OASIS-C Tip of the Week: Drug Regiment Review

Before I get to this week’s OASIS-C tip, I want to do a little plugging. Among the search terms that brought people to this blog yesterday was “homecare company networking in mn”, which tells me that there are home care professionals here in Minnesota who want to network with other home care agencies and professionals. If you’re one of them, I’ve got good news for you: the MHCA annual conference is next month, May 2010! If you go, you’ll have a chance to network with Minnesota’s top home care professionals, attend informative and inspirational education sessions, and party like it’s 1969! (Seriously–it’s MHCA’s 40th anniversary, and there is going to be a disco themed party.) For more info, see the agenda-at-a-glance.

/shameless self promotion

Q: If a clinically significant problem is resolved before completion of comprehensive assessment, do you need to report the problem in M2000 (drug regiment review)?

A: The problem does not need to be reported in M2000.

April events

It’s a slow day today, meaning I can’t think of anything to blog about. So I thought I would just direct your attention to the onslaught of events that are coming upon us this April.

Minnesota Rural Palliative Care Initiative Outcomes Congress is currently underway up in St. Cloud. If you stopped by there during the day, or if you’re at it now, drop me a line and let me know how it was!

New Service Models for Autism Spectrum Disorders is tomrrow,  April 9th, 2010 from 8:30 a.m. to 4 p.m. at the University of Minnesota Continuing Education and Conference Center on the St. Paul Campus.

2010 Minnesota Hospice & Palliative Care Conference is next Monday and Tuesday (April 12-13, 2010) at the Sheraton Bloomington Hotel, Minneapolis South.

Next week, you will also have two opportunities to check out Disability Awareness: Living an Active and Engaged Life on Tuesday in Golden Valley and on Thursday in Stillwater. This event is being put on by the Vital Aging Network (VAN). They do good stuff, so you should plan on checking this out.

On Friday, you can check out the DHS Career Fair. DHS will connect you with qualified employees.

On April 21st, don’t miss Mariah Barton Nelson in Are Women Aging Successfully? New Thinking and Research About Gender and Physical Activity from 7:00 pm to 9:00 pm at the Hubert H. Humphrey Center, West Bank Campus.

Finally, on April 23rd, block out some time to hit up Insights on Aging in an Era of Health Reform: A Community Forum and Discussion which will run from 8:00 am to 11:30 am at Roseville Lutheran Church 1215 West Roselawn Ave.Roseville, MN, 55113.

That oughta keep you busy for a while.

Friday Round-up

This week we learned about OASIS-C assessments, how to start your own home care agency, and Random Acts of Kindness. In the coming weeks, stay tuned for interviews with home care agency leaders whose agencies were recently listed on the Home Care Elite list. Those of you who are just starting out in the field of Home Care will find their knowledge, experience and advice priceless.

Before I sign off for the week, there are several upcoming events that those of you who live in Minnesota might want to attend.

The Pursuit of Excellence in Palliative Care
Wednesday, March 17th & Thursday, March 18th 2010

Issues and Strategies in Adult Vaccine Preventable Diseases
Friday, March 19th 2010

Minnesota Rural Palliative Care Initiative Outcomes Congress
Thursday, April 8, 2010

See details for these events here: http://www.mnhomecare.org/displaycommon.cfm?an=1&subarticlenbr=226

Home Health CoPs to Be Published Later

Quick update: Home Health Conditions of Participation (CoP) will not be published until late spring or early summer of 2010. We had originally been told that they would be published in December. Moving on…

The Minnesota Home Care Association recently hosted a consumer event, designed to educate consumers on the different options for long term care. The MHCA Private Duty team had this message to pass along:

The Minnesota HomeCare Association’s Private Duty Team is thrilled to report a very successful, first-time-ever conference geared towards educating consumers on Home Care services. The content was created to assist the consumer in learning about, planning for and accessing Private Duty Home Care, Medicare Home Care and a wide variety of adjunct services for their loved ones.

The room buzzed with approximately 120 consumers and vendors. Individuals who attended included many who are currently providing care for a loved one, while some of the attendees were admittedly in crisis mode, desperate for more information and resources. Others included groups of siblings seeking information in hopes of offering their parents options for both their current and future needs.

Participants were given ample opportunity to visit with providers including Private Duty Home Care, Medicare HomeCare and Hospice agencies, Durable Medical Equipment providers, Elder Law Attorneys, Reverse Mortgage Specialists, Moving Specialists, Funeral Pre-Planning Consultants, Daily Money Managers, and others. Many of the consumers stayed long after the conference ended in order to converse with these “Trusted Advisors”.

It is our hope that by offering educational opportunities such as this to families, they will consider accessing HomeCare and other support services which may enhance the quality of life for a loved one and prevent future crisis.

I am so excited that this event went so well, and am looking forward to more events like these in the future.

CDC Guidelines for H1N1

This is what happens when you get behind on blogging. On the 14th, the CDC issued its Interim Guidance on Infection Control Measures for 2009 H1N1 Influenza in Healthcare Settings, Including Protection of Healthcare Personnel. I’m not trying to add to the media sensationalism and panic surrounding H1N1, but it is important for healthcare workers to protect themselves. As health care workers are the people most likely to come in contact with H1N1, it behooves them to take steps to stay healthy and minimize the spread of the virus. If you haven’t read the CDC’s guidelines, you should do so now. Here’s the link: http://www.cdc.gov/h1n1flu/guidance/ill-hcp.htm

Now that I’ve got that out of the way, I’d like to do a little bit of shameless promotion: On Saturday, November 14th, the Minnesota HomeCare Association will host an event titled “Mom and Dad Want to Stay Home; Planning Their Future at Home”. This event is for consumers, but healthcare and social workers are invited to attend as well. The purpose of the event is to educate consumers on the differences between Home Care, Assisted Living and Nursing Homes and how to choose among them. If you go, you’ll also get a chance to hear from seniors who are successfully living at home with the help of home care providers.

The best time to prepare for a family crisis is before it happens. If you have aging family members who may soon need care, or if you have friends who do, tell them about this event! Learn what your options are so that when the time comes, you’ll be ready with your decision.

The event costs $10 and that includes lunch. Register online!