​Most operators in the long term/post-acute care field recognize the importance of the facility administrator, even if not the many distinctive hats each one wears. In this month’s cover story, Contributing Editor Neal Learner, speaking with a number of successful leaders, gains insight into how they are handling the staffing crisis and the expectation gap of customers and their families, while keeping a holistic view of the facility and bringing members from each discipline to see and appreciate how their roles contribute to it.

Another key player in the skilled nursing sector is the medical director, whose role traditionally is to attend the federally required Quality Assessment & Assurance meetings, participate in QAPI efforts, plus implement resident care policies and coordinate the medical care within the facility. In a special feature, Karl Steinberg, MD, CMD, tells providers that there is much more their medical director can do for them, including communicating with the state survey team, even to pursuing an informal dispute resolution when a deficiency seems excessive in scope.

In a massive changeover beginning Oct. 1, new data elements are being added to assessment instruments used in post-acute settings. In the case of SNFs, this prompted nearly 60 additions to the MDS. In Management, reimbursement specialist Jessie McGill, RN, spells out areas with changes, including demographic information, health literacy, and nutritional approaches, to name a few.

Kimberly Stevens, RN, subject of a feature interview by Managing Editor Amy Mendoza, stayed in her LPN role for many years because, as a self-described “people person,” she relishes spending her time with the patients. Having dabbled in upper management positions and eventually earning her RN degree, Stevens still prefers “being with people and taking care of them.”