The LTSS Center recommends that you put these 5 articles on your reading list for June.
WILL 2019 KICK OFF A NEW ERA IN PERSON-CENTERED CARE?
The Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) is changing the way it calculates ratings for Medicare Advantage Plans.
Writing in the American Journal of Managed Care, Marc Cohen, co-director of the LeadingAge LTSS Center @UMass Boston, and Ann Hwang, director of the Center for Consumer Engagement in Health Innovation at Community Catalyst, report that CMS is providing new weight to how patients rate:
- The quality of their health plan.
- The quality of their health care.
- How well their care is coordinated.
- Whether the health plan responds in a timely way to appeals.
“The increased emphasis on patient access and experience is a welcome affirmation that patient experience matters—that it is an essential driver of health plan quality,” write Cohen and Hwang. The authors then go on to describe a recent analysis by the Center for Consumer Engagement in Health Innovation that “found ample room for improving both plan performance and how the ratings measure patient-centeredness.”
HOW TO SUPPORT OLDER AMERICANS AS THEY AGE
While almost 80% of people 65 and older own their own homes, that statistic shouldn’t lead us to assume that all elders are stable and secure, writes Alisha Sanders in a recent blog for NeighborWorks America.
Sanders, director of housing and services policy research at the LTSS Center, shares additional statistics: that in 2016, for instance, approximately 9.7 million owner and renter households age 65 and older were housing cost-burdened; and that half of all Medicare beneficiaries had incomes below $26,200 in 2016. Add in the likelihood that people with lower incomes are more likely to develop chronic illnesses and functional limitations, and you have a picture of older Americans that is far from stable.
Sanders introduces one proven solution for supporting this vulnerable population: the work that LeadingAge members and NeighborWorks organizations are doing to create affordable housing and link residents with health and supportive services.
AGEISM: A ‘PREVALENT AND INSIDIOUS’ HEALTH THREAT
The New York Times recently took a closer look at ageism. Writer Paula Span reported in April on a campaign by the World Health Organization (WHO) to collect and assess the available evidence on ageism, including its causes and health consequences, how to combat it, and how best to measure it.
As part of the WHO campaign, researchers at Cornell University spent a year and a half sifting through dozens of articles evaluating anti-ageism programs, reports Span. After almost all of the interventions, participants showed significantly less ageism and greater knowledge of aging than comparison groups that hadn’t taken part in the programs.
“Key questions remain unanswered,” writes Span. “But seeing how even short-lived interventions can move the attitudinal needle, I’m encouraged to continue my personal anti-ageism campaign.”
RELYING ON IMMIGRANT LABOR
A new study published in Health Affairs puts the number of immigrant health care workers at 3,296,560, or 18.2% of all health care workers in 2017.
A third (30.4%) of those immigrant health care workers were employed in long-term services and supports (LTSS) settings, compared to 22% of U.S.-born workers, according to the study. Among unauthorized immigrant health care workers, 43.2% were employed in LTSS settings.
The authors report that more than 1 in 4 direct care workers are immigrants, including nearly 1 in 3 direct care workers in home health agencies. Immigrants also account for a disproportionate share of housekeeping and maintenance personnel in nursing homes, they report.
“In light of current shortages, high turnover rates, low retention rates, growing demand for direct care workers, and immigrants’ already disproportionate role in filling such jobs, policies that curtail immigration are likely to compromise the availability of care,” they write.
TODAY’S MULTIGENERATIONAL WORKFORCE
The alphabet-soup of generations represented in the U.S. workforce presents challenges to employers who struggle to understand how each generation views work and the workplace. According to a list presented recently in Forbes, those generations include:
- The Silent Generation, born 1925-1945.
- The Baby Boom Generation, born 1946-1964.
- Generation-X, born 1965-1980.
- Generation-K, born 1977-1987.
- Generation-Y, also known as Millennials, born 1981-1994.
- Generation-Z, born 1995-2000.
- Generation Alpha, born 2000-2015.
“There is an art to motivating employees from different generations to work together and share their knowledge, encouraging them to take responsibility and make independent decisions in an environment where the answers of today will be outdated by tomorrow,” writes Soulaima Gourani. “No matter how you look at it, you will end up with a multigenerational workforce or customer base. And if need be, it might make sense to consult an expert on generational issues.”