National Pulmonary Rehabilitation Week
With March 12-18 being National Pulmonary Rehabilitation Week, Encore would like to celebrate all that our Encore Respiratory Therapists do to promote independence and well-being in the clients they serve. Not only do Respiratory Therapists utilize techniques and programs with those who are experiencing acute and chronic pulmonary disease, but they also make a significant impact on clients’ quality of life.
Encore Rehabilitation’s Respiratory Therapists provide direct, one-on-one care that is specific to each individual’s needs. Areas of expertise include patient education, trial and adjustment of BiPap/CPap devices, ventilator management, trach care, and breathing techniques. Respiratory Therapy intervention has been proven to reduce the risk of patient hospitalization, which is a benefit to both the patient and the facility.
Benefits of Respiratory Therapy Intervention:
- Improved patient outcomes
- Supplements nursing hours
- Increased Medicare A reimbursement
Working with a Respiratory Therapist can be life changing for those clients with pulmonary disease. Not only do our clients breathe easier after working with our therapists, they also exhibit decreased feelings of anxiety, depression and greater overall quality of life. Encore Rehabilitation would like to thank it’s dedicated Respiratory Therapists, who are working hard every day to make a difference in the lives of their clients.
With many residents in skilled nursing facilities experiencing visual impairment, it is important for healthcare providers to understand how each of us can positively impact our residents’ level of independence and quality of life.
Low Vision Impact:
- ADL and mobility performance
- Can lead to anxiety, decreased self-esteem & motivation
- Increases risk for adverse safety events
- May lead to a decline in leisure activity participation
Health Provider Tips & Strategies:
- Arrange clothing in the closet by color to allow for a contrast between similar shades
- Provide reading material in large font
- Lighting can both help and hinder vision; minimize glare and keep areas well-lit during mobility
- Perform environmental modifications as applicable
- Provide safety education to minimize the likelihood of accidents and falls
- Provide self-care and mobility adaptation for safety and independence
- Offer low-vision equipment such as magnifiers, reading stands, and screen readers
- Refer residents to appropriate rehabilitation services
Did You Know?
Therapists offer resident-specific low-vision programming to minimize fall risk, and increase the ability to perform self-care and mobility tasks. They can assess residents for visual field cuts and impairment in visual perception. Therapists use strategies such as environmental adaption and provide education and training on safe methods of task completion. Therapists also make recommendations and educate residents regarding the use of adaptive equipment, use of compensatory strategies, and assistive technology.
If there are residents in your facility who are experiencing challenges due to impaired vision, you can request a therapy screen. Therapy screens are a great way for therapists to determine whether residents would benefit from a resident-specific low-vision therapy program.
CMS Announces SNF Transition to iQIES Set for April 17, 2023
CMS has announced the transition to the Internet Quality Improvement and Evaluation System (iQIES).
What does this mean?
Current MDS reporting system QIES Assessment Submission and Processing system (ASAP) will be turned off Thursday, April 13th at 8:00 pm EST.
The new system (iQIES) will go live 8:00 am EST on April 17th.
Providers are expected to take into account all requirements when determining the date they submit completed MDS records, including but not limited to, submission timeliness, claims processing, and care planning requirements.
What you should do:
NOW:
**Failure to create account and gain access prior to April 17th will impact the ability for you to submit MDS records**
TRANSITION PERIOD:
- Submit completed MDS records prior to 8:00pm EST on April 13th to QIES
OR
- Wait until 8:00 am EST on April 17th to submit data into iQIES
For additional information CLICK HERE
CMS Framework for Health Equity 2022-2023
Being the largest provider of health insurance in the United States, CMS released an updated framework to further advance health equity, expand coverage, and improve health outcomes for the more than 170 million individuals supported by CMS programs.
The framework sets foundation and priorities for CMS’s work strengthening its infrastructure for assessment, creating synergies across the health care system to drive structural change, and identifying and working to eliminate barriers to CMS-supported benefits, services, and coverage.
For additional information CLICK HERE
-Encore Rehabilitation’s monthly publication, designed to give you updates on trends we are seeing in the Post-Acute Care industry.-
