Every year, home health aides must satisfy 12 hours of in-service training. With today's irregular, part-time schedules, making sure they complete their required in-services can be a never-ending chore. Now you can satisfy Medicare's annual 12-hour aide in-service requirement without bringing your staff into the office for training. Home Health Aide On-the-Go In-service provides authoritative, comprehensive, yet easy-to-understand training for self-study or the classroom. As aides need training, simply copy the pages from each lesson as needed. The training is flexible, so aides can learn at their own pace at a time that is convenient for them. Even if they miss your regular in-services they can still get the training they need. Each lesson provides one hour of study on a homecare-specific topic. This 12-lesson volume fulfills one year of Medicare's annual requirement of 12 in-service hours. Each lesson includes: A clearly written fact sheet about a timely, homecare-specific topic A 10-question post-test to measure understanding of the subject matter An answer sheet with a place for the instructor's comments and signature An illustrative, homecare-specific case study Suggested supplemental learning activities An attendance log and certificate of completion A convenient storage binder is included with your purchase Volume 11 topics*: Communication Strategies Difficult Patients Diet and Nutrition Medication Management Arthritis Patient Rights MRSA Strokes and Seizures Bariatric Patients Vital Signs and Documentation Amputee Care Ventilator Care

This lesson on Updated Nutrition Practices includes a complete training packet. Each in-service packet takes approximately one hour to complete and fully meets the Medicare in-service training requirements. As aides need training, you can make as many copies as you want - there's no restriction when used with aides assigned from your office location. Remember that Home Health Aides must have 12 hours of in-service training every year. LESSON OBJECTIVES Upon completion of this program, the home health aide will be able to: Have a solid knowledge of the United States Department of Agriculture (USDA) nutrition guidelines Be able to list special nutrition considerations for elderly patients, and Understand the importance of patients receiving information about good nutrition and exercise. OVERVIEW Diet and physical activity are two of the most effective ways to manage disease and ensure good health as people age. The USDA and United States Department of Health and Human Services have jointly developed Dietary Guidelines. All federal and state governmental agencies use these guidelines when developing nutrition programs. Nutrition educators, nutritionists, and health care providers also use these guidelines when providing care. Unfortunately, many people, especially the elderly, aren't aware of basic dietary recommendations and requirements. Sometimes, even if they are aware, they don't follow the guidelines for any number of reasons. That is where the aide plays an important role. Home health aides can encourage patients to improve their health by practicing good nutrition and getting adequate physical activity. This in-service outlines the USDA 2005 Dietary Guidelines and the MyPyramid plan, and offers techniques for supporting patient dietary compliance.

This lesson on Meal Planning includes a complete training packet. Each in-service packet takes approximately one hour to complete and fully meets the Medicare in-service training requirements. As aides need training, you can make as many copies as you want - there's no restriction when used with aides assigned from your office location. Remember that Home Health Aides must have 12 hours of in-service training every year. LESSON OBJECTIVES Upon completion of this program, the home health aide will be able to: Identify the steps in the meal planning process. Describe three factors that have an impact on meal planning. Describe the sections in MyPyramid. OVERVIEW Nutrition is the key element in meal planning. In the United States, the Department of Agriculture (USDA) is the best source for nutritional information. For many years, its meal planning guidance featured four basic food groups -- meats, vegetables and fruit, grains, and dairy. After several nutrition studies, the USDA created the "Food Pyramid," and updated dietary recommendations. The USDA's MyPyramid Web site provides nutritional recommendations for people of all ages and other information to promote healthy lifestyle for today's Americans. Home health aides should use the USDA recommendations during the meal planning process. These recommendations combined the patient's food preferences including likes and dislikes, the patient's ability to prepare food, chew and swallow, and other information on the aide care plan form the foundation of a patient's diet. Meal planning also involves organizing stored food, preparing shopping lists and meals, and evaluating the patient's response. This lesson focuses on enhancing the aide's ability to plan meals for their elderly patients.

"Nurses play a vital role in improving the safety and quality of patient car -- not only in the hospital or ambulatory treatment facility, but also of community-based care and the care performed by family members. Nurses need know what proven techniques and interventions they can use to enhance patient outcomes. To address this need, the Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality (AHRQ), with additional funding from the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation, has prepared this comprehensive, 1,400-page, handbook for nurses on patient safety and quality -- Patient Safety and Quality: An Evidence-Based Handbook for Nurses. (AHRQ Publication No. 08-0043)." - online AHRQ blurb, http://www.ahrq.gov/qual/nurseshdbk/

Family caregiving affects millions of Americans every day, in all walks of life. At least 17.7 million individuals in the United States are caregivers of an older adult with a health or functional limitation. The nation's family caregivers provide the lion's share of long-term care for our older adult population. They are also central to older adults' access to and receipt of health care and community-based social services. Yet the need to recognize and support caregivers is among the least appreciated challenges facing the aging U.S. population. Families Caring for an Aging America examines the prevalence and nature of family caregiving of older adults and the available evidence on the effectiveness of programs, supports, and other interventions designed to support family caregivers. This report also assesses and recommends policies to address the needs of family caregivers and to minimize the barriers that they encounter in trying to meet the needs of older adults.