Caring for Residents with Behavioral Changes – Nursing Assistant In-Service Education

Listen to this article Your browser does not support the audio element. Aggressive behavior in residents is rarely random. It is often a response to an underlying cause or unmet need. To respond effectively, nursing staff must look beyond the behavior itself and consider the factors that may be contributing …

Beyond the Behavior: Understanding and Managing Challenging Behaviors in Nursing Homes

Listen to this article Your browser does not support the audio element. A newly admitted resident with dementia exhibits some challenging behaviors: exit seeking, refusing care, and lashing out at caregivers when approached. Helping this resident has become so problematic that some staff suggested sending him to the hospital for …

Managing Behavioral Health Issues in Nursing Homes featuring Michelle Stuercke, RN, MSN, DNP, MPA, LNHA, QCP

In this LTC DON Chat podcast episode, Amy Stewart, MSN, RN, DNS-MT, QCP-MT, RAC-MT, RAC-MTA, chief nursing officer for AAPACN, and Michelle Stuercke, RN, MSN, DNP, MPA, LNHA, QCP, chief clinical officer with TCM consulting and management, discuss how to manage behavioral health issues in the nursing home.

Food Is Medicine Toolkit

New Online Toolkit Helps Clinicians Put Food is Medicine into Practice Resource offers practical guidance for all aspects of integrating nutrition-based care into health systems Press release: Newswise — A new online resource aims to help health care providers turn a growing body of research on nutrition and health into effective care for …

TIP: CDC Updates Clinical Guidance for C. diff Prevention

The Centers for Disease Control & Prevention (CDC) updated its Clinical Guidance for C. diff Infection Prevention in Acute Care Facilities on May 13, 2026. The guidance emphasizes rapid isolation and contact precautions for residents with suspected or confirmed C. diff infection (CDI), including the use of dedicated equipment and …

Sepsis: Nurse Documentation Training Aid

Starting Oct. 1, 2024, additional supporting documentation is required to capture a diagnosis of sepsis at I2100, Septicemia on the MDS. Nurse assessment coordinators can use the AAPACN Sepsis: Nurse Documentation Training Aid to provide guidance to nurses on assessment and documentation needs when a resident is diagnosed with sepsis. …

Falls MDS Coding: Why the DNS Should Get Involved—and How to Do It

Listen to this article Your browser does not support the audio element. In September 2025, the Office of Inspector General (OIG) rang the alarm bell on MDS coding inaccuracies involving falls with major injury, and the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) took actions that every director of nursing …

Psychotropic Medication Audit Form

This tool is designed to help facilities ensure the safe, appropriate, and compliant use of psychotropic medications. It guides staff through a structured review of each resident’s medication, including diagnosis support, informed consent, behavior documentation, non-pharmalogical interventions, gradual dose reductions, and care plan alignment. By using this audit regularly, facilities …

Incentive Spirometry: A Win-Win for Residents, Nursing Teams, and PDPM Accuracy

Listen to this article Your browser does not support the audio element. Article contributed by AAPACN Solution Provider Limitlessli By Mary-Beth Newell, RN, BSN, MS, SVP of Clinical Reimbursement at Limitlessli In skilled nursing facilities, the most effective clinical interventions are not always the most complex. Often, they are the …

TIP: QIO Provides Weather Preparedness Guide for Severe Weather

The Quality Improvement Organizations (QIO) has developed a Severe Weather Preparedness Guide to help healthcare facilities prepare for and respond to severe weather events, including tornadoes, flooding, severe thunderstorms, hail, and late-season winter storms. This guide highlights key operational risks such as supply chain disruptions, utility outages, staffing shortages, and …