In an effort to support our members with the most updated information on COVID-19 we developed this resource page to easily access current CDC information and other resources to assist you professionally and personally. We will continue to update this page with more information as it becomes available and welcome your input as we navigate through this situation.
COVID-19 Resources
Resources for APRNs Working With Older Adults
General
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CDC General Resources
- “Living document,” expected to be updated often as new clinical data accrue. A panel of U.S. physicians, statisticians, and other experts has developed treatment guidelines for coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19). These guidelines, intended for healthcare providers, are based on published and preliminary data and the clinical expertise of the panelists, many of whom are frontline clinicians caring for patients during the rapidly evolving pandemic. The guidelines are posted online and will be updated often as new data are published in peer-reviewed scientific literature and other authoritative information emerges.
- The Facts
- Prevention & Treatment
- Community Prevention: Home, School, Work & Healthcare Settings
- Symptoms
- Transmission and How it Spreads
- Information for Health Care Providers
- Related Stigma
- Higher Risk for Older Adults
- Caring for Patients
- Clinical Care Guidelines
- Healthcare Control Guidelines
- Information for Healthcare Facilities and LTC Providers
- Coronavirus Disease (COVID-19) Resources for Older Adults, Family Caregivers and Health Care Providers
- Strategies to Optimize N95 Respirators
- Implementing Home Care Patients Not Requiring Hospitalization
- FAQs
- Risk Communication Toolkit for Healthcare Facilities
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Marriott Community Caregiver Program
Marriott's Community Caregiver Program offers medical workers and support staff special rates at select Marriott hotels as a way to stay close to the hospitals and government buildings where they are assisting with COVID-19 response efforts.
Advance Care Planning
ER/Acute Care
Home/Outpatient Care
Long-Term Care
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CMS 1812 Waiver Information
SNF care without a 3-day inpatient hospital stay will be covered for beneficiaries who experience dislocations or are otherwise affected by the emergency, such as those who are (1) evacuated from a nursing home in the emergency area, (2) discharged from a hospital (in the emergency or receiving locations) in order to provide care to more seriously ill patients, or (3) need SNF care as a result ofthe emergency, regardless of whether that individual was in a hospital or nursing home prior to the emergency.
Therefore, we are also utilizing the authority under section l8l2(Ð of the Act to provide renewed coverage for extended care services which will not first require starting a new spell of illness for such beneficiaries, who can then receive up to an additional 100 days of SNF Part A coverage for care needed as a result of the above-captioned emergency. This policy will apply only for those beneficiaries who have been delayed or prevented by the emergency itself from commencing or completing the process of ending their current benefit period and renewing their SNF benefits that would have occurred under normal circumstances.
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CMS Quality Reporting Requirement
The Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) has announced unprecedented relief for the clinicians, providers, and facilities participating in Medicare quality reporting programs. Specifically, CMS announced it is granting exceptions from reporting requirements and extensions for clinicians and providers participating in Medicare quality reporting programs with respect to upcoming measure reporting and data submission for those programs. The action comes as part of the Trump Administration's response to the 2019 Novel Coronavirus (COVID-19).
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CMS Survey Changes & Prioritization
- CMS will suspend surveys and revisits for 3 wks from March 20, 2020 to limit exposure of LTC residents to possible COVID-19 exposure.
- CMS also provided further guidance to nursing homes regarding their requirement to development of facility specific COVID-19 Infection Control Prevention Policy & Procedures.
- For non-Immediate Jeopardy related onsite surveys that are currently in process, survey teams were instructed to end the survey and exit the facility
- New protocols will see federal and state surveyors conduct targeted infection
- control surveys of providers identified together with CDC and the Department of Health and Human Services Assistant Secretary for Preparedness and Response.
- Providers are to perform self-assessments on infection control using a new surveyor tool. "Use the COVID-19 Infection Control Focused Survey tool contained in the CMS memo (developed with CDC) to perform self-assessment of your facility's Infection Control plan," CMS said. "This document may be requested by surveyors if an onsite investigation takes place."
Personal Health & Wellness
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Apps and Recordings
- Aura (Meditation app)
- Calm (Recorded meditations)
- Headspace App (Free resources for healthcare providers)
- InsightTimer (Recorded meditations)
- Sanvello App (Self-management resources and free support services)
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Emotional Support If you are experiencing anxiety or stress related to COVID-19, Optum has a free Emotional Support Help Line at 1-866-342-6892.