Are You Prepared for the New Long-Term Care Staffing Requirements?
As new HHS staffing rules take effect, how will you monitor your staffing levels?
New regulations from the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) establish minimum long-term care staffing requirements for residents in long-term care (LTC) facilities receiving Medicare and Medicaid funding. Some of these regulations are already active, with others being gradually implemented in the coming months and years.
These regulations require LTC facilities to provide a minimum number of care hours by nurses and nurse aides for each resident. Additionally, care hours must be documented in a manner that is auditable and readily accessible to state and federal inspectors. Failure to meet these standards could result in delayed reimbursements or fines.
The Challenge: Efficiently Tracking Care Hours
How will you track and report care hours to inspectors without overburdening your staff with extra paperwork or manual data entry?
With over 20 years of experience in Fire/EMS and Healthcare Operations, I’ve seen firsthand the challenges healthcare professionals face. Balancing primary responsibilities with additional tasks often detracts from patient care. Whether on the front lines or in the back office, time is always in short supply. But what if technology could help reclaim that time? Could we use IoT sensors to reduce administrative tasks, allowing nurses, doctors, and aides to focus more on patient care?
Traditionally, tracking patient care required manual logs or significant investments in hardware and software. However, new Bluetooth sensors, combined with simple smartphone apps, can automate much of the tracking and reporting required by HHS—without costly new hardware. This not only helps with regulatory compliance but also enhances patient care.
Background on the Long-Term Care Staffing Requirements
The Biden-Harris Administration proposed new healthcare staffing rules in September 2023, with final rules released in April 2024 and published in the Federal Register in May 2024. The regulations, which began to take effect in June, are being phased in over several years, with minimum standards (and the required tracking for compliance) starting in August 2024.
The key requirements are:
- Each resident must receive 3.48 hours of nursing care per day.
- This care must include 0.55 hours from a Registered Nurse and 2.45 hours from a nurse aide per resident per day.
- A nurse must be on duty 24/7 in the facility.
While ensuring a nurse is always on staff is straightforward, tracking the precise amount of care each resident receives daily presents significant technical and administrative challenges.
The Financial Impact of Noncompliance
Even small errors in calculating care hours can lead to significant financial losses for LTC facilities or result in wasted taxpayer dollars. Poor or incomplete record-keeping can either leave money on the table or lead to overbilling Medicare/Medicaid. Noncompliance with the new staffing rules could result in costly fines or lost reimbursement dollars.
Automating Care Tracking: A Smarter Approach
Manual tracking methods, like pen-and-paper logs or time logging apps, are prone to error. Staff may forget to log interactions or delay entries until memories fade. This not only adds to their workload but also compromises the accuracy of the data, making it difficult to compile and audit.
Automated solutions using RFID sensors are available, but they require costly infrastructure and custom solutions. RFID systems are neither realistic nor cost-effective for most LTCs. A better alternative is leveraging off-the-shelf hardware, existing network infrastructure, and a simple smartphone app that automates tracking and logging.
The solution we propose is a fully automated, auditable system that integrates seamlessly with staff workflows—requiring no more effort than carrying a smartphone. This system should not demand significant investments in new hardware, extensive training, or IT customizations.
A Solution Based on Proven Technologies
Bluetooth sensors have become smaller, cheaper, and longer-lasting, making them an ideal choice for tracking patient care to show how your organization meets the new long-term care staffing requirements. Their key advantage is their compatibility with smartphones, laptops, and tablets—devices already in use by most staff. This means minimal additional hardware and straightforward configuration.
Here’s how the system works:
- Deployment: Small, thumb-sized, Bluetooth sensors are placed with patients (in their binders, attached to their beds, or as wearables). These sensors are unobtrusive, and can be quickly distributed throughout the facility.
- Staff Integration: Staff install a simple app on their phones that automatically connects to the sensors. The app requires no configuration or training and works only within the facility, ensuring privacy outside of work hours.
- Data Transmission: The app uses the existing wireless network or cellular data to securely send information to the cloud.
- Automated Reporting: Data is transmitted in real-time to administrative systems, where it is automatically tabulated. The system can be configured to account for variations in care proximity, ensuring accurate tracking without additional effort from staff.
This fully automated process eliminates the need for manual log entries, reducing errors and freeing up staff time. Field trials, as discussed in my previous blog post—From Paperwork to Patient Work: Leveraging Technology for Better Healthcare Skill Mix Analysis—demonstrated the effectiveness of this approach in tracking healthcare workers accurately and cost-effectively.
Why Choose Luna XIO?
Luna XIO has pioneered the use of Bluetooth sensors and software-based gateways for tracking, recording, and transmitting data across various industries, including healthcare. Our proven technology can be deployed in less than a week with minimal training, simplifying the administrative burden and enhancing care delivery.
To discover the benefits firsthand, you can book a Luna XIO demo here.
