Online resource packed with regulatory news and expert guidance, tips & tools pertinent to professionals across the post-acute care continuum.
A new blood test that predicts the onset of Alzheimer’s disease and mild dementia could lead to more effective management and even prevention of these conditions, according to research published in Nature Medicine. The study involved 525 participants who were over 70 years old. The participants gave blood samples throughout the trial period, and investigators […]
People with dementia commonly are undernourished, and long-term care providers should take steps to evaluate these residents’ eating habits to maximize nutrition, according to a new report from Alzheimer’s Disease International. Studies reviewed in this report indicate that 20-45% of those with dementia in the community experience clinically significant weight loss over one year, and […]
Engagement with therapy animals has been proven to slow down the progression of dementia symptoms in nursing home residents, according to a recently published study titled, Animal-Assisted Therapy and Agitation and Depression in Nursing Home Residents with Dementia: A Matched Case-Control Trial in the American Journal of Geriatric Psychiatry. Researchers based in Germany and Switzerland […]
On August 27, the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) issued a press release announcing that new data shows that antipsychotic drug use is down in nursing homes nationwide. This data was found on Nursing Home Compare in July. CMS data shows that in 2010 more than 17% of nursing home patients had daily […]
On May 24, the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) released a memo sent to state survey agency directors that contained interim guidance related to surveyors’ assessment for compliance with requirements related to nursing home residents with dementia and unnecessary drug use. These updates include sampling for the traditional survey process in Appendix P. […]