Post-Acute and Long-Term Medicine

Book excerpt: This book addresses current issues surrounding hospital readmissions and the practice of post-acute and long-term care (LTC). Thoroughly updated, the Second Edition of this practical pocket guide presents new regulations governing these services and lessens the uncertainty involved in caring for patients in a long-term care facility. The book is divided into four sections that cover: types of care, which include community care, nursing facility care, and teamwork; clinical medicine, with suggested approaches to common conditions and wound care; psychosocial aspects of care, which include ethical and legal issues and caring for families; and special issues, with chapters on documentation, coding, and medication management. As community-based care is an area of rapid growth where the elderly are increasingly seeking their medical care, new chapters have also been added that describe these programs. Written by expert contributors, many of whom have worked within the American Medical Directors Association to create and disseminate a knowledge base for post-acute and LTC, this is a valuable resource for clinicians and educators seeking to maximize the care and living experience of residents in post-acute and long-term care settings.