Recent Posts
‘Etiology’ and ‘Manifestation’ Home Health Coding on OASIS
In certain cases, ICD-10-CM guidelines require more than one diagnosis code to report a condition. The use of two diagnosis codes in is called “mandatory multiple coding,” “dual classification,” “dual coding,” or “mandatory dual coding.” One specific example of such mandatory dual...
9 Differences Between LPNs and RNs
The essentials of nursing are the same for both LPNs and RNs. Both care for people who are suffering from illness and injury, providing medical and functional assistance to help them live as pain-free and as comfortable as possible, and hopefully move forward in their journey toward...
Peripherally Inserted Central Catheter (PICC) Assessment & Careplan
A peripherally inserted central catheter (PICC) is used for patients needing venous access for I.V. fluids, long-term antibiotics, chemotherapy, or total parental nutrition (TPN). A PICC is also used for drawing blood.
Can Your Governing Body Answer These 10 Questions?
Medicare's Conditions of Participation (CoP) requires a Home Health Governing Body that must oversee hundreds of policies and procedures to monitor and regulate infection control, quality assurance, fiscal performance and accounting, emergency preparedness, employee credentials and...
OASIS Guidance: M1600 UTI in the Past 14 Days?
Medicare requires HHAs to monitor for healthcare-associated infections (HAI) as part of its overall Quality Assurance Performance Improvement (QAPI) initiative. Medicare’s Condition of Participation (§484.70 Condition of participation: Infection prevention and control) requires HHAs to...
Emergency Preparedness: 6 Practical Steps for Daily HHA Management
We're on the the third anniversary of the COVID-19 pandemic. The events that began in early 2020 would be the first time that many HHAs would enact the emergency preparedness plan that is required by Medicare's §484.102 Condition of participation: Emergency preparedness.
Below is a...
Home Health CoPs: Emergency Preparedness Checklist
In January 2018 Medicare made multiple changes to the language of the condition regarding Emergency Preparedness §484.102. Medicare also created an exception to emergency preparedness testing and drills: if the HHA experiences an emergency - that requires activation of the emergency...
Does Your Annual Meeting Include These 11 (Required) Items?
Medicare's Conditions of Participation (CoP) requires an HHA's Governing Body to regularly evaluate the policies and procedures that regulate the Agency's:
- Agency-wide risk management
- Patient-specific risk management
- Emergency Preparedness
- Employee Management: continuing education,...
