OASIS Office hours for providers

 

To: Home Health Agencies, Administrators, and OASIS Coordinators From: The Staff Onboarding & Provider Support Program of Health Facilities & Emergency Medical Services Division (HFEMSD) I’m pleased to offer ongoing weekly OASIS Office Hours to answer your OASIS-related questions. Please mark your calendar for weekly Tuesday office hours from 2:00-3:00 PM MST and keep the link below handy. Join with Google Meet Or dial: ‪(US) +1 929-266-3433‬ PIN: ‪996 515 485‬# If you can't attend during that time, please reach out, and I will schedule an individual meeting for you. Best regards, Wendy Other questions? Contact wendy.castro@state.co.us or cdphe_oasis_colorado@state.co.us

MDS Office hours for providers

 

To: MDS Coordinators, Directors of Nursing, Billing and Coding Personnel, Licensed Nursing Facilities Administrators From: The Staff Onboarding & Provider Support Program of Health Facilities & Emergency Medical Services Division (HFEMSD) I’m pleased to offer ongoing weekly MDS Office Hours to answer your MDS-related questions. Please mark your calendar for weekly Tuesday office hours from 2:00-3:00 PM MST and keep the link below handy. Join with Google Meet Or dial: ‪(US) +1 929-266-3433‬ PIN: ‪996 515 485‬# If you can't attend during that time, please reach out, and I will schedule an individual meeting for you. Best regards, Wendy Other questions? Contact wendy.castro@state.co.us or cdphe_mds_colorado@state.co.us

Assisted Living Residence Informal Dispute Resolution (ALR IDR) Committee meeting

 

To: Assisted Living Residences Providers From: HFEMSD The ALR IDR Committee will meet on November 19, 2026, at 10:00 a.m. The meeting will be held remotely unless an in-person meeting is requested via email to elaine.sabyan@state.co.us by close of business Monday, November 16, 2026. You may access the meeting remotely by way of Google Meet or by phone:  Join with Google Meet  Phone: 1 801-938-8063‬ PIN: ‪628 701 073‬#  For more information, please contact Elaine Sabyan

6 CCR 1015-4 - Statewide Emergency Medical and Trauma Care System, Chapter Three - Designation of Trauma Facilities, Stakeholder Engagement Meeting

 

To: Licensed Hospitals, Critical Access Hospitals, Freestanding Emergency Departments, and Community Clinics   From: HFEMSD   The Department invites you to participate in a process to review, reorganize, and update 6 CCR 1015-4 - Statewide Emergency Medical and Trauma Care Systems, Chapter Three - Designation of Trauma Facilities (Trauma Chapter 3). The next meeting is Wednesday, November 18, 1-4 p.m. Topics for this meeting include: current rules on Enforcement and Disciplinary Process and Level I/RPTC and Level II Designation Criteria.   Stakeholder engagement is integral to the Department’s effort to align Trauma Chapter Three with hospital facility care and requirements. To ensure that you receive notice of all meetings related to the update of 6 CCR 1015-4, Chapter 3, please sign up for the Trauma Chapter Three mailing list. Please share this link with anyone interested in this rulemaking process. Meeting details, including agendas and proposed rule language, will be available before each meeting in the public Google folder dedicated to this rulemaking. November 18, 2026, 1:00 – 4:00 pm at: Colorado Department of Public Health and Environment 4300 Cherry Creek Drive South Denver, CO 80234 Building A, Carson Room   Remote meeting information: Join Zoom Meeting Meeting ID: 835 2046 2002  Passcode: 718414 Find your local number   If you are interested in the stakeholder process for updating hospital licensing standards at 6 CCR 1011-1, Chapter 4 - Hospitals, please sign up to receive notice for those meetings, Zoom links, and other important information. Please feel free to share this link with others interested in the update to Chapter 4 - Hospitals.   If you have any questions or comments before the first meeting, please contact Grace Sandeno at grace.sandeno@state.co.us or Ellen Eggleston at ellen.eggleston@state.co.us.

CDC Call for Cases: Multi-Facility Cluster of Burkholderia cepacia complex -- October 8, 2026

 

To: Healthcare partners  From: Healthcare-Associated Infections and Antimicrobial Resistance Program On Oct. 8, 2026, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) issued a call for cases as part of an investigation into a multi-facility cluster of infections due to Burkholderia cepacia complex. Burkholderia cepacia complex (Bcc) comprises a group of closely related gram-negative bacteria found in environmental sources, including soil and water, that have been associated with healthcare outbreaks. In September 2026, a jurisdiction notified CDC of a cluster of Bcc urinary tract and bloodstream infections following transrectal ultrasound-guided prostate biopsies performed at multiple urology clinics from July through September of 2026. Available isolates were subsequently identified as Burkholderia contaminans. CDC seeks to identify potentially related cases in other jurisdictions. As part of case-finding, CDC is requesting that clinicians and healthcare facilities notify their state, local, or territorial health department about patients who meet the following criteria: Newly diagnosed Bcc infection confirmed by culture from blood or urine (including isolates reported as B. contaminans or Bcc without species-level identification); AND Specimen collected on or after April 1, 2026; AND Transrectal ultrasound-guided prostate biopsy, or another endocavitary ultrasound-guided procedure involving biopsy, aspiration, or needle penetration of underlying tissue, performed on or after April 1, 2026, and before collection of the positive blood or urine specimen. Please make reports to the Colorado Department of Public Health and Environment at cdphe_hai_ar@state.co.us. Please include available information regarding the procedure, including procedure type, procedure date, healthcare setting where the procedure was performed, and aqueous products used during the procedure (e.g., ultrasound gel, lubricating jelly) with manufacturer name, lot number, and expiration date. Please retain patient isolates for possible submission to CDC for laboratory testing. As a reminder, healthcare providers should report infections that might be associated with a medical product to FDA’s MedWatch Program and to the product manufacturer. Of note, this reporting is not limited to the case-finding period specified above.

Comprehensive Care Planning

 

To: MDS Coordinators, Directors of Nursing, Billing and Coding Personnel, Licensed Nursing Facilities Administrators From: The Staff Onboarding & Provider Support Program of Health Facilities & Emergency Medical Services Division (HFEMSD) Upcoming Training: Comprehensive Care Planning Join me on Tuesday, December 1, 2026, from 1 to 2 pm for a live virtual training that discusses care planning for the Minimum Data Set (MDS), establishing a baseline care plan, completing comprehensive Care Area Assessments (CAAs), and finalizing a person-centered care plan. A thorough CAA process ensures that no two CAAs are the same, and building a care plan from those CAAs, no two care plans will be the same either. Care plans will be more person-centered and individualized—not cookie-cutter care plans. Log in to TRAIN to register for Comprehensive Care Planning Please feel free to contact me with any questions. Hope to see everyone there! Other questions? Contact wendy.castro@state.co.us or cdphe_mds_colorado@state.co.us

CORRECTED DATE FOR OASIS: Falls with Major Injury (FMI) Quality Measure (QM) Respecified

 

To: Home Health Agencies, Administrators, and OASIS Coordinators From: The Staff Onboarding & Provider Support Program of Health Facilities & Emergency Medical Services Division (HFEMSD) Upcoming Training: OASIS: Falls with Major Injury (FMI) Quality Measures (QM) Respecified Join me on Friday, November 20, 2026, from 9am to 11am for a live virtual training that discusses how the respecified measure includes both assessment and claims/encounter data. Additionally, the training will review key changes in HH data collection guidance related to falls and injuries. The course will provide: An overview of the background and rationale for updating the FMI QM A review of the hybrid FMI QM methodology, including how assessment and claims/encounter data are used together to identify falls with major injury An overview of updated measure specifications and data collection guidance Log in to TRAIN to register for OASIS: Falls with Major Injury (FMI) Quality Measure (QM) Respecified Please feel free to contact me with any questions. Hope to see everyone there! Other questions? Contact wendy.castro@state.co.us or cdphe_oasis_colorado@state.co.us

MDS Broadcast November 2026

 

To: MDS Coordinators, Directors of Nursing, Billing and Coding Personnel, Licensed Nursing Facilities Administrators From: The Staff Onboarding & Provider Support Program of Health Facilities & Emergency Medical Services Division (HFEMSD) MDS Broadcast November 2026 Other questions? Contact wendy.castro@state.co.us or cdphe_mds_colorado@state.co.us

OASIS Broadcast November 2026

 

To: Home Health Agencies, Administrators, and OASIS Coordinators From: The Staff Onboarding & Provider Support Program of Health Facilities & Emergency Medical Services Division (HFEMSD) OASIS Broadcast November 2026 Other questions? Contact wendy.castro@state.co.us or cdphe_oasis_colorado@state.co.us

Preparing Documentation for Health Facility Surveys

 

To: Licensed Health Facility Administrators From: The Colorado Department of Public Health and Environment Health Facilities and Emergency Medical Services Division The Colorado Department of Public Health and Environment (CDPHE), Health Facilities and Emergency Medical Services (HFEMS) Division, is committed to continually improving our survey processes to better serve Colorado's licensed healthcare facilities while ensuring compliance with applicable state and federal requirements. As part of a recent process improvement initiative, the Division evaluated opportunities to make the survey process more efficient for both healthcare providers and our survey staff. One area identified was the amount of time spent during surveys requesting and gathering documentation needed for review. To help streamline the survey process, we have developed standardized documentation lists based on facility type. We respectfully request that your facility prepare these materials in advance and have them readily available in a single location at the start of the survey whenever possible. While advance preparation of these documents is not a regulatory requirement, it is strongly encouraged as a best practice to help facilitate a timely, organized, and efficient survey. Our goal is to reduce the amount of time spent locating documentation during the survey, allowing both facility staff and surveyors to focus on the survey process itself. Requested Documentation  Acute Care (ASC, Birth Centers, CCDOC, CCEC, FSED)  Assisted Living Residences Home Care (Adult Day, HCA Class A & B, HHA, IHSS, PHS, Hospice) Nursing Facilities Intellectual & Developmental Disabilities (RCF) Having these materials organized and available at the beginning of the survey offers several benefits: Reduces time spent locating and retrieving documents throughout the survey. Allows surveyors to begin the review process more efficiently. Minimizes interruptions to facility staff during the survey. Helps shorten the amount of time surveyors need to remain onsite whenever possible. Please note that these documentation lists are intended to facilitate a more efficient survey process and represent the materials most commonly requested during a survey. Depending on observations made during the survey, staff interviews, complaint allegations, or other survey findings, surveyors may request additional documentation as necessary to complete the survey in accordance with applicable state and federal requirements. We recognize that every facility operates differently, and we appreciate your partnership in this effort. Your preparation and cooperation help us conduct surveys more efficiently while allowing both facility staff and surveyors to focus on what matters most ensuring the delivery of safe, high-quality care for Colorado residents. This initiative reflects the HFEMS Division’s commitment to being a Reliable, Efficient, Accountable, Compliant, and Helpful (REACH) partner to Colorado’s licensed healthcare providers while fulfilling our responsibility to protect the health and safety of the people we serve. Thank you for your continued partnership and commitment to quality. We appreciate your support as we implement these improvements and look forward to working with you to make the survey process as efficient and effective as possible.

Long Term Care (LTC) Informal Dispute Resolution (IDR) Committee Meeting 11/3/2026

 

To: Long Term Care Providers From: HFEMSD The LTC IDR Committee will meet on November 3, 2026, at 1:30 p.m. The meeting will be held remotely unless an in-person meeting is requested via email to elaine.sabyan@state.co.us by close of business on October 30, 2026.    You may access the meeting remotely by way of Google Meet or phone: Join with Google Meet Join by phone – 1 254-859-0227 PIN: 457 378 491#

Nursing Home Round Table 11/3/2026

 

To: Nursing Home Providers/Stakeholders From: Chad Fear, Nursing Facilities Section Manager 11/3/26 Agenda for Nursing Home Round Table

Long-term Care Informal Dispute Resolution Committee Vacancy

 

To: LTC providers From: HFEMSD There is a vacancy for a facility representative on the LTC Informal Dispute Resolution (IDR) Committee. This 7-member committee includes facility representatives and representatives from various state agencies, including the Ombudsman and the Division’s Nursing Facilities LTC program. The committee meets the first Tuesday of each month to review, in accordance with Section 7212 of the State Operations Manual, facility challenges to the evidence surrounding disputed deficiencies. Currently, the meetings are held virtually unless there is a specific request to meet in person.   Facility representatives must hold the position of administrator, nursing director, or clinical consultant (without broad involvement in multiple facilities). We encourage facility representatives outside the Denver area to apply.   Facility representatives generally serve on the committee for two years. Each representative has an alternate with whom they may share voting responsibilities.   Interested facility representatives may submit inquiries or send a resume to elaine.sabyan@state.co.us. Resumes will be collected through November 9, 2026.

Memorandum: Quarterly ALAC Meeting November 5, 2026

 

To: Assisted Living Advisory Committee Members  From: Marcie Schweitzer, ALR Community Services Section Manager Hello ALAC Members and the Public, Join the conversation: A quarterly meeting for assisted living providers, consumers, and community stakeholders.  Hybrid Meeting: November 5, 2026 at 1:30 p.m.  Attendees are welcome to participate either virtually or in person. Zoom Meeting link Meeting ID: 867 4471 7572 Passcode: 743506 Phone: (719) 359-4580 Meeting ID: 867 4471 7572 In-Person Meeting location:  Building A - Sabin/Cleere Conference Room 4300 Cherry Creek Drive South, Denver, CO 80246  Official meeting agendas and minutes are publicly available on the department website at Assisted Living Advisory Committee | CDPHE and the agenda for the upcoming meeting will be posted closer to the meeting date. Artificial Intelligence (AI) note-taking by attendees may occur during this meeting. Please be advised that notes collected in this manner are not considered the official record of the meeting.