NFP News: December 2020

Happy Holidays from AHCA/NCAL!

AHCA/NCAL Launches Vaccination Campaign

AHCA/NCAL launched a new #GetVaccinated campaign to encourage long term care staff and residents to get the COVID-19 vaccine. A communications toolkit with various materials have been created for providers and state affiliates to help communicate about the importance of vaccination as well as highlight progress.

The digital toolkit includes a checklist of ideas, template letters to use with stakeholders, sample social media, and media prep material. AHCA/NCAL will continue to update these materials and as new ones as needed, so be sure to check back for the latest resources!

AHCA/NCAL Sponsors National Effort to Honor WWII Veterans

The American Health Care Association/National Center for Assisted Living (AHCA/NCAL) is proud to sponsor Operation September Freedom, a national effort by Dream Flights, formerly Ageless Aviation Dreams Foundation, to locate and honor our World War II veteran heroes with free Dream Flights in restored, WWII-era Stearman biplanes.

Dream Flights is a nonprofit organization dedicated to honoring America’s veterans and seniors living in retirement and long-term care communities. During a 20-minute Dream Flight, veterans experience the freedom and exhilaration of soaring 1,000 feet in the air in an iconic, open-cockpit-biplane.

The tour begins on Aug. 1, 2021 and runs through Sept. 31, 2021. Dream Flight pilots, who primarily fly for major airlines and are active duty or retired military veterans themselves, will volunteer their time to fly WWII veterans in the country's largest fleet of restored Stearman bi-planes.

Mid-campaign, Sept. 6, 2021, Dream Flight crews will rendezvous at the 50th National Stearman Fly-in in Galesburg, Ill., to honor WWII veterans and fly formation for the crowd. After, the crews will return to their home bases, stopping in towns along the way to continue honoring WWII veterans with flights.

Of the 16 million Americans who served in WWII, only an estimated 100,000 will be alive in 2021 -- the youngest: 95. Dream Flights are always free. Anyone can nominate a WWII veteran for a Dream Flight by visiting www.dreamflights.org/honor. Sponsorship and donation opportunities are available by visiting www.dreamflights.org/honor.

2021 AHCA NCAL National Quality Award Deadline Next Month

2021 Bronze, Silver and Gold Quality Award applicants are encouraged to access free resources to help with a smooth writing and submission process.The Criteria Seriesare videos that applicants can access for free that cover application categories and technical writing for each award level.

Completing a successful application takes time to prepare. Don't wait. Gather your team and work on your application today!

All applications and application fees must be submitted in the Quality Award portal by 8 pm Eastern on January 28, 2021. Late applications and payments will not be accepted.

Observation Stay Use and Medicare Beneficiaries in Disadvantaged Neighborhoods

This month, an editorial entitled, “Unintended Consequences of Observation Stay Use May Disproportionately Burden Medicare Beneficiaries in Disadvantaged Neighborhoods,” was published (Volume 95, Issue 12, P2589-2591, December 01, 2020) in the Mayo Clinic Proceedings. The editorial author’s findings include that “Medicare beneficiaries residing in the most disadvantaged neighborhoods (as defined by area deprivation index) are more likely to have an observation stay, have a repeated observation stay within 30-days, and experience long-term reobservation (which they define as multiple repeated observation stays within 30-days). They find that after adjusting for demographics, morbidity, and hospital characteristics, patients who live in the most disadvantaged areas (the top 15% by area deprivation index) had 13% higher odds of having a repeated observation stay within 30 days. Roughly 14% of the 16,400 observation stays with at least one 30-day reobservation also had multiple reobservations during that period. There was substantial geographic variation in these trends, and the level of neighborhood deprivation was positively associated with the odds of long-term reobservation.” You can read the full editorial here.

We Need You for Our Social Media Initiative

AHCA/NCAL began a social media advocacy initiative last year and is encouraging all members to get involved.The effort focuses on improving the overall image of the post-acute and long term care profession by sharing positive stories and pushing back on pieces that attempt to tie all providers to isolated negative events.

AHCA/NCAL will be sending interested members tips for getting more involved on social media, best practices for posting content, sample posts, and a roundup of positive stories about the profession on a regular basis. Individuals who want to get involved should email socialmedia@ahca.org to get on the mailing list.

The campaign also will include a rapid response to stories that are unfairly negative about the profession or do not accurately portray the reality of post-acute and long term care. AHCA/NCAL hopes to build on these successes as the year continues. With thousands of buildings nationwide who touch the lives of millions of people, there is the chance to seriously affect the way the profession is viewed and treated by lawmakers and the media.

Coronavirus

Visit the AHCA/NCAL Coronavirus website daily for the latest information that we have to share with long term care providers about COVID-19. As concerns arise with the emerging coronavirus, officially named COVID-19, we are working nationally with the Centers for Disease Control (CDC) to ensure our long term care communities receive necessary supplies and guidance to prevent the spread of this disease.

Monday, December 21, 2020