Risk-Based Surveys Are Here: Is Your Leadership Team Ready?
Insights from Lisa Thomson, BA, LNHA, HSE, FACHCA, CIMT – Chief Operating Officer, Pathway Health After working with skilled nursing providers and leadership teams across the country, one thing has become very clear to me: strong survey performance is rarely the result of what a facility does in the few weeks before survey. It is...
Five-Star Changes: The Bar Has Moved—Has Your Organization?
Insights from Scott Heichel, RN, RAC-MT, RAC-CTA, DNS-CT, IPCO, QCP, ICC, AAPACN Master Teacher – Director of Reimbursement and Education, Pathway Health Throughout my years of working with skilled nursing providers across the country, I have seen Five-Star ratings become far more than a number displayed on Care Compare. They influence how consumers and...
Regulatory Compliance: Documentation Accuracy Is Moving to the Center of Survey Readiness
Insights from Colleen Toebe, MSN, CWCN, RAC-MTA, RAC-MT, DNS MT, Vice President of Clinical Services Regulatory compliance in skilled nursing continues to evolve, but one message is becoming increasingly clear: documentation accuracy is no longer just a back-office requirement—it is a core indicator of whether care and services are being delivered as intended. As facilities...
Section GG: Where Functional Accuracy, Quality Outcomes, and Reimbursement Meet
Insights from Scott Heichel, RN, RAC-MT, RAC-CTA, DNS-CT, IPCO, QCP, ICC – Director of Reimbursement and Education, Pathway Health Section GG is much more than another section of the MDS. It tells the resident’s functional story — how the individual performs with self-care and mobility, what progress is being made, and...
Survey Readiness Is a Team Sport: Preparing Your Nursing Home or Assisted Living Community Before Surveyors Arrive
Insights from Colleen Toebe, MSN, CWCN, RAC-MTA, RAC-MT, DNS MT – Vice President of Clinical Services Whether you lead a skilled nursing facility or an assisted living community, survey readiness should never begin when surveyors walk through the door. The strongest organizations I visit across the country have one thing in common: they treat readiness...
Company News: Pathway Health Acquires Pope & Conner Consulting, Inc.
Pathway Health is pleased to announce the acquisition of Pope & Conner Consulting, Inc., a highly respected provider of business office consulting services for hospitals, skilled nursing facilities, home health, hospice and assisted living organizations. The addition of Pope & Conner Consulting further strengthens Pathway Health’s depth of services and expands its ability to support...
Advance Care Planning for Residents with Dementia
Kathleen T. Unroe, MD – Cornelius and Yvonne Pettinga Professor of Medicine, Research Scientist, Indiana University Center for Aging Research Susan Hickman, PhD, Geropsychologist – Director and Senior Investigator, Investigative Science Division, Kaiser Permanente Washington Health Research Institute Advance Care Planning (ACP) takes on added complexity when supporting individuals living with dementia. In post-acute and...
When a Key Leader Leaves: Stabilizing the Moment and Strengthening the Future
When a key leader leaves a nursing home, assisted living, or senior living organization, the impact is immediate. Operations can feel uncertain, team members may look for direction, and important priorities such as clinical quality, regulatory readiness, staffing, resident experience, and financial performance cannot pause while recruitment takes place. During these transitions, organizations need more...
Leadership Strategy Is the Difference Between Accident Prevention and F689 Citations
Insights from Colleen Toebe, MSN, CWCN, RAC-MTA, RAC-MT, DNS MT – Vice President of Clinical Services As I work with nursing home leaders across the country, one thing is clear: accident prevention is no longer just a clinical priority. It is a leadership, quality, risk management, and survey readiness priority.For Nursing Home Administrators and Directors...
Navigating the New Antipsychotic Quality Measure: Compliance, Coding, and Five-Star Impact
The January 2026 CMS revisions to the Long-Stay Antipsychotic Quality Measure—now incorporating Medicare Fee-for-Service, Medicaid, and Medicare Advantage claims—create a more expansive and sensitive methodology that can trigger the measure even when antipsychotics were not administered during the MDS look-back period. This shift, combined with CMS concerns around underreporting and inaccurate diagnosis coding, places heightened pressure...
