November 29, 2022
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Your Association’s Advocacy at Work

AHCA has TV ads up in D.C. this week on CNN and MSNBC and they will be up as long as Congress is in town. The ads are related to the staffing mandate:

Please feel free to share on your social media platforms.
NCAL Executive Director Discusses Importance Of Mentorship, Future Of Long-Term Care Industry

Provider Magazine (11/29, 151K) reports National Center for Assisted Living Executive Director LaShuan Bethea "recently joined the LTC Heroes podcast to speak about the importance of mentorship and the future outlook of the industry." Bethea said, "There are so many opportunities in long term care, especially for entrepreneurs in this space. ... It is something that we don’t talk about enough, but it really is a gateway for opportunities." Separately, "while the industry has faced major challenges during the pandemic, Bethea is confident that it will bounce back with greater initiatives and emphasis on community." Bethea added, "People are starting to feel more comfortable coming back into assisted living, and that gives a lot of optimism. ... We are also working towards initiatives that allow more workers to come into the long term care space, which will then allow more assisted living providers to be able to meet the needs of those that are in the community." 
In Case You Missed It
Clinical Update from KHCA Consultant Linda Farrar

On November 14th the AHCA NCAL State Affiliate meeting met and discussed the following agenda:

COVID has been hard on the long-term care profession in many, many ways, not the least of which is the erosion of trust of the long-term care staff in our professional leaders. AHCA NCAL is offering a FREE …yes FREE resource for your staff to re-build trust in long term care management. (AHCA/NCAL username and password required to access it.) The overview of the program says: “Staff trust leaders when they believe that they care about them (empathy), have faith in their judgment and competence (logic), and think they are acting with the real person (authenticity). When trust is absent between leaders and staff in long term care facilities, vaccination uptake, patient safety, quality of care, and staff well-being are all negatively impacted.  READ MORE

The pandemic created myriad risk factors for nursing home operators, many of whom have been primarily focused on staffing shortages and infection control for the past three years. READ MORE
Nursing Home Industry Applauds Biden Administration’s Efforts To Increase Uptake Of Updated COVID-19 Boosters

McKnight’s Senior Living (11/28, Gaivin) reports, "The American Health Care Association / National Center for Assisted Living and LeadingAge applaud the White House for being proactive in encouraging Americans and especially older adults to get their updated COVID-19 vaccine," after the Biden Administration "announced a six-week booster push last week." In a joint statement, AHCA / NCAL President and CEO Mark Parkinson and LeadingAge President and CEO Katie Smith Sloan said, "Nursing homes have done a remarkable job at vaccinating residents, but we have work to do with the most recent booster. According to the [Centers for Disease Control and Prevention], 43% of residents are up to date on their COVID vaccinations, which is nearly four times higher than the dismal 11% among the general population." AHCA / NCAL and LeadingAge "wrote to Health and Human Services Sec. Xavier Becerra in support of what they called an ‘all-hands-on-deck’ approach to addressing vaccine hesitancy, especially at nursing homes," and "provided the secretary with a detailed plan outlining proposed strategies for each key stakeholder to do their part toward getting the word out." 
Education Spotlight
𝗩𝗶𝗿𝘁𝘂𝗮𝗹 𝗥𝗲𝘀𝗶𝗱𝗲𝗻𝘁 𝗔𝘀𝘀𝗲𝘀𝘀𝗺𝗲𝗻𝘁 𝗖𝗼𝗼𝗿𝗱𝗶𝗻𝗮𝘁𝗼𝗿—𝗖𝗲𝗿𝘁𝗶𝗳𝗶𝗲𝗱 (𝗥𝗔𝗖-𝗖𝗧®) 𝗖𝗲𝗿𝘁𝗶𝗳𝗶𝗰𝗮𝘁𝗶𝗼𝗻 𝗪𝗼𝗿𝗸𝘀𝗵𝗼𝗽 - NEXT WEEK!

Increase your knowledge of clinical assessment and care planning, completion of the MDS, the regulations surrounding the RAI/MDS process, and managing the PDPM by attending an AAPACN Resident Assessment Coordinator—Certified (RAC-CT) certification workshop. Having the RAC-CT credential behind your name shows that you are a knowledgeable and capable MDS professional.
Upcoming Education
Webinar: Survey Success! Avoiding Top Citations. Post Survey Activities: Developing Effective Plan of Correction & IDR

12/6/2022 1:30PM-2:30PM

Click here for more details.
Webinar: The Proficient Infection Preventionist Series: Astute Survey Preparedness & Application of Infection Control Regulatory Requirements

12/20/2022 1:30PM-2:30PM

Click here for more details.
Virtual Adult Care Home Operators Course

2/15/2023 9am 2/28/2023 3pm

Click here for more details.
Looking for options for required Staff In-Service?

KHCA’s online learning platform is BACK! We’ve loaded the in-services for SNF and for AL first. Many more education sessions to come.

Access the new learning platform by clicking here

Questions about education can be directed to Polly Berkley VP of Operations and Education.
Kansas Health Care Association and the Kansas Center for Assisted Living
1100 SW Gage Blvd. | PO Box 4770 | Topeka, KS 66604
PH: 785-267-6003 FAX: 785-267-0833