Nine years ago, when I started writing “The World According to Dr. El,” McKnight’s Editor Jim Berklan reassured me that I’d always find something to say. I was surprised to discover that not only was this true, in fact the opposite was often the case — many weeks I’ve had difficulty choosing between an abundance … Read more
These days, mental health in long-term care is getting far more attention than it used to. After 25 years as a nursing home psychologist, it’s pretty exciting to see. I perused the April print edition of McKnight’s Long-Term Care News and found articles on the impact of nurse stress on quality of care, the connection … Read more
I have to admit that when I saw the news headline last week, “BREAKING: CMS cuts SNF pay rates by net $320 million,” I felt a kick-’em-while-they’re-down discouragement. I’m concerned, like others, about how facilities currently struggling financially are going to make it to the anticipated period when demographic shifts will lead to full beds … Read more
As I reviewed the many recent long-term care happenings and articles to select a topic for this week’s blog, my mind kept returning to the fascinating column by researchers Lindsey Creapeau and Jennifer Johs-Artisensi, “Nursing assistants’ perspective holds the key to solving your staffing woes.” Their study asked nursing home administrators, directors of nursing and … Read more
I had the pleasure of being interviewed recently by Susan Ryan, senior director of The Green House Project, for her Elevate Eldercare podcast. As I remarked to her, what could be better than talking with someone kind and knowledgeable about something I’ve been obsessed with for more than 20 years? We spoke about the experiences … Read more
President Biden’s State of the Union address last week targeted several aspects of the long-term care industry, most of which have received more attention than his mention of reducing the inappropriate use of antipsychotic medications. As a long-term care psychologist who has closely observed the trend of increasing numbers of residents with severe mental illness … Read more
With worker shortages at critical levels, long-term care leaders are undoubtedly looking for creative solutions to their staffing woes. There have been excellent suggestions from within the LTC world, but I recently came upon a journal article from the National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine that outlined short-term strategies in the general workforce that … Read more
I was tempted to listen to the STAT News event, “The exhaustion epidemic: Examining the COVID-19 burnout crisis in health care,” while lying prone on the couch. Instead, I took notes and considered how this hospital-heavy analysis might apply to the long-term care industry. Two physicians, one nurse and one psychiatrist/researcher discussed at length how … Read more
As I stated in my last column, improving the emotional tenor of the facility can decrease staff turnover. In this piece, I’ll offer additional ideas to achieve that goal. Most organizations have a consulting psychologist on the team who can spearhead or contribute to the recommendations below. Psychologists are capable of far more than providing … Read more
Late last week, the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services announced that they will begin to post staff turnover data on the Medicare.gov Care Compare website. In July, turnover will be incorporated into the Five Star Quality Rating calculations. While this is bound to cause immediate alarm among providers, in the long run this is a … Read more