Breaking the vicious staff retention / lower census cycle The long term care staffing crisis rages on, according to a recent survey conducted by Leading Age.  70% of assisted living providers and a disturbing 92% of nursing home providers reported significant or severe workforce shortages – unchanged since June 2022. The staffing crisis in long…

Keep Reading...

NPS = get your QAPI feedback fast, easy and frequently Net Promoter Score (NPS) surveys – simple 2-question surveys – are an ideal way of adding nuanced data to your community’s Quality Assurance and Performance Improvement (QAPI) programs. The simplicity and quick-response nature of NPS surveys make it easy for family members and residents to…

Keep Reading...

How’s Mom clients named McKnight’s Tech Award Finalists We are excited to announce that three How’s Mom customers have been named Finalists for the 2022 McKnight’s Long-Term Care News Tech Awards.  These awards, judged by an esteemed group of 25 long-term care stakeholders from hundreds of nominations, recognize long-term care providers for their overall value…

Keep Reading...

Are your Cures Act compliance strategy and technology HIPAA compliant? As the 21st Century Cures Act’s information blocking enforcement deadline approaches, long term care providers are understandably uncertain about their risk exposure.  There are multiple considerations from data sharing practices and policies to data security and user experience.  Other existing standards also come into play…

Keep Reading...

How does your facility’s Customer Experience (CX) stack up? A positive customer experience for residents and families increases ratings and improves reviews.  These critical factors heavily influence prospective residents during their long-term care searches.  Do you know how your residents and their families perceive your facility? Why it matters With healthcare consumerism at an all-time…

Keep Reading...

Are you ready? This month, Department of Health and Human Services Secretary Xavier Becerra said, “…closing the [Cures Act] enforcement gap is a ‘top HHS priority, and we are working hard on this issue right now.’  The Act, which prohibits “information blocking” – preventing patients from accessing their health care data – became law in…

Keep Reading...

How One Company Dramatically Streamlined Communications-Resulting in a 99% Reduction of Staff Hours and More Quality Time Focused on Patient Care When EmpRes Healthcare Management, LLC-a family of companies dedicated to seniors’ individualized care-found itself faced with the never-before-experienced challenges of managing COVID communications, they also found themselves struggling. With more than 80 locations and…

Keep Reading...

…and improving operating costs with technology One of the biggest challenges facing long-term care community staff is the volume of non-care related tasks.  Answering emails, taking family phone calls, completing regulatory paperwork and completing other documentation take valuable time away from patient-centered activities.  Technology and “digital transformation” can help reduce the burden of these non-care…

Keep Reading...

Technology can improve both the top and bottom line Long-term care facility resident census is still well below pre=pandemic levels.  Compounding that challenge is the staffing shortage that is straining already over-burdened caregivers.  In this environment, potential residents and their families can be selective in their search for long-term care.  It’s a buyer’s market, which…

Keep Reading...

Long-term Care staffing crisis won’t end soon Empres found a technology solution – How’s Mom Approximately 4% of direct care workers were displaced during the second quarter of 2020. A year later, few had returned to direct care, according to a new study by PHI and the Health Workforce Research Center on Long-Term Care at the University…

Keep Reading...

Improving your customer experience improves the bottom line Customer experience (CX) provides the foundation of the impression families and residents have of long-term care facilities.  Delivering an outstanding customer experience is critical to maintaining and growing census, even in the face of pandemic challenges.  That sounds expensive, though, doesn’t it?  In reality, exceptional CX can…

Keep Reading...

Saving staff time through technology The staffing crisis is not news to long term care community leaders, yet the situation continues to worsen, according to McKnight’s Senior Living, nursing and residential care facilities lost 38,000 jobs in September. Vaccine mandates, better pay and better working conditions elsewhere have accelerated the staffing challenge in long term…

Keep Reading...

Say “Hello!” to the new and improved How’s Mom Family App! We are excited to announce the arrival of the latest edition of the How’s Mom Family App.  We’ve completely redesigned the user interface to put key data at your family members’ fingertips. That key data is now expanded to include even more resident information!…

Keep Reading...

Using technology to solve the long-term care workforce crisis The labor market for Long-Term Care communities has gone from bad to worse.  Newly announced COVID-19 vaccine requirements for staff members will further exacerbate the workforce shortage.  Many communities are facing higher wage costs as a result.  Technology can play a role in reducing the stress…

Keep Reading...

Building Census – Customer Experience (CX) and beyond Long Term Care community census is still down.  Communities need creative strategies The impacts of the coronavirus still reverberate throughout the long term care industry, with census recovering, but slowly.  A survey done early in 2021 indicates that as many as 1600 long term care facilities could…

Keep Reading...

CURES Act Information Blocking Compliance The 21st Century Cures Act (“Cures Act”) is a bipartisan-backed law passed in December 2016 and implemented through rulemaking as of April 5, 2021. A key aspect of the Cures Act is the intention to give patients safe and secure access to health data so they can better manage their care and make more informed healthcare…

Keep Reading...