You're receiving this email because of your relationship with the Office of Inspector General, Division of Health Care. Thank you for your continued commitment to serving the citizens of our Commonwealth!
Cabinet for Health and Family Services
Office of Inspector General
Division of Health Care
|
|
Long Term Care Provider Newsletter
May 2022
|
|
The Kentucky Office of Inspector General is committed to the protection of patients and residents of healthcare facilities from the spread of infectious disease. Regarding any coronavirus (COVID-19) concerns, you may refer to the following websites for the most up-to-date news and information:
|
|
Emergency Preparedness - Tornados
On Friday, December 10, 2021, during the late evening hours, a tornado moved across Western Kentucky, leaving catastrophic damage in numerous towns, including Mayfield, Princeton, and Dawson Springs. Mayfield Nursing and Rehab staff moved all residents to the center of the building in preparation after the tornado warning was issued. The tornado swept through the small town around 9:27 PM and Mayfield Nursing and Rehab was leveled. Despite the sudden destruction, all seventy-four residents survived with only two sustaining minor injuries. Staff had recently participated in a tornado drill and felt this had prepared them for the devastating event.
Facilities have requirements when it comes to emergency preparedness and they are reviewed when the facility has an recertification survey. The requirements ensure that facilities have a plan in place to provide food, water, and pharmaceutical supplies along with items like temperature control, alternate energy, and emergency lighting. The LTC facility must conduct exercises to test the emergency plan at least annually, including unannounced staff drills using the emergency procedures. The LTC facility must do all of the following:
(i) Participate in a full-scale exercise that is community-based or, when a community-based exercise is not accessible, an individual, facility-based. If the LTC facility experiences an actual natural or man-made emergency that requires activation of the emergency plan, the LTC facility is exempt from engaging in a community-based or individual, facility-based full-scale exercise for 1 year following the onset of the actual event.
(ii) Conduct an additional exercise that may include, but is not limited to the following:
(A) A second full-scale exercise that is community-based or individual, facility-based.
(B) A tabletop exercise that includes a group discussion led by a facilitator, using a narrated, clinically-relevant emergency scenario, and a set of problem statements, directed messages, or prepared questions designed to challenge an emergency plan.
(iii) Analyze the LTC facility's response to and maintain documentation of all drills, tabletop exercises, and emergency events, and revise the LTC facility's emergency plan, as needed. The drills ensure the facilities are well prepared for emergency situations and have their staffed properly trained to deal with such a disaster.
|
|
If your facility experiences tornado damage, fire, flooding, or another significant event, please contact your regional OIG office once your residents/patients/clients are safe. This will help ensure the correct information is reported to the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) in a timely manner. |
|
PANDAS and PANS Awareness Day
The Kentucky House of Representatives adopted House Resolution 43 on March 24. The resolution declares Oct. 9, 2022, to be Pediatric Autoimmune Neuropsychiatric Disorders Associated with Streptococcal Infections (PANDAS) and Pediatric Acute-onset Neuropsychiatric Syndrome (PANS) Awareness Day. Both PANDAS and PANS can create the sudden onset of Obsessive Compulsive Disorder in children.
The resolution can be read HERE.
|
|
Getting to Know Your OIG Eastern Branch
Citizen Assistance Specialist
Who is LaJava Chenault?
LaJava came to OIG with a wealth of knowledge and experience. Mrs. Chenault has been in the healthcare field for over 45 years, earning many awards and accomplishments, as well as recognition.
She received her Associates Degree in Nursing to become a Registered Nurse in 1977, from Eastern Kentucky University. She went on to obtain her Bachelor of Science, Nursing in 1988 and her Master of Science, Nursing from the University of Kentucky (UK) in 2005. In 2016, she received the UK College of Nursing Alumna Lyman T. Johnson Torch of Excellence Award.
She has held many leadership positions during the years of her employment, including House Supervisor, Director of Medical/Surgical and Oncology and Executive Director of Nursing for Saint Joseph Health Care.
Mrs. Chenault has been with OIG as a Nurse Consultant Inspector for over three years and recently accepted the position of Citizen Assistance Specialist for the Eastern Branch. In her new role, she communicates with complainants, facilities, and the Office of the Ombudsman, related to concerns with all the health care facilities OIG regulates.
She is a member of the following professional organizations:
*Kentucky Organization of Nurse Leaders
*American Organization of Nurse Executives
*Lexington Chapter National Black Nurse Association
*Golden Keys International Honors Society
*Sigma Theta Tau International Honor Society of Nursing
|
|
Approval of Dementia Care Training Curriculums
Pursuant to the 2021 passage of SB 61, home health agencies and personal services agencies are required to obtain approval from the Department for Aging and Independent Living for the dementia care curriculums they utilize to provide training to aides and staff who provide direct care to patients or clients who exhibit symptoms of Alzheimer’s disease or other dementia. The deadline for completion of six (6) hours of initial dementia-care training by current staff has been extended to July 14, 2022.
For detailed information regarding approval of your agency’s dementia care training curriculum, please refer to the attachments below. If you have any questions, please contact:
Jennifer R. Craig
Office of Dementia Services Coordinator
Department for Aging and Independent Living (DAIL)
Cabinet for Health and Family Services
275 East Main Street 3E-E, Frankfort, KY 40621
(502) 234-4432 (cell) & (502) 564-1116 (office)
|
|
Update to COVID-19 Emergency Declaration
Blanket Waivers for Specific Providers
- CMS continues to review the need for existing emergency blanket waivers issued in response to the Coronavirus Disease 2019 (COVID-19) Public Health Emergency (PHE).
- Over the course of the COVID-19 PHE, skilled nursing facilities/nursing facilities (SNFs/NFs), inpatient hospices, intermediate care facilities for individuals with intellectual disabilities (ICF/IIDs), and end-stage renal disease (ESRD) facilities have developed policies or other practices that we believe mitigates the need for certain waivers.
- Applicable waivers will remain in effect for hospitals and critical access hospitals (CAH).
- CMS will end the specified waivers in two groups:
- 60 days from issuance of this memorandum
- 30 days from issuance of this memorandum
|
|
Updates to SNF Provider Threshold Report Now Available
An updated version of the Skilled Nursing Facility (SNF) Provider Threshold Report (PTR) is now available. The PTR is a user-requested, on demand report which enables users to obtain the status of their data submission completeness related to the compliance threshold required for the SNF Quality Reporting Program (QRP).
Updates to the PTR include:
-
Addition of the new measure: HCP COVID-19 Vaccine. This measure is presented under a new category: “CDC Measure”. Information on this measure is displayed based upon the data collection calendar year and quarter.
-
Addition of a new report disclaimer: “The SNF Provider Threshold Report is available for the convenience of the provider. Extensions and exceptions approved according to CMS policy have not been applied in the score calculations. The score in this report is considered preliminary and is not the final CMS calculation of SNF compliance with the requirements set out in 42 CFR 413.360(b)(2).”
This report is available in the ‘SNF Quality Reporting Program’ category in the Certification and Survey Provider Enhanced Reporting system (CASPER) Reporting application.
For questions related to accessing your facility’s PTR, please reach out to the iQIES helpdesk at iqies@cms.hhs.gov or call 1-800-339-9319.
|
|
FREE to Kentucky Nursing Homes:
The Kentucky Wound Care Excellence Program
In July 2021, the Kentucky Office of Inspector General announced that Vohra Wound Physicians Management, LLC has been approved by the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) to use Civil Money Penalty (CMP) funding to provide 150 scholarships for the Vohra Wound Care Course. The Program is designed specifically for registered nurses (RNs) and licensed practical nurses (LPNs) in certified nursing facilities to improve the care they deliver, raise their level of education, and close the existing knowledge gap in wound care provided across the State of Kentucky.
This opportunity will be offered on a first-come, first-serve basis until all the 150 scholarships are claimed. Nurses completing the course will receive 20 continuing education credits (CEUs). The course includes 11 downloadable learning modules, technical support/customer assistance, and program reporting. The program’s training structure ensures that scholarship recipients will have access to the materials indefinitely as an ever-present guide to sustain lessons learned.
For more information and to register for the program:
|
|
Grant Opportunity for Purchase of Aids to Increase or
Improve Air Quality for In-person Visitations
As of February 2, 2022, certified nursing facilities may apply for up to an additional $3,000 of Civil Money Penalty (CMP) Nursing Home Visitation Aid Grant funds for the purchase of indoor portable fans and/or indoor portable air cleaners with high-efficiency particulate air (HEPA, H-13 or -14) filters, to increase or improve air quality to aid in-person visitation for residents. Expenses incurred on or after the release of Memorandum QSO-20-39-NH FAQ Revised, February 2, 2022, are eligible for reimbursement.
CMP Nursing Home Visitation Aid Grant funds are still available for the purchase of tents or other shelter for outdoor visitation and/or clear dividers, installation, installation materials and shipping costs for in-person visitation aids. All eligible expenses incurred on or after September 17, 2020, are eligible for reimbursements, up to a maximum of $3,000.
For more information and to apply for CMP Nursing Home Visitation Aid Grant funds:
|
|
Kentucky's Top 10 Citations
for Nursing Homes
|
|
|
Informal Appeal of Survey Findings
Interested in Serving on an IDR Panel?
Kentucky requires one member of the IDR panel to be "a person currently engaged in the provision of Long Term Care services who has no affiliation with the provider disputing a deficiency." Typically, a Long Term Care Administrator is on each IDR panel. There is no payment or travel reimbursement for an Administrator serving on a panel. Administrators will be rotated. If a Long Term Care Administrator is interested in serving on a panel, a confidentiality statement must be signed prior to the participation in the first IDR panel.
|
|
Jennifer Smith, RN
RAI/Oasis/IDR-IIDR Coordinator
Office of Inspector General
Division of Health Care
275 E. Main St., 5E-A
Frankfort, KY 40621
Fax: (502) 564-6546
|
|
|
MDS/RAI CONTACT INFORMATION
For questions regarding MDS Assessment, Coding, Transmission or
Please do not send any identifiable patient information through e-mail. This includes patient names, SSNs, dates of birth, or any other data items considered identifiers or Protected Health Information (PHI) under HIPAA. Please redact any PHI prior to sending.
|
|
|
All certified nursing facilities must sign up for ePOC. Please be diligent about keeping your account and password up to date. All correspondence is handled in the ePOC system, including the plan of correction. Furthermore, if there is a change in administrator, it is incumbent upon the facility to update the system.
If your facility is not yet signed up, see the Account Setup instructions.
Not sure if your facility has any ePOC accounts or have other questions? E-mail ePOC.Support@ky.gov or call Rhonda Littleton-Roe at 502-564-7963 x.3300.
|
|
Have you notified your residents?
Click the link below to download and/or print the contact list for various agencies.
|
|
Which Branch is Serving You?
To provide the highest level of service, the Division of Health Care operates through four regional offices. Knowing the appropriate Branch to contact with questions and concerns will ensure you receive maximum service in minimum time. Review links below for detailed information.
|
|
CMS Survey and Certification memoranda, guidance, clarifications and instructions to State Survey Agencies and CMS Regional Offices.
|
|
Transfer/Discharge Hearing Appeals
Please submit your requests for transfer/discharge hearing appeals to Secretary Eric C. Friedlander, Cabinet for Health and Family Services, by emailing:
|
|
LTC Facility Self-Reported
Incidents & Complaints
New email addresses have been established for communications regarding LTC Facility Self-Reported Incidents and for use by residents and the general public to report possible violations of regulatory requirements. Click Here for the email addresses and additional contact information.
|
|
Quality, Safety & Education Portal
CMS's QSEP provides the full curriculum of surveyor training and guidance on health care facility regulations. All training is available on-demand on a top-notch self-service portal. 24/7 access means you have the freedom to learn what you want, where you want, when you want.
|
|
|
|
Employment Opportunities
To search and apply for positions within the Office of Inspector General, please visit the Kentucky Personnel Cabinet's web page by clicking below.
|
|
DHC Leadership Team:
Inspector General
Deputy Inspector General
Director
Assistant Director
Assistant Director
|
|
Want to Sign Up for This Newsletter?
If you have received a copy of this newsletter from a friend or co-worker, you can click here and enter your information to join our mailing list, or contact MelissaD.Richard@ky.gov.
|
|
Commonwealth of Kentucky | Office of Inspector General | 275 East Main St., Frankfort, KY 40621 |
|
The Office of Inspector General is the regulatory and licensing agency for all health care, day care and long-term care facilities and child adoption/child-placing agencies in the commonwealth.
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
