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One
of the most important decisions you can make for
an aging loved one or spouse is selecting the right
nursing home for them. This decision is not always
easy given the many factors that go into the decision—quality
of care, financial requirements, quality of facilities,
location, among others. It is often an emotionally
charged decision that unfortunately, is all too
often made without taking the proper amount of time
to select the right nursing home.
There
are many reputable nursing homes that provide
excellent nursing home care. However, there are
also many that provide less than adequate care
for their residents. In fact, there are well over
15,000 nursing homes currently operating in this
country. Certainly, different individuals will
have different capabilities and needs that must
be matched with the right facility.
 Perhaps
the best thing you can do is to fully educate
yourself on the potential problems that can occur
in a nursing home. The following is a list of
some of the main criteria that will help you eliminate
certain nursing homes and help you choose a nursing
home that is right for your loved ones. One of
the most effective ways to get a good idea of
what is out there, quality, and price is to visit
five or six homes.
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Quality
of Care
It is difficult to find a factor that is more
important than quality of care. This should be
of utmost importance prior to placing a resident
in a home in order to minimize the risk of neglect
or elder care abuse. However, while quality of
care is extremely important, there are high priced
“boutique” nursing homes that may be simply out
of the price range of the resident or their family,
or does not provide for specific needs of a resident,
or is too far away for family to reasonably visit.
Walk
through the facility: Do your homework to find
nursing homes that fit certain objective considerations—they
are affordable for the maximum period of time
a resident might stay there, they have the necessary
services or special needs, and there is room.
Once you compile this list, visit the nursing
homes personally. During a tour, make sure you
see the entire facility, not just the areas that
are open to walk ins. Watch the interaction between
staff and resident as you walk through to get
a sense of what your loved one can expect. Pay
attention to whether any residents are restrained,
the quality of residents’ rooms, and what sorts
of activities and freedom of movement is given
to the residents. Try to get a general sense of
the quality of care in order to use it as a comparison
to other facilities.
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Record
of Care: Every nursing home should be required
to have a record of their compliance with state
and federal regulations and laws. This should
include any penalties for violations. To access
complaints against the nursing home staff or nursing
home itself, speak with the local long term care
ombudsman programs, and the District Office of
Licensing and Certification.
Talk
with friends and family members: Find out if they
know personally about which nursing homes they
think are good and which are bad. This can save
a lot of time and effort because you are dealing
with someone who probably has had first hand experience
with the quality of care given in a certain facility
(perhaps their loved ones are still residents
of the home). Other people who can be invaluable
in this process include ombudsmen, physicians
and others familiar with the facility.
General
Feeling: Never underestimate your own intuition.
This isn’t to say do not go by their record and
the services provided, but rather that you may
be able to eliminate a home because it doesn’t
give off a good feeling. For example, if the administrator
and staff treat you poorly, you can probably assume
this is how they treat their residents. If the
visit is unpleasant, you can imagine what living
there would be like.
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Nursing
Home Staff
If
institutional abuse or neglect occurs in a nursing
home, it is overwhelmingly at the hands of one
of the staff members. The following are tips to
choosing a nursing home with the right kind of
staff.
- Facility
administration places an emphasis on treating
each resident (as well as their staff members)
with dignity and respect. They respect the choices
and wishes of their residents.
- Nursing
home provides their staff with comprehensive
orientation and training programs that develop
the right approach and methods for dealing with
the varied needs of residents.
- Staff
members are allowed to come to the administration
to discuss how to deal with facility or personal
problems with residents they may be having.
Residents can push staff into situations that
are ultimately dangerous for them. Administrators
provide the appropriate counseling opportunities.
- If
personal problems do exist between staff and
resident, the home facilities reassign the staff
member.
- Administrators
and staff have a pleasant and clean break room.
The proper equipment and supplies exist for
a safe, healthy nursing home.
- A
“no abuse” policy exists. This prevents any
situation of escalating abuse from occurring.
- Administrators
and supervisors insist on reporting suspected
abuse, neglect or exploitation to the Department
of Human Services. They make this policy clear
to residents, staff, and family members.
- Nursing
home administration and staff know about and
utilize the Long-term Care Ombudsman Program
when appropriate.
Special
Needs of Resident
Knowing whether an older person in your care has
special needs is a very important consideration.
Much of this information should be known by a
personal physician who would have recommended
such items as a ventilator or oxygen, or would
have been aware of any mental deficiencies, aggressive
behavior, etc. There are many types of nursing
homes that provide different levels of care and
have differing admitting requirements. Most, however,
provide both skilled and custodial care. Talk
with each nursing home to find out if they have
the staffing and facilities to handle the specific
needs of your loved one.
Location
If a nursing home is too far away from family
and loved ones this may take away from the health
and protection of your loved ones. Even if the
nursing home seems perfect, location must be taken
into consideration for the emotional impact upon
the resident. Many studies have shown that residents
who have frequent visits by friends and loved
ones recover more quickly, and tend to be happier
and enjoy a greater state of health than others.
This is not surprising given people’s desire to
be needed and wanted. In addition, nursing home
care is often better when the staff knows that
the family and relatives often just “drop by”
for a visit. And finally, nursing homes that are
near family members and friends allow them to
keep an eye on the relative health of the resident
and gives them better respond time should an emergency
occur.
Financing
a Nursing Home
There
are two basic types of nursing homes, private
pay and Medicare certified facilities. Private
pay is just like it sounds, the individual themselves
pays for the entire bill. This is often very difficult
to do, especially given the fact that older Americans
are living longer than ever before. The average
rate of private pay in a state such as California
is so high that only a select few can afford this
scenario indefinitely. Private-pay only facilities
can and will evict someone who converts to Medicare
or Medicaid. This is why it is advisable to first
look for a Medicare program, at least to begin
with.
Choosing
a Medicare certified facility means that you are
supplemented by the state and federal government.
In most states, once a resident is admitted to
one of these nursing home, they cannot be evicted
because they switch from private pay to Medicare
or Medicaid. Medicare and medicaid residents pays
less per day than the private pay rate. However,
the longer you can pay the private rate, the more
options you will have when looking for a nursing
home.
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If
you or a love one has sufferred from nursing home
abuse or neglect, click here to CONTACT US to
speak with an attorney specializing in abuse of
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