This month, LeadingAge and CAST are proud to announce an updated Medication Management Selection Tool for you and a new case study, release new data on EHR sophistication among LZ-150 participants, and share the news that nursing homes can now benefit from Rural Health Care Program subsidies, thanks to LeadingAge and CAST member advocacy. Perspectives on electronic health record (EHR) and IT spending, CAST member news, and patients’ openness to telehealth round out July’s message.
CAST Updates Medication Management Selection Tools
CAST has updated its Medication Management Selection Tool with a revised product and vendor matrix with 23 products and a new case study from LeadingAge and CAST Gold Partner PointClickCare. This year, we added a summary of all the lessons learned from past Medication Management initiative case studies so that you can quickly find the key points from your pioneering peers.
Our new case study describes how Manchester Manor, in an effort to reduce the risk of medication errors and improve the efficiency of their medication process, implemented PointClickCare’s Integrated Medication Management (IMM) solution and received positive results immediately. To learn from this experience, read our “Good Medicine: PointClickCare’s Integrated Medication Management Brings Relief” article and examine the full case study.
As a reminder, CAST’s free Technology Selection Tools are designed to help you choose the technology solutions that best fit your needs, including Medication Management, Electronic Health Records (EHRs), and Shared Care Planning and Coordination technologies, to name a few.
CAST and Ziegler Release New Data on EHR Sophistication
In a recent follow-up survey, LeadingAge CAST and Ziegler asked LZ 150 participants who had EHRs to classify the sophistication of their current EHRs using CAST’s 7-Stage EHR Adoption Model. The results reaffirm that larger nonprofit organizations are ahead of their smaller peers, not only in terms of EHR adoption but also the level of sophistication, advanced functionalities, and health information exchange capabilities deployed. You can find more details in this joint press release.
Nursing Homes Join Rural Health Care Program
Thanks to legislation led by Senator John Thune of South Dakota and advocacy by LeadingAge and LeadingAge and CAST member Evangelical Lutheran Good Samaritan Society, skilled nursing facilities can now participate in the Rural Health Care (RHC) Program, a $400 million broadband subsidy program for rural health care providers. The measure was signed into law last year, and the rule was published in the Federal Register on June 21, 2017.
EHRs and IT Spending
I shared the LeadingAge/CAST perspective in two articles in the June 2017 issue of McKnight’s Technology: Changing the future.
“Barriers to entry: Costs and other factors are holding back EHR implementation in this sector” addressed a recent Government Accountability Office report criticizing the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services for not measuring its interoperability efforts well or promoting them to long-term care and post-acute (LTPAC) providers. Promotion to LTPAC providers is essential if we are serious about meeting the three goals of improving care quality, improving person-centeredness, and reducing costs.
The article also addressed unique staffing challenges in LTPAC and suggested providers use LeadingAge/CAST’s EHR Technology Selection Tool, plus its seven-stage adoption model, to find the best technology.
The second article, “Investing in tech: Operators are spending more on infrastructure that improves information and communication,” discussed results of the Ziegler CFO Hotline survey of senior living organizations. LeadingAge/CAST gave input on the survey, which found that providers are moving their IT spending away from capital and towards the operational side, including downsizing data centers and outsourcing applications to third-party operators.
Member News
CAST Partners, Patrons, Supporters, Business Associates, and Members have been in the news of late, for expanded offerings, technology pilots, partnerships, grant awards, and new products.
- LeadingAge Silver Partner with CAST Focus MatrixCare® has expanded its electronic health record (EHR) offerings by acquiring SigmaCare, a leading EHR vendor for the long-term, post-acute care market based in Manhattan.
- Front Porch and CAST Supporter iN2L have partnered to create a digital community to help alleviate residents’ loneliness. In other iN2L news, Dennis Jakubowicz has joined iN2L as the company’s new sales and marketing vice president.
- The MIT Technology Review recently profiled CAST Patron Front Porch for its pilot with Alexa, which appears to be the first retirement community to study the technology’s impact in depth. The Front Porch Center for Innovation and Wellbeing, a technology outreach program, is leading the project.
- LeadingAge Silver Partner with CAST Focus ABILITY Network and Cantata Health have partnered on advanced all-payer workflows to help strengthen revenue cycle management.
- LeadingAge CAST Supporter Netsmart has acquired DeVero, a healthcare technology company that specializes in home health care and hospice.
- LeadingAge member Easterseals has received $200,000 in assistive technology grants to promote independence for veterans and people with disabilities.
- CAST Business Associate Eldermark Software has announced a new early intervention tool for senior living, reported in McKnight’s Senior Living. With WISDOM2ACT, on-site caregivers can easily track any changes in a resident’s condition electronically, in real time, to speed and streamline interventions.
- CAST Business Associate K4Connect, which creates solutions to serve and empower older adults and individuals living with disabilities, has deployed its “connected life” platform, K4Community, at LeadingAge Member Masonic Villages, a premier not-for-profit senior services provider.
More Patients Open to Telehealth Than Have Used It
In the world of aging-services technology, Modern Healthcare reports that 77% of patients in the United States are open to receiving care via telehealth but that only 19% have done so. The results from the Virtual Visits Consumer Choice Survey, conducted by The Advisory Board Company, suggest a large opportunity for health care providers, especially in direct-to-consumer virtual specialty and chronic care.
Feel Free to Contact Me
If you have news to share with CAST or if I can be of assistance in any way, please don’t hesitate to contact me.