';
Tags Posts tagged with "LTC RISE"

LTC RISE

A message from the Department of Health:

We are writing to inform you that the Pennsylvania Department of Health will no longer be able to provide short-term crisis staffing support or staffing support for test swabbing missions as of January 14, 2023. This decision has been made due to the exhaustion of funds designated for this purpose. We want to assure you that we will do our best to assist with a smooth transition.

The Department remains committed to providing opportunities to build long-term resilience into long-term care facilities that includes bolstering Pennsylvania’s long‑term care workforce development and retention.

We strongly encourage you to engage with your local LTC RISE partner. LTC RISE will continue to provide COVID-19 outbreak response consultative support. LTC RISE will also continue to support quality improvement project opportunities, including projects focused on workforce development and retention.

We also remind you that the Long-Term Care Quality Investment Pilot (QIP) is another opportunity which can benefit skilled nursing facilities, personal care homes, assisted living facilities, and intermediate care facilities. We urge facilities to apply for funds to invest in key areas that include staff development and retention. Applications for QIP are due Saturday, December 31, 2022, by 1:30 pm.

Thank you for your continued efforts protecting Pennsylvania’s most vulnerable residents and for your understanding and cooperation during this time.

The Office of Long-Term Living (OLTL) has been sending reminders to personal care homes, assisted living facilities, and skilled nursing facilities regarding the benefits of Long-Term Care Resiliency Infrastructure Supports & Empowerment (LTC-RISE). Please see the latest reminder below:

Over the last several months, the LTC-RISE partners have been reaching out to skilled nursing facilities, personal care homes, and assisted living facilities with various quality improvement projects funded by their partnership with the Pennsylvania Department of Health (DOH). By completing a needs assessment with you at your facility, the LTC-RISE partner can work with you to identify and support areas of improvement that will strengthen your facility’s ability to respond to any future health crisis at no financial cost to you. Some of the areas they can assist with include infection prevention and control, emergency preparedness, facilitating staffing contracts, use of health technology, and more! Please see the letter for additional information on this initiative for personal care homes and assisted living facilities, as well as skilled nursing facilities.

Many of you have already taken advantage of the opportunity to participate in any or all of these programs, but for those of you who have not, I encourage you to reach out directly to your local LTC-RISE partner to find out about how to enroll and be included in this and future opportunities that may become available.  

Please go to the DOH LTC-RISE website to read more about this opportunity, see which region serves your facility based on county, and see contact information to find out more about enrolling with our LTC-Rise partners.

The Pennsylvania Department of Health (DOH) has announced a new initiative to assist long-term care facilities (which includes skilled nursing facilities, personal care homes, assisted living residences, etc.) respond to COVID-19, recover, and improve resiliency.

This new initiative, the Long-Term Care Resiliency, Infrastructure Supports, and Empowerment (LTC RISE) is funded by a federal grant provided by the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), which began on January 1, 2022, replacing the Regional Congregate Care Assistance Teams (RCATs), whose contract expired December 1, 2021.

With LTC RISE, these long-term care facilities may take advantage of improvement project opportunities in the following areas:

  • Implementing infection prevention and control and emergency preparedness best practices to enhance delivery of resident-centered care;
  • Building a sustainable outbreak response operation construct that meets the facility’s needs; and
  • Promoting professional development and a resilient long-term care facility workforce.

LTC RISE will continue to offer the following RCAT prevention and response support to LTC RISE-eligible facilities:

  • A dedicated phone line with 24/7 access, including designated office hours for inquiries, consultations, and follow-up calls from long-term care facilities; and
  • Consultation and technical assistance, assessment and feedback, training, and incident management coaching.

The LTC RISE program is a partnership among DOH, Department of Human Services (DHS), Pennsylvania Emergency Management Association (PEMA), and the following healthcare organizations that have established partnerships covering six regions across Pennsylvania to support preventive and emergent assistance for LTCFs:

  • Penn Medicine, in partnership with Temple Health;
  • The Pennsylvania State University;
  • LECOM Health; and
  • AMI Expeditionary Healthcare.