WALA News for June 16, 2008

  1. Water, Water, Everywhere
  2. Collaboration needed with Assisted Living Communities
  3. WALA AFH and CBRF Administrators Course
  4. Medication Waste
  5. Medication Stability in Food
  6. WALA Provider Member Outreach Initiative
  7. Integrated Evacuation Planning for Long Term Care Facilities
  8. DQA Memo 08-019 AFH waiver for ADRCs
  9. DQA Memo 08-020 FDA Medication Recalls and Compliance

1. Water, Water, Everywhere

Our hearts go out to all the residents and communities who have had to deal with the constant rain and flooding. We have heard many heroic stories and incredible dedication by stressed administrators and staff. If you have a story you would like to share, send along to WALA at sbass@ewala.org and we will try and publish it in the September WALA Watch newsletter. Rain, rain, go away .....

2. Collaboration needed with Assisted Living Communities

Neil Binkley, research professor at the University of Wisconsin, is looking to collaborate with several assisted living communities in order to evaluate the potential effects of vitamin D on swallowing and bladder function in adults over age 70. If any of you are interested in such collaboration, please contact Neil @ nbinkley@wisc.edu.

3. WALA AFH and CBRF Administrators Course

ONLY A FEW SEATS LEFT! Due to high demand, WALA is offering the Administrators Course again in July. This course sold out in February and it was originally sold out for July, but we have switched locations to make more seating available. It will be on July 29th and 30th at the Alexian Village in Milwaukee. Cost is $199 per person for WALA members. This includes meals, a huge notebook and CD chocked full of material, resources and information to help meet your needs regardless of experience, and dynamic speakers all day long! To register for the course or to get more information, go to The WALA Store.

4. Medication Waste

A difficult issue for facilities is the disposal of medications. Some can be considered as hazardous as lead or mercury. The Division of Quality Assurance has issued three memos (06-022, 07-008, and 08-003) which give facilities some sort of direction in the disposal process.

Although DQA has issued memos meant to help facilities, they do not specify a method of disposal. In addition to these memos, facilities should follow guidelines issued by the Department of Natural Resources, the Environmental Protection Agency, and other governmental agencies. Memos are located online.

5. Medication Stability in Food

The Division of Quality Assurance issued memo 07-012 regarding the involuntary administration of psychotropic medications. It maintains that the mixing of medications with food can be considered involuntary administration. It is because of this memo that a lot of discussion regarding the affects of mixing medications with food has arisen. Some medications cannot be given with food.

Crushed medication is sometimes mixed with applesauce or other foods and is then set aside. These foods may have low pH which will possibly begin to break down the medication, affecting its stability and effectiveness. If possible, avoid mixing medication with food, setting it aside, or storing it for later use. If medication is mixed with food, it should be administered immediately.

6. WALA Provider Member Outreach

We Want To Hear From You! This summer the WALA staff will be contacting each WALA provider member for our Outreach Initiative. We are looking forward to getting to know our WALA provider members better and to learn from your experiences. We would like your input through either a face to face meeting or a phone call. We will be asking about strengths and opportunities that WALA has, with the hope of serving you better.

7. Integrated Evacuation Planning for Long Term Care Facilities

The State of Wisconsin expert panel on Healthcare Facilities Evacuation Planning has adopted a policy on the "Evacuation of Healthcare Facilities." LTC organizations helped in the development of the policy, and helped to identify a need to network, educate, and support such organizations. The city of Madison and the Metro Area Medical Response System have established a strategy to support long term area facilities within Dane County by offering training and technical assistance with development of comprehensive emergency management plans and evacuation procedures.

Melissa Waller, a consultant with Pre-Emergency Planning, LLC, will serve as the Dane County Long Term Care Disaster Preparedness Liaison. Her assistance will include training sessions, one-on-one or site visits, phone consultations, and resource networking to support the planning process with each facility. Training sessions will be offered to all LTC facilities in Dane County.

8. Statewide Waiver of Certain Sections of Wisconsin Administration Code Chapter HFS 88, Relating to the Provision of Information to an Aging and Disability Resource Center and Referral to a Resource Center - DQA Memo 08-019

With the passage of the State's budget, Adult Family Homes (AFHs) in counties with a resource center certified by the Secretary of the Department of Health and Family Services are no longer obligated to meet the requirements in Wis. Admin. Code §HFS 10.73(3) and (4). The purpose of this statewide waiver is to notify facilities of the elimination of the statutory requirement to (a) provide information about the services of an aging and disability resource center and available screening for family care benefit eligibility, and (b) the requirement to make referrals to an aging and disability resource center.

9. Recent FDA Medication Recalls and Compliance- DQA Memo 08-020

The Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) has become aware, during facility surveys nationally, of instances where facilities have not been in compliance with various Food and Drug Administration (FDA) recalls. Recent recalls have included heparin products and Digitex (r). These recalls were due to adverse effects occurring in patients, including deaths. Therefore, facility removal of the recalled products is imperative for patient safety. The FDA information on recalled products and lot numbers may be accessed at the FDA web site.

Pharmacy providers and distributors and health care providers should be monitoring their supplies, including, for example, crash carts and storage cabinets, and removing recalled products in order to assure that recalled products are not available for patient/resident use.

In response to the recent finding nationally, CMS has asked the state survey agencies to do the following:

For further information, please contact Doug Englebert at (608) 266-5388.

 

 

 

 


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