Steven Littlehale

My father died a little over a year ago. While I usually derive tremendous comfort and support by sharing both happy and sad milestones with friends, family, and colleagues, in this instance, sharing the...

When I read my first SNF PPS final rule about 25 years ago, I thought that the start dates for some of its initiatives were so far in the future that they were of no concern. As a young person, my long-range...

In 2016, the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services started focused on-site surveys to address the issue of erroneous coding of schizophrenia in nursing homes.  More recently, the agency began conducting...

Last month I wrote about risk. I shared that risk in a nursing home originates from many places: residents and families, federal and state regulators, vendors, payers, insurance companies, referral sources...

We encounter risk every day. Risk is present in the most innocuous actions, like crossing the street, walking into the supermarket, and even eating dinner. And as nursing home operators and providers well...

Are you a “New Year’s resolution” kind of person? I am not, but I am a strong believer in establishing goals and setting intentions. Whether you prefer to make a resolution or set a goal, January...

Dear baby boomers,  Thank you, thank you, thank you! You made my ugly-as-sin, chunky, deep-cut, orthopedic “sneakers” acceptable to wear with my fancy tailored business suit. I don’t have to...

My happy place is standing in front of nursing home providers and honoring them through education. Shining a loving light on these special people and honoring their commitment to better care feeds my soul....

It’s a curious day when I lift a lyric from the Spice Girls to title an article. The Spice Girls’ first single, “Wannabe,” was released in 1996 and rocketed to the top of the British singles chart....

As the Biden administration marches toward some type of minimum staffing requirement for nursing homes, it’s easy for providers to feel like helpless, angry victims. Even as a proponent of acuity-based...