Medication Assistance for Residents with Dementia
This week’s Tuesday Tip comes in response to a question posted on our blog. “Is a resident with dementia allowed to be retained in an RCFE when she requires her medications to be “fed” to her?”
Professional Caregiver Blog
Professional Caregiver – A Care and Compliance Group Blog for Assisted Living and Residential Care Professionals
Safely Managing Prescription Pain Killers
The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) recently reported skyrocketing increases in deaths from overdoses of prescription pain killers. According to the CDC, 15,000 people die every year from overdoses of these medications – more than those who die from heroin and cocaine combined.
Medication Error Reporting Policies
In several recent Tuesday Tips we have been focusing on the issue of medication errors. First looking at how to define a medication error, and last week examining how to respond to medication error. This prompted a response from some Tuesday Tip subscribers emphasizing the need for clear reporting policies within individual assisted living and [...]
Administration of Medications to Residents on Hospice
This is one of the most common questions we receive from California RCFE Tuesday Tip subscribers: “Can a family or unpaid friend of a hospice client actually pour (draw up in a syringe), hospice drugs such as liquid morphine if they are trained by hospice?”
Oral Syringes
Community Care Licensing provided several important policy updates and clarifications during last week’s CALA Spring Conference, including one regarding the use of oral syringes. For some time there has been a lack of consistent interpretation from LPAs in the field regarding whether or not trained unlicensed staff members may use an oral syringe to draw [...]
Medications from Across the Border
As residents and their families look for ways to cut back on health care costs, assisted living and residential care providers are increasingly faced with the challenge of handling medications purchased in Canada and Mexico. The two most common questions providers ask about these drugs include: 1) Are they safe? 2) Are they legal?
The “Brown Bag” Medication Review
Assisted living and residential care residents often move into a community directly from their home. While living at home many of our residents managed their own medications or received minimal assistance from a family member. Over the years the volume of medications in their possession can quickly build up as residents saw multiple physicians, purchased [...]
Private Duty Caregivers and Medications
It is becoming increasingly common for residents and their families to hire privately paid caregivers to provide additional companionship and services to residents living in an RCFE. This type of arrangement raises many questions, including this one that we received from a Tuesday Tip subscriber: