Rehabilitation for the Frail or Cognitively Impaired Older Adult: Part II

According to the National Institute of Health, frailty in older adults is the leading cause of disability, hospitalization,and mortality. Conditions most often associated with frailty include cardiovascular disease, cancer, chronic respiratory disease, infectious diseases and Alzheimer's. Additionally, numerous studies now suggest that sarcopenia (age related loss of muscle mass) is identified as a leading cause of frailty.In fact, sarcopenia is increasingly observed as a disease among pathologists. Treating patients with frailty often presents documentation challenges as these patients tend to rehab slowly, have limited participation, and meager outcomes. Documenting anything other than "significant progress" can be a daunting task for fear of coverage/reimbursement problems and denials. However, resistive exercise, participation in activities of daily living, and cognitive stimulation is the best treatment regimen for frailty. Recently, a report from the Office of Inspector Generalrevealed that sixty-one percent of Medicare claims for outpatient therapy did not comply with Medicare medicalnecessity coding or documentation requirements. Therefore, rehabilitation therapists are charged with problem-solving ways to document these necessary services for thisvulnerable patient population.

This timely course will equip you with the tools needed for effectively documenting assessment, goals, and treatment encounters of low-level patients to ensure that skilledcoverage criteria is met. Learn how to incorporate data fromquick and easy standardized tests and measures to document objective analysis of function and justification for continued services. Build your library of documentationprotocols and return to work confident in your skills to document treatment of frail or cognitively impaired patientswith the confidence that your claims will be paid.

Highlights

• Immediately improve documentation of assessment and treatment for patients with chronic, debilitating conditions or cognitive deficits
• 25 appropriate tests and measures for documenting assessment and re-assessment
• Simple strategies for documenting skilled treatment, establishing medical necessity, and justifying ongoing services without writing a novel
• Gain confidence in documenting medical necessity for repeat referrals

Target Audience: Physical Therapists, Physical Therapist Assistants, Occupational Therapists, Occupational Therapy Assistants, Speech-Language Pathologists