Clarifire Conversations

Waking up each morning after a restful night’s sleep, is a great way to start the day.  You’re energized and ready to tackle what comes your way.  However, if you are a nurse leader the stresses of the job may make getting a good night’s sleep a little harder.  We’ve asked nurse leaders what’s keeping them up at night and here’s what we’ve heard.

Despite the fact that OAS CAHPS are still voluntary, their eventual mandate could be right around the corner.  To achieve top scores, it’s not as straight forward as just focusing on clinical outcomes.  When patients are looking at where to have a procedure, they are looking beyond just competency.

While nearly all government-backed mortgage guarantors provide a wide range of disaster relief programs, perhaps none are quite as unique and diverse in their offering as the Small Business Administration (SBA). Most mortgage lenders and servicers have been working hard to stay abreast of updated disaster relief requirements for Fannie Mae, Freddie Mac, the Federal Housing Administration (FHA), the Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) and the US Department of Agriculture (USDA), but not as many are aware of the extensive options available to SBA customers, not to mention that the SBA administers their programs directly.

The roots of patient rounding can be traced back to a medical center in Birmingham, AL in the late 1980s². After many years of this concept in practice, studies have shown that it has a direct correlation to improving patient experience. With patient experience scores having an impact on hospital revenue, conducting daily patient rounding is becoming a priority. However, simply completing the round isn’t enough.

Two years ago, the Bureau of Consumer Financial Protection (BCFP) finalized an expansion of successors in interest (SII) protections as part of a larger package of new mortgage servicing rules. While the majority of the final rule required implementation last year, the successors in interest provisions only took effect a few months ago. The BCFP completely re-envisioned the coverage of SII and it is imperative mortgage servicers understand their extended compliance responsibilities in order to avoid having costly errors uncovered in regulatory supervision.

Just last week, Freddie Mac issued a press release advising mortgage servicers to prepare to assist borrowers whose homes or places of employment were impacted by Hurricane Florence. Likewise, they directed homeowners to pursue disaster relief once out of harm’s way. Freddie Mac said, “We strongly encourage homeowners … to call their mortgage servicer … to learn about available relief options,” adding, “we stand ready to ensure that mortgage relief is made available.”  

Post-discharge calls aid in safe patient transitions, help prevent readmissions, and improve patient satisfaction.¹  In addition, academic studies show that there is a positive correlation between post-discharge calls and HCAHPS scores.² Furthermore, a study from the Beryl Institute shows that advanced analytics can provide robust information allowing hospital systems to take actionable steps for operational improvements, resulting in improved patient outcomes.³ Based on these findings, we know that post-discharge follow-ups are a key part of not just the patient experience model, but the entire continuum of care.

As Hurricane Florence tests the preparedness of state and local governments up and down the East Coast, Fannie Mae servicers must similarly ask themselves if they are prepared for revamped disaster relief requirements this hurricane season and beyond. Fannie Mae’s disaster assistance requirements span more than a dozen chapters of the Seller/Servicer Guide.  

From loan origination to loan payoff, there are multiple paths that a loan can take throughout its lifecycle.  The best performing loans will follow a clear, straight path with no hiccups along the way.  All payments are made on time.  This path is the easy street for loans, and the servicers servicing them.

Hospital systems, post-acute care providers and physicians are all participants in today’s world of value based healthcare. The Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) has established specific models to encourage all participants to work together to improve quality and coordination of care from the pre-surgery process through recovery¹. In order to receive maximum bundled payment reimbursements, they must meet recognized patient outcomes.

When a disaster strikes, the United States Department of Agriculture (USDA) is ready to respond to the needs of American farmers with a vast toolbox of disaster assistance programs, from emergency loans to crop insurance. In the mix of a wide range of programs, it can be difficult for servicers of Rural Development (RD) mortgages to see where they fit into the ‘farm safety net.’

In the last several years, our bedside heroes have taken on a much more demanding role.  Long gone are the days of just delivering quality care and attending to our every need.  Now they must handle a much larger administrative part of our care too.

When it comes to disaster response, the Departments of Veterans Affairs (VA) is one of the more responsive federal agencies. Servicers of VA loans should be prepared to closely monitor the needs of distressed homeowners in disaster-stricken areas and provide timely and flexible relief.

Did you know that 20% of the Medicare patients discharged from hospitals are readmitted within 30 days?  Even more surprising, that rate increases to 25% when patients are discharged to skilled nursing homes.¹  This is a costly statistic to both the taxpayers and hospitals.  So how do you make sure that you are referring your patients to long-term care facilities with top notch care?  Check out their survey results and make sure they are up to date on the latest changes. Help them help you!

Three of the top five costliest hurricanes on record occurred last year, according to the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA), resulting in an estimated $306.2 billion worth of property damage. That shatters the previous record of $214.8 billion worth of damages in 2005¹. In a world of billion-dollar weather events, mortgage servicers face the challenge of managing hundreds of thousands of hazard insurance claims, repairs, foreclosure moratoriums and relief programs. The Federal Housing Administration (FHA) is particularly vigilant in managing its portfolio and exposure to loss, and expects servicers to stay on top of fluctuating timelines, priorities and policies that apply to recovery areas.

One size does not fit all.  Ensuring a positive experience for children and their parents/guardians is essential for strategically building patient trust.  Today, building that trust is also financially imperative. How do parents and guardians view their child’s care?

You’ve heard the saying, “the more things change, the more they stay the same”.  The mortgage industry has definitely seen its fair share of changes in the last decade, brought in part by the financial crisis of 2008.  While the landscape may have changed, the pain points that servicers experience remain essentially the same today.

The widespread impact of the 2017-2018 flu season was a harsh reminder for many on the importance of infection prevention.  According to the CDC there were over 30,000 laboratory-confirmed influenza-associated hospitalizations between October 1, 2017, and April 30, 2018¹.  The spread of the flu, like many other infections, is preventable with the proper infection controls in place.

Christina Lang is a 19-year old woman pursuing her dream of competitive swimming and hopes to qualify for the Tokyo Paralympics, scheduled for August 25 - September 6, 2020.  Daughter of Clarifire employee Michael Waites, Christina was recently invited by the Paralympics Recruiting Committee to train at the Paralympics facility in Colorado Springs.

Lenders prefer that foreclosure be the last resort when it comes to recovering the remaining balance of a home loan.  Many offer forbearance plans as an alternative to foreclosure to help keep borrowers in their homes.  These forbearance plans provide servicers a temporary solution to keep borrowers out of foreclosure when they are experiencing a short-term financial hardship.

It’s 2018 and technology is everywhere…or is it? Across the country there are hospitals and healthcare organizations that continue to choose to conduct patient experience rounding armed with paper and pencil.  Is your hospital one of them?

Your organization is in the midst of a digital transformation and new technology is on the horizon. You have survived through the research, vendor evaluations, requirements gathering, and development. Now it’s time to embark on the implementation phase of your organization’s journey to improve operational efficiency.

A carpenter’s workshop is their toolbox.  Within it, there are power drills which make it easier than a screwdriver to drill a screw into hardwood.   There is a nail gun which drives a nail into a piece of wood in one shot versus swinging a hammer multiple times.  They may even have a bandsaw which helps them make more precise cuts than a hand saw.  The tools within a carpenter’s toolbox enable them to build things quickly, precisely, and more efficiently.

Is your team afraid to log not met domains and coaching notes? Do they often communicate that they don’t want to ‘tattle’? OR, are they completely silent during team meetings? It’s an uncomfortable discussion, but top box HCAHPS are dependent on seeing and understanding the full picture of your patient’s experience.

Last month, the United States Department of Agriculture (USDA) Rural Housing rolled out extensive amendments to its Technical Handbook for the Single Family Housing Guaranteed Loan Program (HB-1-3555). These updates were particularly concentrated in Chapter 18, Servicing Non-Performing Loans - Accounts with Repayment Problems, which serves as the primary guidance for USDA default servicing.