Michigan Dept of Health and Human Services staff will present on Federal and State Regulations for the OBRA/PASRR program including its history, referral process for compliance, and recommendations for care planning.

Learner Objectives:

1. Audit compliance of the nursing facility's compliance with PASRR.
2. Recognize when an individual may need alternative placement or services.
3. Summarize the objective of OBRA/PASRR.

Drug Diversion might feel like a distant problem, until it hits home at the facility where you practice at. Join Andrew J. Nowak, Pharm.D., R.Ph., C.Ph. as he provides insight on how the national opiate crisis has hit long-term care, how to identify risk factors in your own facility, and what we all can implement in our facilities to minimize the damage caused by this crisis. He will also shed light on new risks caused by the rise in diversion of GLP-1 and other non-opioid drugs as well as strategies to mitigate this new threat.

Learner Objectives:

1. Understand the current opiate crisis as it relates to the LTC practice setting.
2. Identify the conditions and circumstances found around LTC drug diversion and how they apply to your facility.
3. Discuss the new risks caused by the rise in diversion of GLP-1 and other non-opioid drugs.
4. Analyze the warning signs of diversion and evaluate the procedural improvements that can mitigate the risks of diversion in your facility.

This session will provide Michigan skilled nursing facilities an overview of the changes for Medicaid rate setting, initial and final settlements, and related limits as allowed by the State Medicaid system, including QAS and QMI. We will also provide an update related to Medicare reimbursement, and managed care trends. Finally, we will also provide observations and trends derived from the PM 2025 SNF benchmarking report recently issued.

Nurse Learner Outcome: At the conclusion of this educational activity, 80% of the participants will self-report on the post session evaluation a knowledge gain of potential changes to Medicaid reimbursement for FY 2025 and potential impact on reimbursement, and access to relevant operating benchmarking information.

Learner Objectives:

1. Describe the changes in Medicaid rate setting, settlement, audit and related variable cost and plant limits for SFY 24-25, along with upcoming SFY 25-26 changes.
2. Discuss Medicare reimbursement Update.
3. Identify 2 major findings findings in PM 2025 SNF Benchmarking Report.

Discover the power of creativity in dementia care. This inspiring and practical session will explore how music, art, movement, and storytelling can be used to enhance connection, reduce agitation, and improve quality of life for individuals living with memory loss. Participants will gain adaptable strategies to bring joy, meaning, and emotional support into daily care routines—regardless of budget or skill level. Whether you're new to creative programming or looking to deepen your impact, this session will leave you re-energized and ready to connect with residents in powerful new ways.

Learner Objectives:

1. Describe the benefits of creative arts programming for individuals with dementia and other forms of memory loss.
2. Identify at least three types of creative interventions (e.g., music, visual art, storytelling) that can be adapted for memory care settings.
3. Discuss how creative arts can reduce behavioral symptoms such as agitation, anxiety, and withdrawal.
4. Demonstrate ways to adapt art-based activities to accommodate varying cognitive and physical abilities.
5. Apply person-centered principles when integrating creative programming into daily care routines to promote connection and emotional well-being.

Build Your Own Regulatory Taco! You need a strong shell to start your taco. This session describes the ingredients for your Regulatory Tortilla. We review the changes to the federal requirements, identify the changes in auditing professional licenses for CE compliance, and end with a discussion of Infection Control Practices. Leave ready to fill your taco!

Learner Objectives:

1. List the current changes to the survey process and guidance to surveyors.
2. Review how the state of Michigan is auditing professional licenses for CE compliance.
3. Discuss changes to Infection Control practices.

Let's Taco-Bout how SPICES can help you to identify a change in condition in your resident and ensure you have a clear process and system to manage a change in condition.

Learner Objectives:

1. Identify the steps to address a change in condition and recall the SPICES framework for residents in long term care.
2. Summarize the use of the SPICES assessment framework when identifying a change in condition of a resident and summarize a clear process for managing a change in condition for a resident.
3. Apply and perform the SPICES framework and assessment, along with determine a process to manage change in condition for a resident in long term care.
4. Describe the difference between the physician and nonphysical changes in a resident in long term care and how to use data collected from SPICES framework to adjust plan of care.
5. Determine if their organization follows a clear process to managing a change in condition and evaluate a resident change in condition.
6. Create a clear process and assessment plan for resident with a change in condition.

The regulatory requirements create the shell for your taco. And the "How To" are the fillings - meat and the trimmings. You do not have a taco without both. In this session we discuss best practices to implement the 2025 regulatory requirements with a focus on Medication Usage, Physician Responsibilities, and the Critical Element Pathways.

Learner Objectives:

1. Describe best practices to meet the requirements for medication usage.
2. Discuss the increased responsibilities of the physicians.
3. Review the revised Critical Element Pathways as the guide for compliance.

Resident-to-resident bullying and aggression are often underrecognized yet serious issues in long-term care settings. This insightful and practical session will help attendees understand how to identify peer-to-peer aggression, explore its impact on residents and staff, and implement effective prevention and intervention strategies. Participants will leave with actionable tools and a renewed commitment to fostering safer, more compassionate communities where all residents can thrive with dignity and respect.

Learner Objectives:

1. Identify common risk factors and early warning signs of bullying or aggressive behavior among residents.
2. Describe at least three strategies nurses and care teams can use to prevent or de-escalate bullying behaviors.
3. Apply a trauma-informed, person-centered approach to addressing incidents of aggression while maintaining dignity and safety for all residents.

Implicit bias is a concept from the field of social cognitive psychology that has become widely discussed in popular culture. Understanding what it is, where it comes from, and how it influences our social judgments is a critical part of explaining many aspects of the social issues surrounding prejudice and discrimination related to gender, race, ethnicity, and other social categorizations. This session will help attendees understand what implicit cognition is, see the helpful side of this brain function, and explore how it leads to unfair biases within our society with particular focus on applications in healthcare contexts.

Learner Objectives:

1. Recognize that people generally think racism and sexism are things of the past and discuss social cognitive explanations (optimism bias & confirmation bias) for this illusion of progress.
2. Differentiate implicit and explicit cognition and demonstrate several ways our implicit cognitive system acts outside of conscious control to help us think quickly and efficiently.
3. Understand research that suggests negative racial and gender category associations remain in our awareness, result in implicit bias, and affect judgments and behavior toward others outside of conscious awareness or control.
4. Explain, with examples, how implicit bias might affect social interactions with peers, subordinates, clients, and others in healthcare institutions then explore ways to reduce the impact of implicit bias.

Health care professionals need all the tools they can get when trying to boost people’s immune systems, positive emotions, and parasympathetic nervous system activity while decreasing negative emotions and the experience of pain. While it is not typically the first tool we reach for, most of us intuitively feel that nature experiences give us happiness, relaxation, and that they can be restorative when it comes to coping with life’s many stressors including workplace burnout. This presentation will explore the science behind those effects and share research into the value of adding nature experiences in healthcare settings. Specifically, you will gain a deeper appreciation for the therapeutic value of nature exposure for reducing a wide range of ill-health symptomatology (pain, stress, negative emotion) and facilitating measurable increases in well-being (parasympathetic nervous system activity, positive emotion, attentional capacity, immune system functioning). This educational presentation reviews scientific evidence and theories explaining these effects.

Learner Objectives:

1. Discuss connections between psychological experiences and physiological health benefits of nature exposure.
2. Differentiate biophilia and attentional restoration as theoretical explanations for the wellness benefits of nature exposure.
3. Describe research-based examples of how nature exposure provides humans with health benefits.
4. Identify ways to improve clients’ wellness by increasing nature exposure in healthcare settings.

This session will review the QAPI framework and how to apply the concepts to assisted living. We will review HFA rule R 325.1924 Incident Reporting and Quality Program and discuss how the QAPI framework help to maintain compliance with the new rule.

Learner Objectives:

1. Define the components of the QAPI framework in assisted living and be able to define the HFA rule regarding quality program.
2. Identify how to use the framework for QAPI in assisted living and identify how to implement the HFA rule for quality program.
3. Implement the QAPI framework in a quality program along with how to implement changes from the HFA rule regarding reporting of incidents and quality review program.
4. Organize the quality program for organization while being able to follow the changes in the HFA rule.
5. Evaluate their current quality program to ensure it meets the QAPI framework and to ensure it meets the HFA rule change for Quality Review Program.
6. Develop key processes to use the QAPI framework and to follow the HFA rule change for the Quality Review Program.