LTSS webinar – Culture Change in Long-Term Care, May 25

Nominations due for RWJF Award for Health Equity

LeadingAge is now accepting nominations for the 2022 Robert Wood Johnson Foundation (RWJF) Award for Health Equity. Nominees should be individuals or 2-person teams who increased access to services and supports that enabled vulnerable elders to lead healthy lives.

Awardees will receive $3,000; coverage of registration and travel to the 2022 LeadingAge Annual Meeting & EXPO in Denver, CO; and an invitation to a recognition event.

Nominations may be submitted online and are due by 12 am Eastern on June 17.

Dementia and brain health

Cultural Awareness: Indigenous Peoples & Dementia, a podcast on dementia and brain health in Native communities, is available online.

Part of Banner Health’s Dementia Untangled series, the podcast highlights some cultural considerations that can influence outreach to increase awareness of dementia in Native communities.

It also mentions strategies to improve care for family members with dementia who live at home.

COVID-19 and transmission in nursing homes

CMS recently revised the following memoranda to reflect newer guidance for preventing COVID-19 transmission in nursing homes:

• QSO-20-38-NH (PDF, 399 KB, 12 pp) on COVID-19 testing requirements
• QSO-20-39-NH (PDF, 541 KB, 16 pp) on nursing home visitation

In both documents, CMS deleted the term “unvaccinated” and replaced the term “vaccinated” with the phrase “up-to-date with all recommended COVID-19 vaccine doses.” Notably, “up-to-date” is defined as having received any booster dose(s) for which a person is eligible.

In QSO-20-38-NH, CMS updated the recommendations for testing individuals within 90 days after recovering from COVID-19. Facility staff who are up-to-date with the recommended vaccine doses are not required to undergo routine COVID testing.

And in QSO-20-39-NH, CMS updated visitor screening and quarantine criteria. Residents and visitors who are up-to-date with the recommended vaccine doses are subject to fewer restrictions on how and where in-person visits occur.

Have questions for our presenters? Let us know before the webinar by emailing ltssinfo@kauffmaninc.com.

Register now.

Translating recommendations into action steps

Last fall, the Recognize, Assist, Include, Support, & Engage (RAISE) Family Caregiving Advisory Council issued extensive recommendations to better support family caregivers.

To help translate the recommendations into action steps, various stakeholders that work with family caregivers were invited to participate in a series of key informant interviews and listening sessions. Building a National Strategy to Support Family Caregivers (PDF, 407 KB, 36 pp) reviews findings from those interviews and sessions.

Published by the LeadingAge LTSS Center @UMass Boston and Community Catalyst’s Center for Consumer Engagement in Health Innovation, the report lists suggested actions that would support the following goals:

1. Increasing awareness of family caregivers
2. Engaging family caregivers as partners in health care and LTSS
3. Improving access to services and supports for family caregivers
4. Supporting financial and workplace security for family caregivers
5. Generating research, data, and evidence-informed practices

The report also includes relevant stakeholder quotes to emphasize key points.

Tribal LTSS resource center

Deadline: June 6
Learn more about the tribal LTSS resource center funding opportunity

The Administration on Community Living has extended the deadline to apply for funds to support a national resource center that will help tribes develop culturally appropriate LTSS. The resource center will:

• Recruit and train navigators to assist tribes
• Develop a practical and hands-on toolkit for tribes to implement LTSS

One new cooperative agreement of up to $250,000 will be awarded for a 5-year performance period.

Native American Elder Justice Initiative

Deadline: June 21
Learn more about the Native American Justice Initiative funding opportunity

The Native American Elder Justice Initiative will address the need for more culturally appropriate information and community education materials on elder abuse, neglect, and exploitation in Indian Country.

Activities carried out under this initiative will accomplish at least one of the following goals:

• Develop culturally specific materials for tribes
• Gather and disseminate information on best practices in Indian Country
• Provide examples of model tribal codes to address maltreatment of elders

One cooperative agreement of up to $300,000 will be awarded for a 5-year performance period.

ASA webinar on dementia

June 9, 1–2 pm Eastern
Register for the June 9 webinar

Join the American Society on Aging (ASA) for 6 Key Elements to Understanding Dementia, a webinar on managing the unique behaviors associated with dementia.

Designed to help prevent caregiver burnout, the webinar will highlight the importance of person-centered care. It will also help caregivers better understand how to choose appropriate activities for people with dementia.

AFA webinar on care for LGBTQIA+ people with dementia

June 15, 12–2 pm Eastern
Register for the June 15 webinar

Plan to attend a webinar aimed at helping caregivers provide high-quality trauma-informed care to LGBTQIA+ people with dementia. Hosted by the Alzheimer’s Foundation of America (AFA), the webinar will cover the:

• Impact of historical trauma on health outcomes
• Importance of inclusive dementia care
• Role of stigma as a potential barrier to care