MDS Consultants

MDS Consultants Get expert, practical help for your facility.

MDS Consultants makes your team more proficient in skilled MDS documentation, ICD-10 coding, Interim Payment Assessments, Medicare regulations, reimbursement maximization and PDPM.

03/27/2026

Happy Friday!

Hope you all have a great weekend ahead.

๐Ÿšจ๐Ÿฏ/๐Ÿญ๐Ÿฏ/๐Ÿฎ๐Ÿฌ๐Ÿฎ๐Ÿฒ: The Office of Management and Budget (OMB) have approved the control number for the Advance Beneficiary Notic...
03/27/2026

๐Ÿšจ๐Ÿฏ/๐Ÿญ๐Ÿฏ/๐Ÿฎ๐Ÿฌ๐Ÿฎ๐Ÿฒ: The Office of Management and Budget (OMB) have approved the control number for the Advance Beneficiary Notice of Non-coverage (ABN) (CMS-R-131). The updated ABN is effective now and expires March 31, 2029. Providers may continue to use the expired version of the ABN until May 12, 2026, but must transition to the approved form no later than that date. The Advance Beneficiary Notice of Noncoverage (ABN), Form CMS-R-131, is issued by providers (including independent laboratories, home health agencies, and hospices), physicians, practitioners, and suppliers to Original Medicare (fee for service - FFS) beneficiaries in situations where Medicare payment is expected to be denied. The ABN is issued in order to transfer potential financial liability to the Medicare beneficiary in certain instances.
https://cstu.io/a955ac
https://cstu.io/b144b3
https://cstu.io/aad071

๐—ฃ๐˜€๐˜†๐—ฐ๐—ต๐—ผ๐—ฎ๐—ฐ๐˜๐—ถ๐˜ƒ๐—ฒ ๐—บ๐—ฒ๐—ฑ๐—ถ๐—ฐ๐—ฎ๐˜๐—ถ๐—ผ๐—ป๐˜€ ๐—ฎ๐—ฟ๐—ฒ ๐—ฏ๐—ฎ๐—ฐ๐—ธ ๐—ถ๐—ป ๐˜๐—ต๐—ฒ ๐˜€๐—ฝ๐—ผ๐˜๐—น๐—ถ๐—ด๐—ต๐˜ โ€” ๐—ฎ๐—ป๐—ฑ ๐˜€๐˜‚๐—ฟ๐˜ƒ๐—ฒ๐˜†๐—ผ๐—ฟ๐˜€ ๐—ฎ๐—ฟ๐—ฒ ๐—ฝ๐—ฎ๐˜†๐—ถ๐—ป๐—ด ๐—ฎ๐˜๐˜๐—ฒ๐—ป๐˜๐—ถ๐—ผ๐—ป. With the April 2025 regulatory ...
03/26/2026

๐—ฃ๐˜€๐˜†๐—ฐ๐—ต๐—ผ๐—ฎ๐—ฐ๐˜๐—ถ๐˜ƒ๐—ฒ ๐—บ๐—ฒ๐—ฑ๐—ถ๐—ฐ๐—ฎ๐˜๐—ถ๐—ผ๐—ป๐˜€ ๐—ฎ๐—ฟ๐—ฒ ๐—ฏ๐—ฎ๐—ฐ๐—ธ ๐—ถ๐—ป ๐˜๐—ต๐—ฒ ๐˜€๐—ฝ๐—ผ๐˜๐—น๐—ถ๐—ด๐—ต๐˜ โ€” ๐—ฎ๐—ป๐—ฑ ๐˜€๐˜‚๐—ฟ๐˜ƒ๐—ฒ๐˜†๐—ผ๐—ฟ๐˜€ ๐—ฎ๐—ฟ๐—ฒ ๐—ฝ๐—ฎ๐˜†๐—ถ๐—ป๐—ด ๐—ฎ๐˜๐˜๐—ฒ๐—ป๐˜๐—ถ๐—ผ๐—ป.

With the April 2025 regulatory updates and the 2026 hybrid antipsychotic quality measure, facilities are expected to take a more structured, team-based approach to medication management.

Join us on April 7 for: Manage Psychoactive Medications to Reduce Survey Headaches (Part 1)

๐—ช๐—ต๐—ฎ๐˜ ๐˜†๐—ผ๐˜‚ ๐˜„๐—ถ๐—น๐—น ๐—น๐—ฒ๐—ฎ๐—ฟ๐—ป:
โ–ช๏ธDiscuss the April 2025 regulatory updates
โ–ช๏ธIdentify high risk psychoactive medications and indications per RAI guidelines
โ–ช๏ธReview elements of GDR compliance
โ–ช๏ธGain strategies for monitoring psychoactive medications in SNF

This session will focus on practical application, documentation support, and team collaboration to strengthen your approach.

๐Ÿ‘ฅ Who should attend:
Administrators, Directors of Nursing Services, Nurse Assessment Coordinators, MDS Coordinators, Clinical Nurse Managers, and MDS Interdisciplinary Team members

๐Ÿ‘‰ Register: https://cstu.io/fb564d

iQIES Survey and Certification Job Aid now has Tips and Tricks that reflect approved ways to complete work more efficien...
03/26/2026

iQIES Survey and Certification Job Aid now has Tips and Tricks that reflect approved ways to complete work more efficiently and consistently that was posted on 3/20/2026. https://cstu.io/0a84c5
๐™‚๐™š๐™ฃ๐™š๐™ง๐™–๐™ก ๐™๐™ž๐™ฅ๐™จ
๐™Ž๐™ช๐™ง๐™ซ๐™š๐™ฎ๐™จ
๐™’๐™–๐™ž๐™ซ๐™š๐™ง๐™จ
๐™„๐™„๐˜ฟ๐™
๐™‹๐™–๐™จ๐™ฉ ๐™‰๐™ค๐™ฃ๐™˜๐™ค๐™ข๐™ฅ๐™ก๐™ž๐™–๐™ฃ๐™˜๐™š
๐™„๐™ฃ๐™ฉ๐™–๐™ ๐™š๐™จ
๐˜พ๐™ค๐™ข๐™ข๐™ค๐™ฃ ๐™Œ๐™ช๐™š๐™จ๐™ฉ๐™ž๐™ค๐™ฃ๐™จ
https://cstu.io/b98703

Still feeling the groove from AAPACN Conference ๐ŸชฉDespite the weather trying to shut things down, it was still great conn...
03/25/2026

Still feeling the groove from AAPACN Conference ๐Ÿชฉ

Despite the weather trying to shut things down, it was still great connecting with so many of youโ€”both at the booth and at the disco party.

Between the conversations and the energy at the conference, one thing is clearโ€”facilities are continuing to work through the real impact of PDPM, documentation alignment, and reimbursement accuracy.

At the booth, we featured our PDPM Scorecard, and the response was incredible. It sparked a lot of great conversations around strategy, accuracy, and opportunities many teams are still working through.

If youโ€™re currently navigating PDPM or documentation challenges, weโ€™re always open to connecting and talking through it.

๐Ÿ’ก Sometimes a quick conversation brings more clarity than a report ever could.

Also, for those looking to strengthen their processes, weโ€™ll be hosting an upcoming QCP (QAPI Certified Professional) Workshop:
๐Ÿ“… April 14โ€“17, 2026
๐Ÿ•› 12:00 โ€“ 4:15 PM ET
๐Ÿ‘ฉโ€โš•๏ธ Led by Linda Winston & Barb Bates
๐ŸŒ https://cstu.io/a0a6c1

Happy to share more details if youโ€™re interested.

Looking forward to continuing the conversations started this week.

๐ŸŽ‰ Weโ€™re kicking off our 2026 Education Year with AAPACN!MDS Consultants is proud to begin our 2026 education year as an ...
03/24/2026

๐ŸŽ‰ Weโ€™re kicking off our 2026 Education Year with AAPACN!

MDS Consultants is proud to begin our 2026 education year as an AAPACN Training Partner, starting with the QAPI Certified Professional (QCPยฎ) Workshop in April 2026.

This nationally recognized workshop is designed to help facilities move beyond compliance and strengthen meaningful QAPI programs that truly impact resident care.
๐Ÿ“… QCPยฎ | April 14โ€“17, 2026
๐Ÿ–ฅ๏ธ Virtual | Eastern Time
๐ŸŽ“ 15 Continuing Education Credits

๐Ÿ”— Register at https://cstu.io/5568d2

Follow us for additional AAPACN certification opportunities throughout 2026.

"Careers in Aging Month is dedicated to bringing greater awareness and visibility to the wide-ranging career opportuniti...
03/24/2026

"Careers in Aging Month is dedicated to bringing greater awareness and visibility to the wide-ranging career opportunities in long term care and aging services, and to celebrate current employees in the profession." Let's celebrate our certified nursing assistants, nurses, activity professionals, social workers, therapy services, dining staff, housekeeping, and administrative staff with careers in aging.
https://cstu.io/485e08

๐ŸšจCMS hosted an PBJ Technical informational Call for Software Vendors and Developers on Thursday, February 26, 2026. Plea...
03/23/2026

๐ŸšจCMS hosted an PBJ Technical informational Call for Software Vendors and Developers on Thursday, February 26, 2026. Please see the attached minutes.
https://cstu.io/c18118

๐—ช๐—ฒโ€™๐—ฟ๐—ฒ ๐—ต๐—ฒ๐—ฎ๐—ฑ๐—ถ๐—ป๐—ด ๐˜๐—ผ ๐—ฃ๐—”๐——๐—ข๐—ก๐—”!MDS Consultants is excited to both present and exhibit at this yearโ€™s PADONA Conference โ€” and we...
03/22/2026

๐—ช๐—ฒโ€™๐—ฟ๐—ฒ ๐—ต๐—ฒ๐—ฎ๐—ฑ๐—ถ๐—ป๐—ด ๐˜๐—ผ ๐—ฃ๐—”๐——๐—ข๐—ก๐—”!

MDS Consultants is excited to both present and exhibit at this yearโ€™s PADONA Conference โ€” and we canโ€™t wait to connect with you.

๐ŸŽค Jessica Stucin, RN, RAC-MT, DNS-MT, QCP-MT
Director of Education

๐ŸŽค Kristine Martinez, RN, RAC-CT
Assistant Director of Education

๐—ช๐—ถ๐—น๐—น ๐—ฏ๐—ฒ ๐—ฝ๐—ฟ๐—ฒ๐˜€๐—ฒ๐—ป๐˜๐—ถ๐—ป๐—ด:
โ€œGG Done Right: Building a Process That Worksโ€

Section GG accuracy continues to impact reimbursement, quality measures, and survey outcomes. In this session, Jessica and Kristine will walk through practical strategies to build a sustainable, interdisciplinary process that supports both compliance and resident-centered care.

๐Ÿ“ Visit us at Booth #70

Stop by to connect with our team and pick up a complimentary Functional Abilities Tool to help strengthen your Section GG processes and support your interdisciplinary team.

We look forward to seeing you at PADONA!

The Five-Star rating preview reports for nursing homes were made available in iQIES on March 19, 2026. Nursing Home Care...
03/22/2026

The Five-Star rating preview reports for nursing homes were made available in iQIES on March 19, 2026. Nursing Home Care Compare will update with the March Five-Star data on or around March 25, 2026.

Important Note: The Five-Star Helpline (800-839-9290) will be available March 23-27, 2026. For assistance logging into iQIES, please contact the iQIES Service Center via email (iQIES@cms.hhs.gov) or by phone (800-339-9313).https://cstu.io/9f3d06

03/20/2026

Spring Cleaningโ€ฆ but for Documentation ๐ŸŒท

Spring is a good reminder that sometimes documentation needs a little cleanup too.

A few quick things facilities may want to review:

โ€ข Are care plans reflecting the residentโ€™s current status?
โ€ข Does documentation support the coded MDS items?
โ€ข Are disciplines documenting consistently across the IDT?
โ€ข Are older notes still being copied forward when they shouldnโ€™t be?

Just like spring cleaning at home, small updates can make a big difference.

Clear documentation helps the entire team โ€”and tells the residentโ€™s story the way it should.

Address

105 Pearl Street
Marilla, NY
14103

Alerts

Be the first to know and let us send you an email when MDS Consultants posts news and promotions. Your email address will not be used for any other purpose, and you can unsubscribe at any time.

Share

Share on Facebook Share on Twitter Share on LinkedIn
Share on Pinterest Share on Reddit Share via Email
Share on WhatsApp Share on Instagram Share on Telegram