Engaging residents in their care and providing treatment alternatives assists in reducing the unnecessary use of antipsychotics. Click on the following links to learn more about reducing the use of antipsychotic medications.
Creating a quality-driven environment within a nursing home requires staff stability. Establishing processes, setting expectations and supporting staff are important aspects of this concept. Click on the following links to learn more about enhancing staff stability.
Save the Date for the upcoming MC5 conference. Learn how to implement person-centered care while following the new regulations with Carmen Bowman, assess your risks and learn management strategies from Ray Miller, and understand the personal part of person-centered care with Karen Stobbe…along with a variety of other intensive speakers from around the adult-care continuum. This is one conference you don’t want to miss!! We will send out more information as it becomes available.
Communication is one of the key factors necessary for improving resident safety and overall care within a nursing home. Strong communication builds relationships between staff and residents. Click on the links below to learn more.
Music is a powerful, non-threatening tool that can be used to help individuals of all ages who struggle with mental health issues. It can be used to explore personal feelings and therapeutic issues such as self-esteem or personal insight. It can help make positive changes in mood and emotional states. It can also give individuals a sense of control over life through successful experiences. During our time together we will explore music and the therapeutic benefits it has on the human spirit.
For more information, please see the event site here. Online registration is also available here.
This CMS survey ascertains a community’s compliance with Care and Services for a Resident with Dementia, Unnecessary Drugs, Assessment and Care Planning. Become familiar with the survey, surveyor worksheets and how both have been integrated into the survey process. Most importantly, ensure you know best practices both recognized by CMS and the culture change movement. Learn to view “behaviors” as communication; recognize dementia-related communications; be individual-centered, not institution-centered as CMS requires; offer meaningful engagement by all staff all day to reduce antipsychotics. It’s time to create a proactive, preventive, individualized, resident -focused dementia care culture.
Please see the Action Pact event for more information including registration.
A leader’s actions can shape the culture of an organization. Strategy 1 of the National Nursing Home Quality Care Collaborative’s “Change Package” stresses the expectation for excellence in leadership, strong mission and values, and an accepting non-punitive culture. Click on the following links to learn more.
Words can influence how we think, feel and even act. And so, as we embrace person centeredness and strive to approach the development of more person-centered practices in our work, we know that how we say what we say can make a difference in what people do! Join us for the first Hot Topic Webinar of 2017 where Joan Devine, Director of Education for the Pioneer Network and author of “Word of the Week: Building A Culture Change Dictionary” will guide you on a journey to discover words and phrases that can make a difference as we work to change the culture in our communities, and to change our own perceptions about aging and the work we do.
REGISTER HERE FOR THE JANUARY WEBINAR
We have all heard that the new regulations include requirements for the implementation of person-centered practices in nursing homes— what does this mean for those just starting on their journey as well as for those who are well beyond the minimal standards that the regulations generally require?” Join Karen Schoeneman, a founding member of the Pioneer Network and former Deputy Director of the Division of Nursing Homes for CMS, as she provides a glimpse into what communities can achieve as they work to meet and exceed the new regulations, and she’ll share the role that Pioneer Network and others have played over the past 20 years to get us where we are today.
REGISTER HERE FOR THE FEBRUARY WEBINAR
We know we want to change practices, to bring more person centeredness to our communities as we strive to meet and exceed the new regulations, but how? Have you been looking for some guidelines, training tools, tips that can help? That’s just the sort of thing you would expect to get from a network! Join Cathy and the guides from the communities as they explore the many resources available through the Pioneer Network’s new website; where to find them; how to use been used and the outcomes they have produced.
REGISTER HERE FOR THE MARCH WEBINAR
Consistent and dedicated staff are key to creating a person-centered environment, but how do you make that happen when employers of direct care workers– including certified nursing assistants, home health aides, and personal care assistants– are facing staffing shortages at crisis levels. Together, we’ll explore the top 5 reasons for the caregiving crisis, and share a range of interventions from quick wins to bold changes that address the fundamental quality of caregiving jobs.
Part of implementing quality assurance performance improvement (QAPI) is evaluating processes to identify opportunities for improvement. Identifying which processes to evaluate begins with knowing the potential data sources available. To learn more, click on the following links.
Part of implementing quality assurance performance improvement (QAPI) is evaluating processes to identify opportunities for improvement. Identifying which processes to evaluate begins with knowing the potential data sources available. To learn more, click on the following links.
Measuring Quality Improvement (video)
QAPI at a Glance (PDF)
QAPI Video Series (login required)
Educating staff about appropriate documentation for immunizations is an important aspect of quality improvement. Click on the following TMF Quality Innovation Network video links to learn more about immunization quality measures and Minimum Data Set coding.
Help promote influenza vaccinations by participating in National Influenza Vaccination Week. Click on the following links for tips to assist your facility in promoting awareness as well as educating staff, residents and family members about the importance of influenza vaccinations.
Pressure ulcer prevention is a team effort. Staff, residents and family members must work together to support the goal of eliminating facility-acquired pressure ulcers. Click on the following links to learn more about pressure ulcer education and awareness for everyone involved:
Improve patient outcomes and help prevent pressure ulcers by educating staff on the guidelines and management of this painful condition. Click on the following links for information about free events and resources.
Help spread the word about antibiotic stewardship by participating in Get Smart About Antibiotics Week. Click on the following links for tips to assist your facility in promoting awareness as well as educating staff and residents about antibiotic resistance and the importance of an appropriate antibiotic regimen in all health care settings.
Gary Glazner is the founder and Project Director of the Alzheimer’s Poetry Project (APP). The APP was awarded the 2012 MetLife Foundation Creativity and Aging in America Leadership Award in the category of Community Engagement. The National Endowment for the Arts listed the APP as a “best practice” for their Arts and Aging initiative. Glazner is an internationally recognized speaker and expert on using poetry with people living with Alzheimer’s disease and related dementia and has given talks at over 30 conferences, including the most recent MC5 Annual Conference.
This event is being funded by MC5, the Missouri Arts Council, and the Alzheimer’s Association.
Please visit the MC5 website for registration links. REGISTRATION IS REQUIRED!
During International Infection Prevention Week, help break the chain of infection by educating health care professionals, administrators, legislators and consumers about the importance of preventing infections and improving outcomes. Click on the following links for more information and resources about promoting infection prevention in long-term care.
Engaging residents in their care and providing treatment alternatives assists in reducing the unnecessary use of antipsychotics. Click on the following links to learn more about reducing the use of antipsychotic medications.
Residents’ Rights Month is an annual event held in October by The National Consumer Voice for Quality Long-Term Care to celebrate and focus on awareness of dignity, respect and the value of long-term care residents. Resources are available for facilities to assist residents in learning and exercising their rights. Click on the links below to learn more.
Many discussions about person-centered care that include the family of residents are focused on the challenges of working with family members or how they stand in the way of person-centered care. Not this one! This webinar will explore the importance of creating person-centered care partners out of the residents’ family members. The barriers that make this relationship difficult and solutions for overcoming those will be discussed. Individualized care plans and acceptance of risk are critical pieces of person-centered care and you will learn how family partners can be an integral part of these processes.
Please see the Hot Topics Event page here for more information including registration.
The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention has created new guidelines for prescribing opioids to improve resident safety and communication among providers and residents. Click on the following links to view the guideline core requirements and checklist for prescribing opioids for chronic pain.
Guideline for Prescribing Opioids for Chronic Pain (PDF)
Checklist for Prescribing Opioids for Chronic Pain (PDF)
It’s Election Year! What are Your residents Thinking? Are they ready to Vote?
As we approach the Democratic and Republican conventions this month and the General Election in November, Americans are talking about the candidates, the issues at hand, and thinking about their vote. Voting is one of our most important civic responsibilities, yet too often individuals receiving long-term care and services do not have an opportunity to cast their ballot.
What can be done to help residents and other long-term care consumers exercise this right? What kind of assistance do they need? Getting registered? Getting to the polls? Filing an absentee ballot? When we involve residents in the political process, we all will benefit from it.
Consumer Voice is featuring two new consumer fact sheets with information about exercising this important right and cornerstone to our society.
Consumer Voice has also created a new issue page with great voting resources:
Residents can also be engaged in the election process by having an opportunity to talk about the issues important to them – both related to their daily life in the long-term care facility, to their community, and to society at large.
Get them started in discussions with their peers in the facility by inviting them to share their views. Be prepared with the My Vote Matters toolkit, which includes:
Invite Resident participation in the national discussion. Ask what they’re thinking and help engage them in the election process!
Every person interacting in a resident’s environment plays an intricate part in the outcome of that resident’s care. Interdisciplinary communication is the key to quality resident care in nursing homes, as any changes in a resident’s condition could greatly impact their life or quality of life. Visit the following links to learn more about improving communication.
Pioneer Network is pleased to welcome Joan Devine next week as our new Director of Education. No stranger to us, Joan has long been a member of the Pioneer Network extended family! She currently serves as Board President of MC5 (Missouri Coalition Celebrating Care Continuum Change), the state’s culture change coalition. She has also been a frequent speaker at our conferences, in addition to the fearless leader of our group of dedicated onsite volunteers.
Joan has over 20 years of experience in leadership positions in senior services, supporting the clinical departments of Skilled Nursing and Assisted Living communities in Missouri and Illinois. Her work has been devoted to preparing and equipping administrators and other care leaders to transform their homes and embrace resident directed care.
Joan holds a B.A. in Music Education/Music Therapy, a B.S. in Nursing and a Masters in Management. She is also author of the book “Word of the Week: Creating a Culture Change Dictionary” and is a certified Eden Educator and Mentor.
June 9, 2016: From Good Sleep to Wellness
Location: Kansas City, KS
Participants will take an in-depth look at the impact of sleep or lack of sleep on the life of those they serve. They will consider the causes and contributing factors, identifying those that can be changed and develop plans for addressing them based upon the concepts of high involvement and resident-directed care.
Please see the even details and registration info here.