Deconstructing the sausage - Analyzing provisions for therapy assistant payment differentials
It is commonly stated that the process of legislating is like making sausage - you generally don ' t want to see how it happens.The therapy community was recently disappointed with the announcement that facilities would have to code their Medicare B claims with a modifier and would receive payment at 85% of the standard rate whenever that therapy was delivered in whole or in part by an OTA or PTA. This is hard coded into legislation - and is not a rule or regulation. For reference, this is included in the legislation that has been called "The Bipartisan Budget Act of 2018."The addition of this requirement was i...
Source: ABC Therapeutics Occupational Therapy Weblog - February 10, 2018 Category: Occupational Health Tags: health insurance OT practice Source Type: blogs
This week's timeline for the #StopTheCap effort
Thanks to the efforts of the American Occupational Therapy Association, beginning in 2022 occupational and physical therapy assistant Medicare reimbursement will be cut by 15%. Oh, and they solved the cap problem for PT and speech therapy by doing so.Per a CBO report from February 6th, 1.2 billion of the 6.45 billion cost to repeal the therapy cap would be offset by the reimbursement changes.Let ' s get the background here. Therapy caps have been in place for many years, and for nearly every year there has been an exceptions process that worked around the cap. This was a bigger problem for PT and speech, ...
Source: ABC Therapeutics Occupational Therapy Weblog - February 9, 2018 Category: Occupational Health Tags: health insurance OT practice Source Type: blogs
AOTA and ACOTE plan for credential inflation receives national attention
This article in the Washington Examiner should be a crystal clear sign to the new incoming elected officials of the AOTA Board of Directors, and should also be a serious red flag to any person thinking of applying for their now-open position as Executive Director. This is a problem within the occupational therapy profession that must be addressed. (Source: ABC Therapeutics Occupational Therapy Weblog)
Source: ABC Therapeutics Occupational Therapy Weblog - February 2, 2018 Category: Occupational Health Tags: OT Education OT practice Source Type: blogs
Analyzing the AOTA/ACOTE Data Dump, Part Two: Some Stakeholders Are More Equal Than Others
Please refer to this earlier post for background reading.According to the ' ACOTE Entry-Level Task Force Report to ACOTE in December, 2014 (p. 381-393), some stakeholders appear to be ' more equal ' than others.The notion of being ' more equal ' is a reference to Animal Farm and the pigs who ran the farm. They famously stated that " All animals are equal, but some animals are more equal than others. " In simple terms, the ruling elites of Animal Farm made claims that everyone is equal, but then we discovered that they provided benefits and power and privileges only to their elite comrades.What privileges are ha...
Source: ABC Therapeutics Occupational Therapy Weblog - November 24, 2017 Category: Occupational Health Tags: OT Education Source Type: blogs
Analyzing the AOTA/ACOTE Data Dump, Part One
Today AOTA/ACOTE released 897 pages of information,stating In response to requests for background information on ACOTE ’s decision on the entry-level-degree requirement, we are sharing this workbook (see link below). The workbook includes a timeline of events and discussions undertaken by the Council leading to publication of the 2017 mandate statement. It also includes reports, surveys, open hearings, and publica tions reviewed by the members of the Council in coming to their decision. These materials support both the pros and cons of the entry-level doctorate mandate. The Council took all of these materials into a...
Source: ABC Therapeutics Occupational Therapy Weblog - November 23, 2017 Category: Occupational Health Tags: OT Education OT practice Source Type: blogs
How Exercise Can Boost your Mental Health
You're reading How Exercise Can Boost your Mental Health, originally posted on Pick the Brain | Motivation and Self Improvement. If you're enjoying this, please visit our site for more inspirational articles.
In an age where pharmaceutical drugs dominate television advertisements (the average US television viewer sees nine pharmaceutical ads per day (C. Lee Ventola, 2011)), it’s not surprising that the overwhelming majority of the population are looking for quick fixes to often complex problems. After all, there’s a pill for almost anything these days. But one of the most time-tested and effective mental health boos...
Source: PickTheBrain | Motivation and Self Improvement - November 18, 2017 Category: Consumer Health News Authors: James Katz Tags: depression featured health and fitness psychology self improvement anxiety exercise mental health pickthebrain stop depression Source Type: blogs
Part Three: Academic Leadership Council Meeting, October 2017
Part One: Academic Leadership Council Meeting, October 2017 posted here.Part Two: Academic Leadership Council Meeting, October 2017 posted here.This is Part Three of a multi-part report about the Academic Leadership Council meeting that was held in Dallas Texas on Thursday October 26, 2017.+++During the opportunity for conference participants to address ACOTE/AOTA a question was asked about the evidence used to inform the ACOTE Visioning Taskforce. This is an ad hoc group that was reportedly created by ACOTE to further assess the current healthcare and educational environment. The goals of the Visioning Taskforce wer...
Source: ABC Therapeutics Occupational Therapy Weblog - November 8, 2017 Category: Occupational Health Source Type: blogs
Part Two: Academic Leadership Council Meeting, October 2017
Part One: Academic Leadership Council Meeting, October 2017 posted here.+++The morning meeting continued following President Lamb ' s remarks.Paul Grace from NBCOT followed with a presentation that provided an update on certification issues. The (ultimate) pass rate for OTR candidates is around 98% and for COTA candidates is around 88%. Thefirst time pass rate is lower: approximating the mid 80%s to the 90%s with obvious variation from program to program. There was brief discussion about what states many new certificants are graduating from and where they are seeking their licensing. None of this in...
Source: ABC Therapeutics Occupational Therapy Weblog - October 29, 2017 Category: Occupational Health Source Type: blogs
Part One: Academic Leadership Council Meeting, October 2017
This is Part One of a multi-part report about the Academic Leadership Council meeting that was held in Dallas Texas on Thursday October 26, 2017.+++Yesterday I participated in the Academic Leadership Council meeting in Dallas. I have not participated in this meeting previously, except for perhaps a presentation I assisted with for NBCOT some years ago. It was definitely my first participation associated with being in a program director role.One of my persistent concerns about these meetings is that they are not generally open for public scrutiny, and there is little reporting to everyday practitioners out of thes...
Source: ABC Therapeutics Occupational Therapy Weblog - October 27, 2017 Category: Occupational Health Source Type: blogs
Catch 22s and Escape Hatches: Practical Problems and Conceptual Musings on Patient Engagement in Health Professions Education
By: Paula Rowland, OT Reg (Ont.), PhD
P. Rowland is assistant professor and scientist, Department of Occupational Science and Occupational Therapy, University of Toronto (UT) Faculty of Medicine, Toronto, Ontario, Canada. She is also cross-appointed researcher, Wilson Centre, UT, Toronto, Ontario, Canada.
It was the idea of the “Catch 22” that caught my attention. I first saw the explanation in an article by Learmonth and colleagues in 2009.1 In their article, they talked about a persistent dilemma in patient engagement programs. These are the kinds of programs where patients are asked to use their experiences to help ...
Source: Academic Medicine Blog - October 26, 2017 Category: Universities & Medical Training Authors: Guest Author Tags: Featured Guest Perspective patient engagement patient representation patients Source Type: blogs
What is the Difference Between a Nursing Home and an Assisted Living Facility?
How is a nursing home different from an assisted living? What in the world is “Memory Care Facility”? How can I figure out which is best for my loved one? How are they different?By Rita JablonskiAlzheimer's Reading RoomFamilies who are searching for the optimal place for their loved ones with dementia now have an almost overwhelming set of choices.Assisted living facilities are generally described as congregate residential settings that provide 24-hour supervision, at least 2 meals daily, and an array of personal and health-related services.6 Reasons Why You Might Have to Put Someone with Dementia in a Memory Care Faci...
Source: Alzheimer's Reading Room, The - October 25, 2017 Category: Neurology Authors: rtdemarco at gmail.com Tags: alzheimer care assisted living care homes for elderly with dementia care of dementia patients dementia care memory care facility nursing home Source Type: blogs
Study: Transcranial Direct Current Stimulation (tDCS) can reduce fatigue in patients with Multiple Sclerosis (MS)
Conclusion: tDCS is a potential treatment for MS-related fatigue.
The Study in Context
Transcranial Direct Current Stimulation (tDCS) as depression treatment: much promise, some DIY risks
Occupational therapy study: Improving processing speed seen as key target to help patients with multiple sclerosis
10 Neurotechnologies About to Transform Brain Enhancement and Brain Health
Join the 2017 SharpBrains Virtual Summit: Brain Enhancement in the Digital Age (December 5-7th, 2017) (Source: SharpBrains)
Source: SharpBrains - October 6, 2017 Category: Neuroscience Authors: SharpBrains Tags: Cognitive Neuroscience Health & Wellness Technology brain-stimulation electrical brain stimulation fatigue multiple-sclerosis non-invasive over-the-counter rehabilitation tDCS telerehabilitation tES Transcranial-direct-current-st Source Type: blogs
Back to basics about psychosocial factors and pain – iv
Part of the definition of pain is that it is “a sensory and emotional experience” – in other words, emotions of the negative kind are integral to the experience of pain. Is it any wonder that poets and authors have written so eloquently about the anguish of unrelieved pain? As I write this, I’ve been pondering the way “psychosocial” has been used when discussing pain, as if those factors aren’t experienced by “normal” people, as if the way we feel about pain and the way people who struggle with their pain feel are two entirely different things.
Chris Eccleston, someone ...
Source: HealthSkills Weblog - September 24, 2017 Category: Anesthesiology Authors: adiemusfree Tags: ACT - Acceptance & Commitment Therapy Chronic pain Coping strategies Occupational therapy Pain conditions Physiotherapy Professional topics Psychology Research Science in practice Therapeutic approaches biopsychosocial Clinical rea Source Type: blogs
Reflecting on the Links Between Literacy and Dementia
Each year as International Alzheimer’s Day on September 21 (today) follows closely after International Literacy Day on September 8, I think about dementia and literacy. Specifically, I consider how people with cognitive impairments may—in addition to more widely publicized social deficits—also lose their ability to read. I also think of adults who are illiterate and how that might relate to the onset of dementia.
As a speech-language pathologist who consults in neuropsychology at Alzheimer’s Day Care Center in Rabat, Morocco, I wanted to take advantage of the calendar connection linking these international aware...
Source: American Speech-Language-Hearing Association (ASHA) Press Releases - September 21, 2017 Category: Speech-Language Pathology Authors: Mohamed Taiebine Tags: Speech-Language Pathology Alzheimer's dementia Language Disorders literacy Source Type: blogs
Injuries from wearing heavy backpacks are not common in school-aged children
Conclusion:Wearing heavy backpacks is NOT a significant cause of injury in children. The incidence of these injuries is actually so small that the CPSC is unable to provide statistical estimates about these injuries.A child may receive an injury from a backpack - but the most likely cause of that injury is tripping over backpacks, swinging backpacks around unsafely, or being hit by a child who has thrown a backpack.For the rare incident of a heavy backpack causing an orthopedic injury to a child, nearly all reported cases are for middle and high school aged children. If OTs are going to dedicate resources to inju...
Source: ABC Therapeutics Occupational Therapy Weblog - September 13, 2017 Category: Occupational Health Tags: evidence-based practice injury prevention school-based practice Source Type: blogs
