Category Archives: COVID-19

WINK-TV INterview / Port Charolette

NEWS: RESTORE Skills featured on WINK-TV (CBS, Myers, FL)

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RESTORE-Skills was featured on WINK News (Fort Myers, FL). Below is an excerpt from the segment featuring a patient & two staff members from Signature HealthCARE of Port Charlotte:

New virtual therapy technology used inside nursing homes is giving patients the care they need and giving them a way to have fun too.

Sally Connelly-Jones is a fighter. A survivor. She suffered a stroke. Beat it. Got COVID-19. Beat that too.

What’s next?

“I miss shopping,” Connelly said.

Jones lives at nursing home Signature HealthCARE Port Charlotte in Charlotte County.

Jones told us the loneliness has been almost as bad as her stroke.

“It was the stay in your room and not go out in the hall, not go outside and breathe some fresh air,” Jones said.

That stroke left her left side numb.

“I really hated therapy when I started because it wasn’t fun. It was very painful,” Jones said. “But you know, the more I work, the harder I got at it. And I said, you know, this is not going to say who I am. I’m going to dictate to it.”

What helped was new virtual technology. It looks and feels like a game, but it’s much more.

Check out the full news story HERE!

telehealth

NEWS: Ian Oppel Interviewed for “Telehealth Best Practices” Series

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Below is an excerpt from the Telehealth Best Practices interview series:

In this interview series, called “Telehealth Best Practices; How To Best Care For Your Patients When They Are Not Physically In Front Of You” we are talking to successful Doctors, Dentists, Psychotherapists, Counselors, and other medical and wellness professionals who share lessons and stories from their experience about the best practices in Telehealth. As a part of this series, I had the pleasure of interviewing Ian Oppel.

Ian Oppel is a healthcare executive with over 25 years of post-acute healthcare leadership experience providing expertise in rehabilitation, fiscal and clinical operations, memory care, senior living, reimbursement, and regulatory compliance. Ian is currently the Co-Founder and Chief Clinical Officer for RestoreSkills, a leading edge therapeutic gamification and telehealth company.

Can you share the most interesting story that happened to you since you began your career?

At one of the very first skilled nursing facilities to implement RESTORE, I was introducing the gaming platform to an 88 year-old patient who was recovering from congestive heart failure. She wasn’t enthusiastic about video games, but was a good sport and willing to try with a goal to increase her standing activity tolerance. 1 minute into the game, her two great-grandchildren ran into the room shouting “Grandma, Grandma we want to play!” She sat down with a huge smile on her face. She handed over the controls to one of the grandsons, while the other sat patiently on her lap before taking his turn. The boys’ mother came over to me and softly asked “what is this and how do I get it for my home?” Before I could answer, she continued with tears in her eyes “my son sitting on her lap is autistic and this is the first time he’s ever entered the room with my grandmother let alone allowed her to embrace him.”

To have played any part of that magical moment was incredible and to this day motivates me to do everything I can to help customers and clients to experience successes both large and small.

...

Can you share a few ways that Telehealth can create opportunities or benefits that traditional in-office visits cannot provide? Can you please share a story or give an example?

I was assisting a clinician during a telehealth session with a patient who had suffered a stroke. The patient was part of a large, supportive family who lived near Atlantic City, NJ. He was an avid gambler and the family would make a monthly visit for a weekend of slot machine play. RESTORE-Skills has a game called Jackpot, which is a virtual slot machine with settings that can be adjusted based on a patient’s physical and cognitive ability level to ensure success. The therapist coordinated a virtual session to include the patient’s brother and sister. Initially they observed the session and offered encouragement to their loved one as he played his favorite game. They began to reminisce about the last time they were in the casino together. Then it clicked for the sister as she noticed an improvement in how her brother was moving his arm while pulling the lever of the slot machine (which moved to the opposite side after each pull to challenge his range of motion and coordination). “That’s great exercise and you’re doing something you love at the same time. This makes me so happy” she exclaimed. The therapist was then able to provide the family members with a code that enabled them to all play together on the same screen in a five minute slot tournament. After the session was complete, the therapist noted that it was the longest the patient had stood while performing activity and that it was clear interactivity from his family was key in providing added motivation.

Telehealth evolved out of the need for greater access, flexibility, and demand. Access to quality health providers. Access to reliable transportation. Flexibility for busy schedules/lifestyles. Providers can better meet the increasing demand for patient visits when provided virtually from a single location.

Covid-19 has certainly accelerated the use and scope of telehealth services. At RESTORE-Skills, early on we identified that perhaps an even greater risk than covid for our clients was the challenge of mitigating the risks of social isolation for patients as visitation in senior living came to an abrupt halt. We introduced a new feature, RESTORE-Together, which enabled clinicians working with a patient in their room to invite family members, friends, or even connect with other patients/residents during treatment sessions. They were able to offer visual and verbal encouragement, as well as interactively play on the same screen from the safety of their own homes or rooms.

Check out the full interview with our Chief Clinical Officer, Ian Oppel HERE!

WREG News Live at 9

NEWS: RESTORE-Skills featured on WREG News Live at 9

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RESTORE-Skills' CEO, Eran Arden, spoke with Jerrita Patterson on WREG News' Live at 9 about connecting seniors & their loved ones.

Patterson: More and more senior citizens are really lining up to get coronavirus vaccines across the country. But for many in nursing homes, the pandemic continues to keep them isolated from both family and friends. Now, a new platform is changing the way loved ones can interact all while staying safely apart. This morning, we're live with the CEO of RESTORE-Skills, Eran Arden, to learn more about RESTORE-Together.

Patterson: Correct me if I'm wrong, but this is a motivational therapy platform, correct? Explain what this is about.

Arden: Jerrita, thank you very much! Yeah, you are correct. RESTORE-Skills is a gaming enviornment that motivates residents in nursing homes to continue building and matain the skills they need to live independetly. We use a simple computer, so no expensive devices needed, and we have about 200 activities all designed to motivate the patients to stay active. [They can] work on their sit to stand skills, motor skills, range of motion and everything in between all while playing games.

Arden: When the pandemic started, we also realized we also want to help connect family members to their loved ones in the facilities. So, we created an enviornment where residents that are isolated [in their room] can play with their loved ones [who are] at home.

Patterson: What has been the reaction from those in nursing homes? What have you heard? What have you seen so far?

Arden: The reaction is amazing and that's what empowers us to wake up in the morning and develop the [platform] and our games.

Check out the full interview on WREG News' Live at 9 Facebook page HERE!

Spectrum 1 News Ohio

NEWS: RESTORE-Skills featured on Spectrum 1 News Ohio

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Below is an excerpt from the story from Spectrum 1 News Ohio:

CLEVELAND — Elizabeth Sims and her caregiver admit that since the start of the coronavirus pandemic, things haven’t been the same at The Heights Rehabilitation and Healthcare Center in Broadview Heights. Pandemic restrictions have cut out communal dining, team exercise and group therapy at facility.

“Before, we used to be able to be down in the therapy gym. So, it would be fun because they're all around people; you could play games and now, you're really stuck in the rooms with the patients,” Sims says.

Things have taken a turn for the better at the facility. Residents started connecting virtually through RESTORE-Skills, a computer based motivational therapy platform with a multiplayer function that now allows patients the ability to play skill-building games with one another.

“At least they can interact and you're using technology and they can still get involved and do some kind of fun…and it helps her cognitive skills.”  Tina Wilson’s caregiver says.

Check out the full interview with our CEO, Eran Arden, and the team from The Heights HERE!

abc7 San Francisco

NEWS: RESTORE-Skills featured on ABC7 San Francisco

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Below is an excerpt from the story from ABC7 News San Francisco:

SAN FRANCISCO (KGO) -- Health is an important aspect of Building a Better Bay Area.

As patients at care facilities are dealing with prolonged social isolation with visits from families curtailed or not allowed, caregivers are turning to multi-player skill games to improve patient outcomes.

Bingo has always been a popular way to engage patients in care facilities to use their minds, hands, and arms. COVID-19 has not only stopped that, but also visits from loved ones.
"If we don't have friends and peers to work with, then you know, then we, unfortunately, don't have the motivation to practice and to live longer," said Eran Arden, CEO at Restore Skills. RESTORE-Skills is a cloud-based platform with a library of 50 games that occupational therapists can use for rehabilitation and skills development.
51-year-old Mike Willham has multiple sclerosis. Moving a ball in his hand to play a slot machine game is more than just having fun at winning jackpots. "It allows me to move my left arm from side to side and up and down. And it has built up strength in the left arm," said Willham as he made those moves. An up and down motion with the ball caused the arm on the slot machine to activate."
It's helping with cognition, it helps with fine motor, gross motor coordination, strengthening," said Carrie Blum, an occupational therapy assistant at The Heights Rehabilitation & Healthcare Center. "It's been helping with their endurance and activity tolerance."

Check out the full interview with our CEO, Eran Arden, and the team from The Heights HERE!

skilled nursing isolation

We RESTORE-Skills TOGETHER!

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RESTORE-Together motivates skilled nursing patients to safely collaborate with loved ones and join team activities

Isolation is not for us. As human beings, we are together creatures. We strive for connection from the second we are born; from the minute we look for our mother’s eyes to the language we develop, the relationships we build, and the communities we are so proud to be part of.

Today we are proud to launch RESTORE-Together, enhancing our motivational therapy platform with a multiplayer function.  Patients now have the ability to play therapy-driven skill-building games remotely with their loved ones, connect with other residents in the skilled nursing facility for a group activity, and even participate in live, nationwide gaming tournaments — all from the safety of their rooms!

RESTORE-Together addresses isolation challenge

RESTORE-Together couldn’t have come at a more crucial time. 

Among the biggest emotional challenges, residents are facing during the pandemic is social and emotional isolation. Residents have spent months in their rooms, with day rooms and therapy gyms closed, limitations on visits,  and still no end in sight.  

A new survey of 365 nursing home residents in 36 states, conducted throughout July and August, by the non-profit Altarum Institute, shows that pandemic restrictions have affected nearly every part of residents’ lives, especially their mental health. According to the survey results, “76 percent of respondents reported that they felt lonelier under the restrictions, an unsurprising finding, given that 64 percent of respondents also indicated that they no longer even leave their rooms to socialize with other residents.”

Multiplayer, social gaming opportunities offer residents a chance to safely socialize while making therapy strides.

In our beta testing of RESTORE-Together, the feedback from therapists, patients and their family members has been overwhelmingly positive. We saw firsthand patients’ excitement for the opportunity to connect and share an experience with a loved one or friend. One patient in a Columbus, Ohio-based nursing home tripled his standing tolerance while competing in our slot machine game against his sister in Cleveland. It was a powerful moment for the patient, his sister, and the occupational therapist working with the patient.

We know that today, during the forced COVID-19 isolation, finding the motivation to practice therapy exercises is even more challenging. And residents and therapists alike are tired of the limited therapy exercises they can practice in the patient rooms. 

With RESTORE, we have seen how making therapy more fun, with patient-centered games provides a tremendous boost to motivation. RESTORE turns every patient room into a therapy gym, and now RESTORE-Together turns these same rooms into group therapy gyms.

Group activities that motivate residents with a sense of competition from the safety of their room

Breakthroughs are created when we work together. Even tennis players are not alone in a game, during the game breaks, they communicate with their coaches to get advice and release emotions. When running a marathon seeing your family cheering along the way gives you a burst of energy that will support you in the following miles. 

Just prior to the pandemic, skilled nursing facilities were providing more group and concurrent therapy sessions to comply with PDPM, the new payment system from October 2019. Therapists found that the group dynamic added a social element to therapy, similar to the motivation people receive from a workout buddy or group exercise class. Just as these sessions became more popular, therapy gyms closed.

RESTORE-Together provides nursing home staff with the ability to create a facility-wide activity. Residents now are missing the close friendships and connections that normally occur in these facilities. Thanks to Restore-Together, residents can once again safely join a social activity without leaving their rooms. The smiles on the patients’ faces trying to win a virtual air hockey game while working on transitional movements showed us the power of collaboration.

Studies show that participants are more motivated to complete a physical effort task in which they face competition from another player over one where they are rewarded for winning an overall percentage.

No doubt RESTORE-Together will be an additional source of motivation and smiles for nursing home residents, their families, and the teams working with them across the U.S.  

No special hardware is needed, RESTORE-Together offers all the benefits of RESTORE, now with the additional benefit of collaboration. Thanks to the RESTORE platform, facilities across the country can do the following from their simple laptops:

  • Turn every patient room into a therapy gym with just a laptop and a webcam
  • Employees on every level can become a skill-building superstar. 
  • Connect patients to loved ones and other therapy patients
  • Keep seniors busy, active, and engaged

Everything we do at RESTORE-Skills comes from our passion to help therapists motivate patients. We want to see every patient restore the skills they need to live a more full and independent life. 

Let’s RESTORE-Together,

Eran Arden

WBOC Good Day Delmarva

NEWS: RESTORE-Skills featured on WBOC’s Good Day Delmarva

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Below is an excerpt from the story from Good Day Delmarva: 

For today's Wellness Wednesday, Sydney speaks with Joe Asseline with the Westgate Hills Rehabilitation & Healthcare Center to learn about the steps they're taking to provide contact-less care during the ongoing pandemic. 

Today with the help of Westgate Hills Rehabilitation & Healthcare Center in Baltimore, Maryland we discover ways in which they're reaching goals with a contactless approach.

Joe: I've been working at Westgate Hills Rehab for the past year and a half. My goal is to help patient's restore their function & independence through actiticties of daily living and self-care tasks. 

Sydney: How are have you noticing that certain facilities or even yours are turning to technology to help folks get the therapy and attention that they need? 

Joe: In my sesssion, I find it's very important to use video chat...we've also been able to use this really cool RESTORE virtual reality game system. RESTORE is a syetm that we are able to bring therapeutic activties and excercises into the rooms of patients. Not only that, there's a new feature that they've just rolled out that we're able to video chat in with the families so they can add words of encouragement. It's really cool! I find that they're always asking to use it because they think the games are really fun, 

Check it out the full interview with Joe Asselin, OTR/L HERE!

senoirs in long term care connecting with families

NEWS: RESTORE-Skills CEO on ABC’s Local 24 News

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RESTORE-Skills CEO interviewed on Memphis' Local 24 News (ABC)

Below is an excerpt from the story on tech in skilled nursing: 

There is a new way some Tennesseans are connecting to loved ones in facilities. Virtually.  It's called Restore-Skills.com. It's a computer-based occupational and physical therapy gaming program. All someone in a long term care facility needs is a laptop to use it. Restore has been on the market since 2019, but when the COVID-19 pandemic hit, its creators expanded its capabilities to allow family members to virtually join in.   

"We wanted to create fun and meaningful activities, so we added the ability to connect the family member to the game while doing the activity," said Eran Arden, Restore-Skills CEO.

Arden says there is a list of games a therapist can pick from, depending on what skills the patients needs to work on. During the sessions, family members can get looped in.

"Once they join they would see the patient live and the game running," said Arden. "They can see the loved ones moving their shifting balance left and right while skiing the slopes."

Arden says family members can cheer the person in the nursing home, and there are even games that can be played together.

Check it out in full HERE!

nursing home visitation

NEWS: RESTORE featured in WTBU Radio story

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RESTORE-Skills featured in a WTBU Radio (Boston) story titled, “Mass. Longterm Care Facilities Welcome Socially Distant Visitors"

Below is an excerpt from the story on visitation: 

Amanda Telesca is the Director of Rehab at the North End Rehabilitation and Healthcare Center, which has 100 beds and about 150 staff members.  Telesca estimated that the average age of the residents is between 75 and 85 years old.

In April, her facility started receiving new guidelines from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention about limiting gatherings and visits. With the new changes, though, came tradeoffs for seniors.

The North End facility started using the RESTORE Skills therapy program, an online, web-cam based program that has a teleconferencing feature so family members can join the virtual therapy sessions.  Physical therapy exercises are incorporated into games, which RESTORE skills developers say keep residents engaged in the session.

The facility’s goal is to prepare residents to return home and Telesca said that using a technological therapy tool has benefits beyond the physical therapy aspect.

“It is a lot of fun and it’s a good tool to use, as far as coordination goes and technology-wise, training people to use their laptops and preparing for home that way,” Telesca said.

 

Check it out in full HERE!

snf-therapy-during-covid

Let’s use the state of SNF therapy today as a springboard for more positive outcomes

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There’s no question that therapy today in skilled nursing facilities looks vastly different than it did several months ago (and for many years before that). What is yet to be determined is whether or not these changes can result in positive outcomes for all parties involved--patients, of course, therapists and skilled nursing facilities.

Just recently, the federal government released a much-needed $5 billion aid package to SNFs--one that came on the heels of the industry's first-ever decline in margins reported since 1999. That funding, combined with the collective will to improve therapy challenges that existed in the industry even prior to COVID-19, is a rare opportunity. Of course, COVID-19 exacerbated challenges SNFs were already facing, it is also an opportunity for a total redesign of how SNFs provide therapy. I would like to propose that the vastly different climate in SNFs this summer 2020 should be a springboard for a more positive future for therapy in skilled nursing facilities. 

Moving from RUG-IV reimbursement to PDPM for therapy

Last October 2019 when the federal government entered a new fiscal year, the new Patient-Driven Payment Model (PDPM) replaced the long-held Prospective Payment System, RUG-IV approach to billing for therapy based on time spent per patient. The immediate effect of that change was that 43 percent of operators reported laying off therapists to a Skilled Nursing News SNF poll, as well as a reduction in hours. Facilities started providing more group therapy and concurrent therapy sessions, offering patients a chance to be motivated by one another as they each worked toward personal goals.

That was until COVID-19 hit in March 2020.  

We in the industry would still be sorting out the ripple effect of the move to PDPM this year, except that a bigger tsunami hit the skilled nursing facility industry in the form of a global pandemic. 

COVID-19 results in bigger changes for therapy

Five months into the COVID-19 pandemic, and most long term care patients are still spending the majority of time in their rooms, with little to no outside visitors. Therapy gyms are closed or only available to a limited number of patients at a time--at a social distance. And skilled nursing facilities are no longer getting reimbursed by therapy minute thresholds.

Therapists are now providing therapy within patient rooms, but this can be limited to the creativity, experience level and motivation of each individual therapist.

You could look at this as a disaster for the state of therapy in skilled nursing facilities, but I see it as an opportunity. As an experienced occupational therapist, I long ago recognized the need for a new approach to SNF therapy. The tired therapy exercises of batting at balloons and using cones or a pegboard are not enough to motivate patients to reach new goals. I despised going through the motions of cookie-cutter therapy. I knew I wasn’t providing the best opportunity for healing to my patients.

The SNF therapy industry needed a shakeup, and now we have it. 

The change to PDPM means the number one focus is on patient outcomes. This should always be our goal as therapists and SNFs, and COVID-19 doesn’t change this goal either.

COVID-19

Here are 4 ways we can take 2020’s changes to SNF therapy and use it as a springboard for better therapy and more positive outcomes in the future

Focus on our ability to accelerate outcomes

Patients, therapists and SNFs are all now aligned around one goal every time: achieving the best outcome in the shortest, most responsible period of time. This has always been what the patient wants and what is best for the facility, but now the PDPM reimbursement aligns with that goal. 

How do we achieve this? By focusing on the patient experience. We make therapy fun, engaging and rewarding. Patients who are motivated in therapy will achieve a more positive outcome in a shorter span of time. Of course, every therapist appreciates the rare patient who is motivated and agreeable, but this isn’t always the case when patients can have a whole host of complicated reasons that leave them less motivated in therapy. Therapists need tools they can use that make therapy effective and engaging. The technology exists to do this. I work for a cutting edge company that is leading the way in this area with therapy gaming technology, and the early adopters of this kind of therapy will be among those who are best poised to achieve accelerated outcomes for their patients. 

Focus on connectivity and transparency

Prior to COVID-19, SNF facilities could rely on family visits to keep families connected to their loved ones. Families could easily pop in and ask a question to a nurse or social worker during these visits and, of course, schedule a care consultation.

Now with limited visitation for the foreseeable future due to COVID-19, facilities must proactively keep families in touch with their loved ones and informed about their care. Connectivity and transparency needed to always be a priority, but now all SNFs are forced to make this happen.

Most facilities have succeeded in scheduling Zoom and Facetime calls with families. Some facilities are mandated to do so by their state. But imagine if instead of talking from a chair or bed, families joined parts of a therapy session? Technology offers an incredible level of transparency, as families can motivate patients and celebrate their achievements as they watch. Families will recognize the value of long term care rehab and rest assured their loved one is getting excellent treatment. Gone are the concerns about what is happening behind the walls of a SNF when the relatives aren’t there. 

We at RESTORE have incorporated video conferencing into our platform, and no doubt, this will be an initiative with staying power.

Improve continuity of care

SNFs have always had high turnover and a constant need to aggressively hire new staff. And in therapy, the use of PRNs can mean that new therapists frequently join the care team. COVID-19 escalated this issue as SNF employees were suddenly called upon to soldier through a battle they hadn’t realized they signed up for, and facilities faced more shortages than ever.

The need to standardize care for every person providing treatment has always been a priority, but now it’s an absolute necessity. This is where technology comes in. With therapy technology, every therapist on the team can facilitate a similar session experience, regardless of how well they know the patient. Obviously, rapport in therapy is key to overall success, but when that’s not a possibility, it’s still essential that the patient continues to reach individual goals. Technology that tracks this progress and helps therapists facilitate the actual exercises is key.

Skilled nursing facilities that do this well will have an evidence-based practice to identify patients’ needs and show progress.

This is what we developed with RESTORE Skills, and this is where the future of SNF therapy lies.

Differentiate the care approach and share success stories

Competition is fierce for the same type of patient now with PDPM. It’s not enough to just have an aesthetically beautiful facility. SNFs have to offer a higher quality of care than their competition and then share those stories through marketing. 

Those skilled nursing facilities that differentiate themselves from their competitors by offering better therapy outcomes will be positioned to succeed in the future.

Ultimately, to achieve all of these improvements, SNF employees need to work as a team. When it comes to creating positive outcomes for patients, none of the goals of SNF employees can be individual or exist in a silo. For example, I can’t manage to succeed with a patient in OT if he didn’t get the nutrition he needs or a good night sleep because his roommate kept him up. SNFs need more collective leadership to actually achieve the integrative care approach. This is more than just a morning meeting. It’s one where every team member realizes that they are one piece of a puzzle, working together for a greater goal that can only be achieved with all of them together. 

I left my position after 25 years as a therapy provider, clinical specialist and multiple senior care operator because I saw in my position as CCO at RESTORE Skills an opportunity to impact the whole industry. I recognize how new ways of thinking about therapy in SNFs can have a greater impact on patients and on the facilities and their employees as well. As we continue to deal with the ripple effect of these past few months, I have no doubt that more innovation and new ways of thinking about SNF therapy will develop. Those skilled nursing facilities that embrace this technology and look for ways to achieve more accelerated positive outcomes will come out on top.

Click here to learn more about how RESTORE Skills is helping skilled nursing facilities meet therapy needs, improve patient outcomes, and keep patients engaged and connected, especially during COVID-19. 

About the author:

Ian Oppel is a healthcare executive with over 25 years of post-acute healthcare leadership experience providing expertise in rehabilitation, fiscal and clinical operations, memory care, senior living, reimbursement, and regulatory compliance. Ian is currently the co-founder and chief clinical officer for RestoreSkills, a leading edge therapeutic gamification and telehealth company.