A troubling statistic sits at the center of today’s conversation: 43% of nursing home falls with major injury and hospitalization went unreported through the MDS. We dig into what that means for resident safety, survey outcomes, quality measures, and reimbursement—and how to fix it fast. Joining me is Janeen Earwood, a physical therapist with four decades of experience in long‑term care, rehab leadership, and analytics. Together, we connect the dots between OIG’s findings, CMS’s plans to validate MDS entries with Medicare and Medicaid claims, and the operational steps facilities can take to prevent harm while protecting data integrity.
We focus on how nursing facilities can reduce avoidable emergency room transfers and hospital readmissions by finding clinical changes sooner and acting on them consistently. We connect resident safety, family decision-making, and CMS quality measures to practical systems like dashboards, structured assessments, and ongoing education.…
