Commun ty Matters Salina Presbyterian Manor
HIPAA 101 A simple question doesn’t always have a simple answer. “Why did my friend go to the hospital?” seems to be a simple question, but the answer is blocked by a federal law. While most think of the law as the protector of medical records, privacy isn’t even in its name.
We call it HIPAA (pronounced HIP-pah), but the Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act of 1996 also has been known as the Kassebaum-Kennedy Act or Kennedy-Kassebaum Act. Sen. Nancy Landon Kassebaum, R-Kan., was a leading sponsor of the bill, along with Sen. Edward Kennedy, D-Mass. The official explanation is: “An Act To amend the Internal Revenue Code of 1986 to improve portability and continuity of health insurance coverage in the group and individual markets, to combat waste, fraud, and abuse in health insurance and health care delivery, to promote the use of medical savings accounts, to improve access to long-term care services and coverage, to simplify the administration of health insurance, and for other purposes.” The main intent was that the health industry would save money by computerizing paper records. That led to concerns over privacy, which led to new privacy regulations. HIPPA, continued on page 2
January 2015
Positive return
Resident moves to Manor apartment after PATH It was a clear day in September 2013 when a distracted driver rear-ended Jake Mitchell’s 1968 Ford pickup on Interstate 135, rolling it twice. The old truck’s laponly seatbelt likely saved Mitchell’s life, but he was left with severe injuries including a collapsed lung, nine broken ribs and a collapsed vertebrae in his neck. After a month in the hospital, Mitchell came to the Post-Acute to Home Jake Mitchell (PATH)® rehabilitation program at Salina Presbyterian Manor for the lengthy recovery that lay ahead. Mitchell, 75, couldn’t walk or swallow food. He needed physical, occupational and speech therapy. It was a confusing time, and at first Mitchell didn’t feel up to the task. “When it was time for my first session, I said no, I didn’t want to go,” he said, “But once I knew more about what was going on, I was fine.” Because of his neck injury, Mitchell couldn’t swallow solid food; he had to be fed through a stomach tube. Speech therapist Karen Watson rated him at a one for swallowing function, on a scale of one to six. Mitchell says Watson was especially key in his recovery. Within a few months he scored six – completely recovered. “She said I was the only person she’s ever worked with that she was able to see that much progress,” Mitchell said. Mitchell said he appreciated the dedication of everyone on his rehab team to helping him regain his independence. He left PATH on Jan. 22, 2014. But in March, he was back again, this time not as a patient, but as an apartment resident after 15 years of living alone. “One reason I came back to the Manor was the great experience I had,” Mitchell said. “It was a magnet that drew me back.” Today Mitchell is also back on his exercise regimen: 90 minutes a day at the YMCA, just like before the crash. Fitness has been a priority for PATH, continued on page 8