select the PBJ option. More information is available on the Staffing Data Submission PBJ Web page.

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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 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 Quality Assurance Performance Improvement (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 Lis Klemis. For more details, e-mail Jennifer Brock at, Jennifer.Brock@area-F.hcqis.org or call (678) 527-3417.

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According to the memo, the pilot project of these focused surveys took place in 2014 in order to examine the process for prescribing antipsychotic medications and assess compliance with other federal requirements related to dementia care practices in nursing homes. The pilot was initiated to gain new insights about surveyor knowledge, skills, and ways that the current survey process may be streamlined to more efficiently and accurately identify and cite deficient practice.

In 2015, the expansion project involved a more intensive and targeted review of dementia care, the utilization of antipsychotic medications to broaden the opportunities for quality improvement among providers.

CMS is sharing the revised survey materials that were developed for the pilot and expansion effort. The intent is that facilities use these tools to assess their own practices in providing resident care. Attachments are provided below in the form of links:

SC16-04.03 Attach 2 – Resident Questions

SC16-04.02 Attach 1 – Facility Questions

SC16-04.01 NH – Focused Dementia Care Survey Tools

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Last week, the Veterans’ Affairs Committee of the United States Senate, of which North Carolina Senator Thom Tillis is a member, approved an amendment offered by Chairman Johnny Isakson (R-GA) that would ensure that extended care providers, including nursing homes, could legally enter into VA provider agreements, and would only be subject to the same laws and regulations as Medicare or Medicaid providers. The ability to enter into VA Provider agreements without also being subject to the numerous requirements imposed on federal contractors and enforced by the Office of Federal Contracting Compliance Programs (OFCCP) should lead to services for veterans closer to the veterans’ homes and community support structures.

Please note that this is just one step of many that would need to occur before this amendment would become law, including both full Senate and House consideration. ACHA and NCHCFA will continue to work on this issue.

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The Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) recently released an updated ICD-10 Website Wheel for Medicare Fee-for-Service (FFS) providers. The Website Wheel provides easy access to official resources on CMS ICD-10 Web pages including:

• ICD-10-CM/PCS Frequently Asked Questions
• Medicare Learning Network® (MLN) Products
• Medicare FFS Provider Resources
• CMS Industry Resources
• Statute and Regulations

Remember to check the pages featured on the Website Wheel often for new ICD-10 resources and updates from CMS.

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Take a break with colleagues for lunch and get ready to be entertained and laugh out loud with the Capitol Steps! The Capitol Steps, a Washington DC based comedy troupe, began as a group of Senate staffers who set out to satirize the very people and places that employed them. The Capitol Steps have been a Washington, DC institution for over thirty years, providing a unique blend of musical and political comedy to our Nation’s Capital and more. Their performance is constantly changing, strenuously bi-partisan, and includes songs about everything in the news. The show consists of tasteful lampooning guaranteed to leave both sides of the political spectrum laughing!

Although not all of the current members of the Capitol Steps are former Capitol Hill staffers, taken together the performers have worked in a total of eighteen Congressional offices and represent 62 years of collective House and Senate staff experience. Just to name a few, they have appeared on Good Morning America, the Today Show, 20/20, Entertainment Tonight, Nightline, CNN’s Inside Politics, and dozens of times on All Things Considered. Make plans today to join your colleagues on Monday February 22, 2016 for a special treat!

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A revised Reading the Institutional Remittance Advice Fact Sheet is available. Learn about:

• Reading an Institutional Electronic Remittance Advice (ERA)
• Reading a Standard Paper Remittance Advice (SPR)
• Balancing the ERA or SPR so provider records are consistent with Medicare’s records

Click here for more information.

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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.

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

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Important information for residents and families… 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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Fresh Bites Uses Food to Help Curb Alzheimer’s Progression

http://www.bostonmagazine.com/health/blog/2015/12/08/fresh-bites

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There are over 30 dolphin species, ranging in length from 4 feet to 30 feet.

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