All News

Melanie (Mel) Sullivan, Ed.D., has been named Senior Vice President and Chief People Officer at Ecumen, effective April 1.  

Employer applications for the 2019 Summer Health Care Internship Program (SHCIP) are due April 12. Hospitals, clinics, care centers, home care providers and adult day services providers are encouraged to participate on behalf of qualified students in their community. 

Face Aging MN has launched a new, interactive map of caregiver stories from across the state to provides seniors, families, leaders and policymakers a glimpse of local caregivers in their own communities, demonstrate the essential work and value of these rewarding careers, and inspire positive change. 

Become an Early Adopter of Align’s Employee Engagement Solution (manager/supervisor evaluation and training), and/or two Customer Experience Solutions by April 15 and receive special pricing! 

Breaking fee-for-service habits is hard, and not just for providers of long-term services and support. Every sector in the health or human services field has had to adapt to a new world of managed care. The latest issue of the LeadingAge national magazine, sheds light on the change and disruption happening our field related to managed care and shares insight on a path forward. 

Care center occupancy is at an all-time low and the workforce situation is only getting more challenging, according to a new analysis we recently completed based on the 2018 occupancy survey and 2019 Long-Term Care Imperative legislative survey. 

The wait is over – registration is now open for the 2019 Assisted Living Certificate Program. You can choose either the Spring Series, which begins April 25, or Late Summer/Fall series which begins Aug. 6. 

Safety. Being around family. Having access to the outdoors. Affordability. These are just a few key findings in a new noteworthy study from LeadingAge and NORC. 

Now that you’ve made the Safe Care for Seniors pledge, it’s time to launch the program in your setting! To help you engage your staff, residents and families in our shared mission to prevent harm in the course of caregiving, we’ve developed a Safe Care for Seniors Campaign Kick-Off Toolkit and Online Resource Library.

Have you tried recruiting through LeadingAge Minnesota’s job board AgingServicesJOBS.org? Check it out! Email Jenna Kellerman for a promo code to post your first job for FREE!   

The Argentum Senior Living Executive Conference, which takes place April 15-17 in San Antonio, offers unmatched opportunities to connect with leaders and experts in our field, discover solutions to common challenges, stay abreast of key trends, explore innovative technology, and learn core strategies to advance business operations and careers. Argentum is offering a special promo code – STATE50 – for members to receive $50 off a full conference pass. 

Non-improving late adopters in the reduction in long-stay residents who were receiving an antipsychotic medication may soon be subjected to enhanced oversight and enforcement remedies, according to a notice from the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS).  

Learn more about the latest upgrades to AgingServicesJobs.org by signing up for a new webinar that will feature success stories, tips on engaging candidates, and additional ways this revolutionary technology can streamline candidate screening and address retention concerns by providing deeper candidate insights than available on a common application or resume. For new users, a live demo of the technology will be shared at the end of the webinar. 

Registration is open for LeadingAge Minnesota’s venerable Nursing Leadership Symposium. This five-part series has a 28-year track record of helping to transform skilled nurses into exceptional nursing leaders in long-term care. 

The Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) has revised Appendix Q of the State Operations Manual (SOM), used by surveyors for guidance in citing immediate jeopardy (IJ). This revision, known as Core Appendix Q, will provide a template for surveyors to identify the citation and notify providers in a clear, consistent and timely manner.

Teach students about Career Pathways in aging services using these excellent tools developed by the California Assisted Living Association:  

Reminder: The Minnesota Department of Health is currently accepting applications for the bonus round of the HCBS Scholarship Grant. The application deadline is April 19. You can find the application here.  

LeadingAge national has taken an important step toward increasing its impact and influence across the full continuum of services and supports for people as they age by entering into an agreement with the intent to affiliate with the Visiting Nurse Associations of America (VNAA) and ElevatingHOME.  

More than 150 LeadingAge Minnesota members participated in yesterday’s Day at the Capitol, bringing their voices and their collective will to give lawmakers a personal perspective on how the decisions they make this session will affect the seniors we serve and those who provide them with care.   

A new proposal that would greatly increase the number of employees eligible for overtime pay is raising concerns for aging services providers. 

In testimony to the U.S. Senate Finance Committee last week, the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) said that the moratorium on monetary fines for care centers will expire in May and that providers will soon begin receiving civil monetary fines in eight additional categories.  

The OnTrack Nursing Assistant Training program continues to see success in its second year of operation.  

The Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) and the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) have released a free on-line training course in infection prevention and control for nursing home staff in the long-term care setting.  

The U.S. Senate Finance Committee this morning took a rare look at timely topics affecting care center quality, safety, workforce and regulations by holding a "Not Forgotten: Protecting Americans From Abuse and Neglect in Nursing Homes" hearing in Washington DC.  

Bills have been reintroduced in Congress that permanently protect Home and Community Based Services (HCBS) recipients against spousal impoverishment.  

LeadingAge Minnesota’s long-standing Nursing Leadership Symposium program to develop nursing leaders in long-term care is entering its 28th year and is open for registration.  

The Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) has released the Provider Threshold Report (PTR). This new report for the Skilled Nursing Facility Quality Reporting Program (SNF QRP) shows care centers if they are at risk of a 2 percent rate penalty for failure to meet the 80 percent reporting threshold requirement on the quality reporting measures during a calendar year.   

New efforts that improve the quality of life and care for care center residents will receive $6.5 million over two years through funding from the Minnesota Department of Human Services. Congratulations to these LeadingAge Minnesota members for receiving Performance-based Incentive Payment Program (PIPP) grants:  

LeadingAge Minnesota has honored four aging services providers with Awards of Merit for Performance Excellence in Aging Services. The providers are: Martin Luther Care Center in Bloomington; St. Crispin Living Center in Red Wing; Madonna Living Community in Rochester; and The Good Shepherd Community in Sauk Rapids.  

You’ve made the pledge, now take the next step in Safe Care for Seniors. Our March 28 Workshop will give you the tools and resources you need to effectively implement the 5-Step Safe Care for Seniors Action Plan in your setting. Join experts in safe care, resident and family communication, leadership, safety and more for this informative, interactive event that will also feature shared learning from your peers and small group work focused specifically on your type of setting.