MDS Alert
MEDICARE, SURVEY & CLINICAL NEWS TO USE
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Worried That Lack of Bona Fide 3-Day Hospital Stays Could Pull the RUGs Out From Under Your SNF? CMS official Sheila Lambowitz recently offered some reassuring news on that issue. Hospitals have been notified that they can't change billing for an inpatient stay to an observation stay after the fact, Lambowitz reported during the March 2010 SNF/LTC Open Door Forum. Reports have indicated that some hospitals have been doing that, which leaves the SNF in the lurch because then a resident no longer has a qualifying three-day inpatient hospital stay (see MDS Alert. Vol. 7, No. 13, page 150). The QI/QM Blackout May Last Longer Than You Think. In the March 2010 SNF/LTC Open Door Forum, CMS' Karen Shoeneman said the MDS-generated QI/QM reports won't be available to surveyors or providers for approximately a year once the MDS 3.0 rolls out. Shoeneman also relayed that she had been told that the QI/QM reports would continue to be available through September 2010 as there's no reason to take them down ahead of time (the MDS 3.0 rolls out on Oct. 1). Shoeneman said that if that information proves to be wrong, she will let people know on a future ODF call. Check In With Your Patient's Fear Factor Before Starting Rehab Therapy. Fear can take its toll on rehab patients' outcomes. And researchers found that using the Fear-Avoidance Beliefs Questionnaire (FABQ) at intake could identify elevated levels of fear-avoidance beliefs in patients who were receiving outpatient rehab, according to a press release from the American Physical Therapy Association (APTA). The FABQ, a short, self-report questionnaire, assesses pain-related fear in patients with various neuromusculoskeletalconditions. "Therapists do not routinely screen for elevated levels of fear in patients, although evidence suggests that identifying fear-avoidance beliefs and managing those beliefs accordingly may reduce fear and help to predict or improve outcomes," said Dennis L. Hart, PT, PhD, researcher and director of consulting and research at Focus On Therapeutic Outcomes Inc. in White Stone, Va., in the release. How: Test results indicating elevated levels of fear could point to patients' fear of activities that are part of their therapeutic interventions. Then, the therapist could adjust accordingly for better outcomes.
MDS Alert
- MDS 3.0:
Ready to Ramp Up Discharge Planning Under Section Q?
This one simple strategy can help reduce rehospitalization. The MDS 3.0's Section Q spells out [...] - MDS 3.0 Provides a Template for Discharge Instructions
Don't forget to include advance directives. If you're in the market for a "to do" [...] - ASSESSMENT:
The Medi-Cog Can Identify Residents' or Family Caregivers' Ability to Set Up a Pillbox
Find out what it could mean if someone passes the cognitive screen but fails the [...] - TOOL:
Medication Transfer Screen Helps Assess a Person's Ability to Organize a Pillbox - READER QUESTION:
Would This Physician's Initial Certification for SNF Care Fly With the FI/MAC?
Question: Can a hospitalist sign the initial cert for Part A SNF services? Our SNF [...] - QUALITY IMPROVEMENT:
Rehab Therapy Home Visits Can Be the Ticket to Improving Discharge Safety
Consider using a 'book end' approach. "Have therapist, will do home visits" may become the [...] - Risk Assessment:
Find Out How the MDS 3.0 Defines the Severity of Fall-Related Injuries
3 categories can help everyone get on the same page. The MDS 3.0 Section J1900 [...] - QUALITY ASSURANCE:
Tap the MDS 3.0's Heightened Risk Prediction Powers
Coding for falls and behaviors can give you an edge in heading off problems. The [...] - TOOL:
When a Resident Shows Signs of Delirium, Consider Using This Data Collection Form
Don't miss some of these common causes of delirium. - WOUND CARE TIPS:
3 Strategies Can Improve Surgical Wound Outcomes
If a resident has a dehisced surgical wound, consider this approach. Pressure ulcers and other [...] - Test Yourself:
What You Don't Know Can Hurt Your Surgical Wound Care Coding and RUG Scores
1. Which of the following constitutes surgical wound care for purposes of coding it in [...] - MEDICARE:
Don't Rack Up Unfair RAC Denials: Follow These 6 Rules for Appealing Payment Recoupments
Even if you're dead wrong on an issue, check out this often overlooked escape hatch. [...] - MEDICARE, SURVEY & CLINICAL NEWS TO USE
Worried That Lack of Bona Fide 3-Day Hospital Stays Could Pull the RUGs Out From [...]