A Community to Advance Excellence in Long Term Care Nursing
FREE Education Programs
Free Webinars to Aid Elders in Expressing Life Story
This I Believe is an international project engaging people in writing and sharing essays describing the core values that guide their daily lives. More than 90,000 of these essays, written by people from all walks of life, are archived here on their website, heard on public radio, chronicled through their books, and featured in weekly podcasts. The project is based on the popular 1950s radio series of the same name hosted by Edward R. Murrow. This project offers a great opportunity to engage residents in reflecting on their lives and expressing their core beliefs. This I Believe will offer free webinars for staff who are interested in teaching residents to write and share their personal philosophies on 9/28/10 and 10/6/10. To learn more visit ; to register for the free webinars visit
Free Webinar on September 21, 2010 Assessment and Treatment of Lower Extremity Ulcers: A Focus on Long Term Care
Participate in this Audio Conference from your home or office!
Time of Program: 2:15 PM EDT - 3:15 PM EDT
Faculty: Jeri Ann Lundgren, RN, CWS, CWCN
Learning Objectives:
Distinguish pressure ulcers from lower extremity ulcers
Define the characteristics of venous, arterial and peripheral neuropathy/diabetic ulcers
Describe effective strategies to manage lower extremity wounds.
Many clinicians have difficulty differentiating lower extremity ulcers (arterial, venous, or neuropathy/diabetic) from pressure ulcers. If a lower extremity ulcer is mistaken as a pressure ulcer it can lead to improper treatment of these areas and skew your pressure ulcer rates. This session will help clinicians differentiate lower extremity ulcers from pressure ulcers and provide appropriate assessment and treatment of arterial, venous and peripheral neuropathy/diabetic ulcers.
Continuing Education: NURSING, AA/CBDM (dietary managers), ADA/CDR (dietitians), and NAB/NCERS (long term care administrators).
For more information To register
Whitepaper: Parkinson's Disease in Long Term Care
A good overview of Parkinson's disease and the challenges of caring for residents with this condition is provided in this paper. To access, click here.
Free Whitepaper: Legal Issues for CNAs
Crossroads Hospice has produced a good resource to help CNAs understand the legal risks faced in their work and how to minimize them. The paper can be downloaded free at
Free Webinar on Operational Strategies for Converting to the New MDS 3.0 Assessment
Wednesday, June 9, 2010 1:00 PM - 2:00 PM EDT
The new MDS 3.0 is scheduled to be implemented on October 1, 2010. During this 1-hour session, we will address operational strategies for converting to this new assessment.
Topics Covered Include: Changes in the new assessment that will affect your data collection process Hot spots" that will affect quality and reimbursement The effect of the MDS 3.0 on other processes including the RUGs system, state Medicaid system, Care Planning, and Quality Measure/Quality Indicators
Our presenter will also be taking part in an interactive Q&A session, so come prepared with your questions on MDS 3.0.
Featured Speaker: Leah Klusch, Founder and Executive Director, Alliance Training Center
REGISTER FOR THIS EXCITING EVENT TODAY!
Multidisciplinary Competencies Representing nursing, AALTCN was part of a workgroup convened by the American Geriatrics Society that developed and endorsed multidisciplinary competencies for the care of older adults. The document will be broadly distributed to geriatric care professionals and organizations. To review the competencies, click here.
Urinary Incontinence Guidelines Available The National Guidelines Clearinghouse has published a synthesis of leading guidelines for the assessment and management of urinary incontinence. To access the document, visit:
Free Webinar on Heal Pressure Ulcer on Wednesday, March 24 at 12pm EST
We know that the heel is the second most common location for a pressure ulcer in acute care facilities, and the most common site in long term care facilities. But what about the anatomy of the heel makes it so vulnerable to skin breakdown and pressure ulcers?
Join Diane Langemo, PhD, RN, FAAN for a free educational Webinar as she discusses the basics of a pressure ulcer, the new NPUAP/EPUAP guidelines, CMS "never events" and pressure ulcer prevention and treatment options.
This hour-long Webinar, featuring a live Q&A session, is open to all healthcare professionals so invite your colleagues to a comprehensive presentation on heel pressure ulcers.
Register at or call (800) 327-7285 ext. 233
For those unable to participate in the live event, the Webinar will be archived and made available on-demand. Visit the registration page for your access to the presentation. Prevention is the best treatment.
During the Webinar, Dr. Langemo will identify the key components for a proper pressure ulcer protocol and an effective heel off-loading device such as the Heelift® Suspension Boot. Does your pressure ulcer protocol include all key components to meet the new NPUAP/EPUAP guidelines?
Find out on Wednesday, March 24 at 12pm EST and learn how you can get a free Heelift Suspension Boot to evaluate. This educational webinar is supported by DM Systems, Inc.
AALTCN is pleased to offer another great educational resource through our patron member Healthpoint, Ltd. the experts in Wound Care solutions.
Healthpoint Offers Skin Assessment DVD to Nursing Home personnel
Healthpoint, Ltd is proud to announce the availability of "The Big 4 in Under 4", a DVD that shows a mock skin assessment on a model posing as a patient to draw attention to the four areas of the body where pressure ulcers are most likely to develop.
In addition to this skin assessment, the seventeen minute DVD also reviews current statistics on the incidence and costs associated with pressure ulcers, and reviews the National Pressure Ulcer Advisory Panel's (NPUAP) revised pressure ulcer staging definitions and the characteristics of each stage.
The concept for the "Big 4 in Under 4" DVD was conceived by Jennifer Hurlow, a nurse practitioner with over twelve years experience in providing wound care in hospitals, in the outpatient setting, and in nursing homes. Jenny is personally aware of the challenges that the front line caregiver faces while performing everyday patient care. In her clinical practice, Jenny noticed that pressure ulcers are more likely to form on the sacrum/coccyx, heel, buttock/ ischium, and trocanter/leg. This was verified by a national data source that corroborated her findings. Jenny realized that if she incorporated a supplemental skin assessment focusing on these four areas in the course of normal patient care, she would be able to detect the start of a pressure ulcer or see if an existing pressure ulcer was deteriorating. This supplemental skin assessment is not meant to take the place of any skin assessments that are required by regulations in the various care settings, but to acquaint the front line caregiver with this concept in order to work more efficiently.
The "Big 4 in Under 4" DVD was originally positioned to be used in the skilled nursing setting, but it has also had great accolades in the acute care setting due to the new present on admission reporting requirements that include pressure ulcers. The Big 4 skin assessment is a depiction of one caregiver's approach. The actual protocol of your facility may differ slightly with regard to patient encounters. The DVD is meant to educate, and not intended to contradict any protocol the facility may have in place.
The "Big 4 in Under 4" DVD was the recent recipient of a 2009 Bronze Telly Award in the Film/Video Production: Education Category. The Telly Awards honor the very best local, regional, and cable television commercials and programs, as well as the finest video and film productions, and work created for the Web. We are honored to be recognized in this manner.
Copies of the "Big 4 in Under 4" DVD are available from your Healthpoint sales representative or by calling Healthpoint's Customer Care department at 800-441-8227
Healthpoint is proud to continue our long standing support of wound care education. We hope you will take the opportunity to obtain a copy of this DVD.
"The Big 4 in Under 4" design and word marks are trademarks and Healthpoint is a registered trademark of Healthpoint, Ltd.