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Pain Management: PDGM Utilization Recommendations

A home health pain management program can be executed by either nursing or therapy. Patients requiring pain management should use a combination of medical (chronic pain medications) and non-medical intervention such as guided imagery, distraction, relaxation - among others. ...

Posted by Melissa Cott on Feb 7, 2024

Hip Replacement: 2024 PDGM Utilization Guidelines

Hip replacement recovery for many patients will take place in the home. Hip replacement patients will likely receive formal physical therapy from home health and/or outpatient physical therapy.

Posted by Melissa Cott on Feb 6, 2024

To Be a 5-Star Agency, Pay Close Attention to Rehabilitation Potential

Value-based Purchasing (VBP) & Medicare Reimbursement

Medicare's Value-Based Purchasing (VBP) became effective for all certified home health agencies on 1/1/2023. Under VBP your Agency's Medicare payments are determined by three conditions: (1) CAHPS - patient satisfaction scores, (2)...

Posted by Melissa Cott on Jan 30, 2024

OASIS-E M1306 Pressure Ulcers: Home Health Careplan & Teaching

Any person who is in a bed or chair for 8 hours or longer is at risk for pressure ulcers. Pressure ulcers - also known as bed sores, decubitus ulcers, pressure sores and skin ulcers - often develop in patients with the following conditions: diabetes mellitus, deep venous thrombosis,...

Posted by Melissa Cott on Jan 25, 2024

OASIS E: Four (4) Questions on Patient Nutrition

Medicare's OASIS-E assessment, effective January 2023, expanded its data collection on the patient's nutritional status to include four (4) more questions on Start of care, Resumption and Discharge.

The presence of Parenteral/IV feeding and Feeding tube (e.g., nasogastric or abdominal...

Posted by Melissa Cott on Jan 16, 2024

Guidance for OASIS M1041/6 Flu Vaccine

Medicare added the status of a patient's vaccination for influenza (as M1040) in 2009. The answer to "Influenza Vaccine Data Collection Period" (now M1041) is collected at transfer/discharge and discharge but many EMRs - home health software - capture the data on admission, resumption...

Posted by Melissa Cott on Jan 2, 2024

Long-Term Anti-Coagulation Therapy? Monitor 2 things...

Home health care patients with atrial fibrillation, deep vein thrombosis, pulmonary embolism and/or artificial heart valves will likely be placed on maintenance anticoagulation therapy to reduce/eliminate blood clots. 

Posted by Joy Joan E. De Castro, RN, MSN on Dec 12, 2023

Do Not Resuscitate - 4 Keys to Effective Patient Communication

The patient's physician writes a do-not-resuscitate (DNR) order when cardiopulmonary resuscitation (CPR) should not be attempted. Because CPR will not be attempted, other resuscitative measures that follow it (tracheal intubation, cardiac monitoring, cardiac defibrillation etc) will...

Posted by Melissa Cott on Dec 11, 2023