November 28, 2022
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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
TOMORROW! NHSN Refresher Webinar

The CDC National Healthcare Safety Network (NHSN) Vaccination Unit will provide a refresher webinar on Tuesday, November 29, 2022, from 12:30 - 1:30 PM Central Time to review the up to date COVID-19 vaccination definition for Long-term Care facilities reporting data through the COVID-19 Vaccination Modules. The current up to date definition incorporates the updated (bivalent) boosters and applies to reporting weeks beginning on September 26, 2022. As a reminder, most individuals who have not yet received an updated (bivalent) booster are no longer considered up to date with COVID-19 vaccines and should not be counted in Question #5.

When: Tuesday, November 29, 2022, at 12:30 PM Central Time (US and Canada)

Topic: Refresher Training on Reporting Up to Date Vaccination Status in NHSN for Long-Term Care Facilities

Register in advance for this webinar:

After registering, you will receive a confirmation email containing information about joining the webinar.

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." 
In Case You Missed It
White House announces big nursing home COVID-19 vaccination push and providers push back 

The Biden administration last Tuesday announced a six-week $475 million campaign to raise the COVID-19 vaccination rate among nursing home residents, and the sector’s leaders responded immediately with a unified demand for shared responsibility by other providers and stakeholders.

Several direct threats were leveled at nursing home operators amid the White House’s multi-pronged plan to increase booster shot awareness and vaccination accessibility to the frail and elderly. READ MORE

New CMS guidance nudges nursing homes to offer COVID shots, timely treatments

The agency reminds nursing facilities of the requirement to actively offer updated COVID vaccines and urges them to provide approved treatments early to keep mild symptoms from escalating. READ MORE
Do you have a COVID outbreak in your building?

The Kansas Department of Health and Environment (KDHE) has partnered with KFMC Health Improvement Partners (KFMC) to assist long-term care facilities and state licensed homes, impacted by COVID-19, with emergency temporary staffing services. KFMC has developed a Rapid Response Staffing Support Center (RRSSC) to manage the intake and fulfillment of the staffing support requests.
 
The RRSSC rolled out in April 2022 and continues today with funds still available to support our Kansas care providers. This funding supports long term care, assisted living and home plus providers who are experiencing staffing shortages directly related to an active COVID outbreak. These funds can be used to dedicate staff to COVID cares to reduce the potential for spread or to cover hours for a staff member who is out with COVID. Requests are submitted via a designated intake form, is limited to short term assistance, and is not intended to be a long-term staffing solution. 
 
To date, per the hours reconciled, the RRSSC has provided 36,048.87 hours of support with a current cost savings to Kansas homes of $2,088,649.65.
 
If your home is experiencing a staffing shortage due to COVID-19 and would like to request assistance through this program, please complete the request form located here https://www.kfmc.org/rrssc-request/.


For questions, contact Brenda Groves at bgroves@kfmc.org or at 785-271-4150
Education Spotlight
𝗩𝗶𝗿𝘁𝘂𝗮𝗹 𝗥𝗲𝘀𝗶𝗱𝗲𝗻𝘁 𝗔𝘀𝘀𝗲𝘀𝘀𝗺𝗲𝗻𝘁 𝗖𝗼𝗼𝗿𝗱𝗶𝗻𝗮𝘁𝗼𝗿—𝗖𝗲𝗿𝘁𝗶𝗳𝗶𝗲𝗱 (𝗥𝗔𝗖-𝗖𝗧®) 𝗖𝗲𝗿𝘁𝗶𝗳𝗶𝗰𝗮𝘁𝗶𝗼𝗻 𝗪𝗼𝗿𝗸𝘀𝗵𝗼𝗽 - 𝗗𝗲𝗰𝗲𝗺𝗯𝗲𝗿 𝟮𝟬𝟮𝟮

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.
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