Greetings!
Today we're hosting our Friday afternoon member call on COVID-19 at 3:30 pm. The link to access the call series has not changed and is included below for your convenience.
This update also includes:
- reminders from OLC on COVID-19 reporting;
- info on new AHCA algorithm for testing and cohorting nursing home residents;
- a reminder about the June 3 webinar on COVID-19 testing;
- registration links to our COVID-19 Legal Webinar Series in June;
- a resource on innovative methods to keep residents connected using an infection prevention and control mindset;
- a revised 1135 Waiver template for nursing homes; and
- information on recent CDC Website Updates.
We look forward to talking with everyone at 3:30 pm.
Sincerely,
April Payne, LNHA
Vice President of Quality Improvement | Director of VCAL
Virginia Health Care Association | Virginia Center for Assisted Living
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VHCA-VCAL Member Call: COVID-19
May 29, 2020 | 3:30 pm
Register for the meeting:
After registering, you will receive a confirmation email containing information about joining the meeting, including calendar notices for the calls over the next month.
Agenda
- Welcome | Novel Martin | Chairman of the Board
- VHCA-VCAL Updates | Keith Hare | President and CEO
- Funding and Reimbursement Update | Steve Ford | Senior Vice President of Policy and Reimbursement
- Hot Topic Review | April Payne | Vice President of Quality Improvement and Director of VCAL
Please mute your line to improve the sound quality on the call. Zoom has a chat feature you can use to send questions or comments.
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OLC Reminders on COVID-19 Reporting
The VDH Office of Licensure and Certification (OLC) requested that VHCA remind members that facilities report COVID-19 outbreaks and information as follows:
- Initial Facility Reported Incident (FRI) with any positive resident or staff member, and what is being done with regards to their COVID-19 positive staff and/or residents. (OLC does not need a 5-day follow up FRI as the agency is requesting regular updates.)
- Updates via email or phone call (email preferred) with changes in numbers, deaths, policies, procedures, testing, etc., as needed.
- Line listing as requested by the LTC Supervisor.
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Testing and Cohorting: When & How?
Trying to figure out what to do about testing and cohorting can be a challenge. AHCA has created an
algorithm for testing and cohorting nursing home residents, which incorporates the latest CDC guidance. The algorithm walks through three primary entry points for testing prior to deciding on who and how to cohort individuals. The entry points include testing residents who develop symptoms, testing all residents simultaneously, and testing new admissions. The algorithm also walks through how to cohort if the person(s) tested are in a single-person room or with roommates.
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June 3 Webinar: COVID-19 Testing
We encourage you to attend the
COVID-19 Testing Webinar
on June 3 at 3:00 pm. This webinar is specifically for nursing facilities and assisted living providers. The target audience is DONs, medical directors, and nursing staff. The webinar will present the up-to-date information on testing in the Commonwealth. You will have an opportunity to ask questions after the presentations.
The webinar facilitators are:
Karen Remley, MD, MBA, MPH, FAAP
Senior Advisor to the Commissioner’s Office COVID-19 Response
Virginia Department of Health
Gonzalo Bearman MD, MPH, FACP, FSHEA, FIDSA
Richard P. Wenzel Professor of Medicine
Chair – Division of Infectious Diseases at VCU and Hospital Epidemiologist
Wednesday, June 3 | 3:00 pm
The event is free, but we are asking attendees to please register in advance. After registering, you will receive a confirmation email containing information about joining the meeting. Please submit any questions in advance to
April Payne
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COVID-19 Legal Webinar Series
Join us for our COVID-19 Legal Webinar Series on June 11, 18, and 25 offering insights into issues related employment law, liability issues, and blanket waivers. Each one-hour webinar will be led by experts from
Hancock Daniel. NAB-approved continuing education credits will be offered.
Follow the links for program descriptions and online registration. We’re offering discounted pricing if you register for all three webinars.
June 11, 2020 | 2:00 – 3:00 pm
June 18, 2020 | 2:00 – 3:00 pm
June 25, 2020 | 2:00 – 3:00 pm
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Innovative Methods to Keeping Residents Connected
AHCA/NCAL has prepared a resource,
Keeping People Connected: Innovative Methods Using an Infection Prevention & Control Mindset, to help providers continue to keep residents connected to their loved ones. As visitation restrictions and social distancing continues, we need to find ways to keep people connected in-person when possible. Using an infection prevention and control mindset can help generate innovative methods to engage residents and families and fellow residents.
This resource is a starting point and intended to kick off additional ideas each center or community is able to try based on the status of COVID-19 in their building and in their community as well as the availability of necessary resources to support these innovative efforts. This resource can be used by nursing homes, assisted living communities, and ICF/IID as each sees fit.
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Revised 1135 Waiver Template for Nursing Homes
In the guidance on
Where to Turn for Help, AHCA/NCAL shared information on and a customizable template for requesting a facility-level 1135 waiver. AHCA/NCAL has updated the
template due to CMS blanket waivers and guidance provided since we first shared the template. Remember that while using this check-box format it is still important that you customize your waiver request to reflect your center’s needs and circumstances, as this will aid in CMS’s review and approval of your requests. This is a Word document, so you can make edits to include the items you need and to provide any additional explanation or rationale for your requests.
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CDC Website Updates
On May 19, the CDC updated several of their webpages to be reflective of the CMS updates on reopening guidance. The three webpages that were updated include:
Below is a summary of what was changed. Review your infection prevention and control procedures to ensure they are consistent with the latest guidance.
- Tiered recommendations to address nursing homes in different phases of COVID-19 response.
- Added a recommendation to assign an individual to manage the facility’s infection control program – this is new. CDC strongly feels that “Facilities should assign at least one individual with training in infection prevention and control (IPC) to provide on-site management of their COVID-19 prevention and response activities”, because of the breadth of activities for which an IPC program is responsible, including developing IPC policies and procedures, performing infection surveillance, providing competency-based training of health care personnel, and auditing adherence to recommended IPC practices.
- Added guidance about new requirements for nursing homes to report to the National Healthcare Safety Network (NHSN).
- Added a recommendation to create a plan for testing residents and healthcare personnel for SARS-CoV-2. Note, AHCA/NCAL provided recent guidance on testing which incorporate the latest from CDC.
- Additional descriptive information for certain areas like universal source control, hand hygiene, optimization of PPE, and the COVID-19 unit section based on common questions received including:
- Removed language to move residents with symptoms or suspect COVID-19 to an observation unit, if one was available, as this has been a point of confusion and has not been feasible for most facilities.
- CDC recommends creating a COVID-19 unit for residents with confirmed COVID-19 and, if possible, an observation area for new admissions with no known COVID history (those with known COVID-19 would go to COVID-19 unit), but recommend that if possible those with symptoms or suspect COVID-19 go to a private room. Testing should be prioritized for these individuals and, if positive, they would move to a COVID-19 unit. PPE should be worn.
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