Pharmacy in Long-Term Care News Roundup: June 2023

Pharmacy

PharMerica took a new approach through the development of a nurse advancement program that supports directors of nursing (DONs) and other nurse leaders in long-term and post-acute care by providing needed resources and education and ensuring all nurses know that the industry understands their challenges. PharMerica’s Partners in Nurse Advancement program is a trail-blazing partnership among nurse leader organizations, including NADONA, AALNA, and others, with the goal of providing critical information and insights for DONs and clinical consultants for enhanced outcomes, care excellence, and a bright future for nurses.

SoftWriters, Inc., the industry leader in long-term care (LTC) pharmacy software, announced a partnership with Virtue Technologies, a leading provider of home infusion, specialty pharmacy, Long Term Care Pharmacy, and durable medical equipment logistics technology solutions. The relationship will enable Softwriters to offer VirtueScript, Virtue Technologies’ logistics technology solution, to its customers. The solution automates delivery workflow processes and increases the level of communication that occurs across the continuum of post-acute care.

Senior Living

Federal regulators will begin posting nursing home affiliations on Nursing Home Care Compare in an attempt to make it easier for consumers to see related facilities and understand their overall performance, the CMS said. In addition to linking facilities by common owners, the agency will post aggregate nursing home performance data on data.cms.gov and publish combined inspection, staffing, quality and other metrics across groups of nursing homes that share owners or operators.

AdventHealth, a health system with more than 80,000 employees in at least eight states, has sold much of its skilled nursing portfolio to two new organizations. AdventHealth had 10 facilities — eight in Florida and one each in Kansas and Texas. Over the last month, California-based CareTrust REIT announced acquisitions of two of those nursing homes.

CareTrust REIT, Inc. acquired a 105-unit, two-facility memory care portfolio with facilities located in Ohio and Michigan. The facilities will be operated by affiliates of Ridgeline Management Company under a new, 15-year master lease with CareTrust that includes two, 5-year extension options and annual CPI-based rent escalators. Ridgeline is an experienced seniors housing and memory care operator with facilities across the country. Ridgeline took over operations at the facilities from the outgoing operator on June 1, 2023.

PruittHealth, a family-owned company for more than 50 years, took over the management of Charlotte Hall Veterans Home, effective Tuesday, June 6. PruittHealth has more than two decades of proven experience and success in managing state veteran homes in Georgia and North Carolina. All the veteran homes under PruittHealth management are recipients of The Joint Commission’s Gold Seal of Approval for meeting the highest safety and quality health care standards, and the organization looks forward to elevating Charlotte Hall Veterans Home to these same high standards of care.

Comprehensive, business intelligence on the long-term care market is available in AMI’s Pharmacy in Long-Term Care 2023-2024 Report