Guest columns

Note: McKnight’s Long-Term Care News accepts columns representing a variety of viewpoints. Columns do not necessarily reflect the views of the editors or organization. Learn more about guidelines for submitting a guest column.

NLRB’s new joint-employer standard: How it impacts long-term care facilities
NLRB’s new joint-employer standard: How it impacts long-term care facilities
By
Neville M. Bilimoria
Jennifer Long
Dec 21, 2023

Does your long-term care facility exercise either direct or indirect control of the work conditions for all the outside caregivers and other workers who are on your campus regularly? This will be the important...

“No man is a failure who has friends” — an MDS Merry Christmas
“No man is a failure who has friends” — an MDS Merry Christmas
By
Joel VanEaton
Dec 20, 2023

As Christmas and the new year approach, I get nostalgic. I like to think back on good old childhood memories. For me those are the 1970s and ’80s.  I remember one Christmas, I was probably 7 years...

Working together to combat vaccine hesitancy
Working together to combat vaccine hesitancy
By
David Gifford, M.D.
Dec 19, 2023

We must ensure that our population has vaccines to fight off common respiratory viruses this holiday season — and beyond.

Holiday gift ideas
Holiday gift ideas
By
Jacqueline Vance, RNC, CDONA/LTC
Dec 19, 2023

As I was looking online for ideas for holiday gifts, I was stunned to see so many bizarre ideas are out there. I mean truly bizarre.  One I saw was a wool throw blanket that looks like a piece of...

An insider’s guide to managed care contract exclusions
An insider’s guide to managed care contract exclusions
By
Susie Mix
Dec 18, 2023

There’s a key question more providers need to know the answer to: What is a contract exclusion? A contract exclusion details the medications and treatments that are not included in the levels of a managed...

The red bird: A story of connection and meaning
The red bird: A story of connection and meaning
By
Martie Moore
Dec 15, 2023

My encounters with the red bird had been limited until a week after my mother died. I was sitting on the couch, consumed with grief when it first arrived.  The red bird flew to the transom and peered...

Plugging in to the source
Plugging in to the source
By
Gary Tetz
Dec 14, 2023

Somewhere down the road, when I walk through the front doors of your long-term care facility on my first day as a resident, I hope to move with even half the vigor 80-year-old Barry Manilow showed as he...

Revamping CMS survey data integration amid regulatory lag in nursing home oversight
Revamping CMS survey data integration amid regulatory lag in nursing home oversight
By
Steven Littlehale
Dec 08, 2023

The report titled “Uninspected and Neglected” by the majority staff of the US Senate Special Committee on Aging brings attention to a pressing issue: the severe understaffing of inspection agencies...

Caregiver training CPT codes: Top questions answered
Caregiver training CPT codes: Top questions answered
By
Renee Kinder
Dec 07, 2023

As a writer for McKnight’s, I find nothing more gratifying than when I receive questions from readers seeking more clarification and guidance after a blog. We came to you at the beginning of November...

Hopeful aging: Does it exist?
Hopeful aging: Does it exist?
By
Julie Thorson
Dec 07, 2023

As we grow older, does our capacity to be hopeful diminish?  Turning 50 this year opened many doors for me. Turning 40 seemed confusing and somewhat depressing. Looking back, I wasn’t ready to accept...