|
Senior News March, 2003 Vol. 22. No. 3
Published by the Humboldt Senior Resource Center in Eureka, California. HSRC is a non-profit community-based organization offering services for senior citizens, multi-generational families and caregivers.
|
|
Humboldt Senior Resource Center Back issues Table of Contents
Plus in this issue catch more news, opinions, features, book reviews, and event calendars.
Pick up a copy today! Better yet, subscribe and never miss an issue! Brought to you by 
|
Consumer advice Things to consider for long-term care residents in skilled nursing homes by Kim Laney What will it take to keep your loved one who resides in a skilled nursing facility healthy, happy and safe? Residents of skilled nursing facilities are usually elderly and among California's most vulnerable individuals. At any given time, more than 100,000 Californians reside in a nursing home, and expenditures for nursing home care are more than $5.6 billion a year. More is Better One of the most important things you can do for a person residing in a skilled nursing facility is to visit regularly. Residents with frequent visitors generally fare better, both emotionally and physically, than residents without visitors. A 30-minute visit from friends or family once a week can have a huge impact on the resident's well being. While visiting with loved ones, friends and family may be able to address health and care concerns before they become serious complaints. Finding a Skilled Facility Prospective residents or family members should visit each care facility under consideration. Look, listen and smell. Notice if residents are up and dressed and participating in activities that would be of interest to you or your family member. Are the residents well groomed? Is the general atmosphere warm, pleasant and cheerful? How does the staff treat residents when addressing and assisting them? Talk to residents and family members and ask questions. If possible, visit during meal times. Look at the menu. Is the food hot? Are residents promptly assisted if they need assistance. Service, please Of course, a facility's appearance has some significance, but the focus of the visit should be on services provided. The need for admission often occurs during stressful times for a resident and family. As a result, the resident and his/her family members are inclined to agree to whatever conditions the facility presents. This inclination should be resisted. Prior to admission, the facility must provide sufficient information about the facility, its services and its costs. Likewise, the prospective resident must provide sufficient information regarding his/her medical background and about any service needs or functional limitations which she or he may have. Read the agreement An admission agreement must detail basic and optional services, along with the charges for each. It must list facility policies that regulate the behavior of residents and detail any action or circumstance that would justify a resident's eviction. www.calnhs.org Some information on nursing home quality exists in the public domain, but the information has been difficult for consumers to access or understand. The growing need for information about nursing home quality prompted the California HealthCare Foundation to develop a web site dedicated to providing the public with information about quality of care in California nursing facilities. California Nursing Home Search, (www.calnhs.org) was launched last October. It is a free public service designed to provide comprehensive, consumer-friendly comparative information about the quality of more than 1,400 of the state's nursing homes. Consumers can use the web site to compare nursing homes against a variety of objective criteria to make a more informed choice. For each nursing home listed, the following information is available: facility and resident characteristics, nurse staffing levels, quality indicators such as weight loss, bed sores, incontinence, loss of functioning and depression, results of complaint and inspection visits, financial indicators and ownership. It also provides three-tiered ratings of nurse staffing levels and turnover rates, percent of residents who lost weight, were bedfast or were put into physical restraints, state and federal deficiencies, nursing assistant wages and direct care expenses. The primary goal of California Nursing Home Search is to benefit consumers, health professionals, quality watchdogs and nursing homes themselves by providing an independent, verified source of quality information. Another web site that offers information on skilled nursing facilities and may be of interest is www.medicare.gov. Humboldt County For local information, call the office of the Long-Term Care Ombudsman at 443-9747. Ombudsmen are advocates for residents of both Residential Care Facilities and Skilled Nursing Facilities. The Ombudsman staff and volunteers visit local facilities regularly. The Ombudsman office also keeps updated lists of facilities and may be able to assist in placement options. Kim Laney is Ombudsman Care Manager for the Humboldt Senior Resource Center. Her e-mail is klaney@humsenior.org. |
Senior News 