Two columns have been added to the Watch table which provide you with a way to compare your MDS assessment coding for field J5c (Stability of Conditions--end stage disease, six months or fewer to live) with the evaluation scores generated from the Personal Severity Index Method and the Life Expectancy of Six Months or Less Method.

To view the new columns, log in to CareWatch^® and click "ANALYSIS" located to the left of the page on the gold navigation menu.  Then, click the underlined link, "Hospice Evaluation Watch" from the Analysis menu.

The enhanced Hospice Evaluation Watch table looks like this:

These columns indicate possible missed reimbursement for care you are providing to your hospice residents.  If a resident meets the evaluation criteria for the above methods for determining life expectancy to be less than six months, it may be that they have also been diagnosed with end stage disease and meet the MDS criteria for end stage disease with six or fewer months to live as coded in J5c. 

These columns provide you with a quick and easy way to open a list of residents based on her/his hospice evaluation method and check the coding for J5c to make certain that the MDS coding for this field is accurate.

To see the list of residents coded as not having end stage disease, click the underlined number link found below the life expectancy method you want to use.  This opens the following page:

Using this list, you can double check your hospice residents' MDS coding to make sure that all of your work efforts are being credited appropriately and that your residents are receiving quality, compassionate care--the ultimate goal in long term healthcare.