Friday, December 30, 2011

Joan Aragone: New UCSF report shows more deficiencies with for-profit nursing homes

If you're considering a nursing home, beware. Check out staff-to-patient comparative measure as well as learn who owns a place.That's a doctrine from a new report by researchers at UC San Francisco, who aimed to compare peculiarity of caring in a country's 10 largest for-profit nursing home bondage with caring in other for-profits, nonprofits as well as government-run facilities.Their findings: Staffing levels were lower as well as deficiencies in caring were higher, in a for-profits -- both at a largest bondage as well as at a smaller for-profit facilities -- than a nonprofits, as well as bondage purchased by private equity companies showed more deficiencies after a purchase than before."Poor peculiarity of caring is endemic in many nursing homes, but you found which a many critical problems start in a largest for-profit homes," said first author Charlene Harrington, professor emeritus of sociology as well as nursing at UCSF, in a statement.Many of these 10 bondage have facilities in California, according to Pat McGinnis, executive director of California Advocates for Nursing Home Reform.According to a study, a 10 largest for-profit bondage in a United States operate around 2,000 nursing homes, determining around thirteen percent of nursing home beds. Of these facilities, scarcely 1,000 were bought by private equity companies between 2003-2007.The investigate lonesome 2003-2008.Researchers found which sum nursing hours were lower in a tip 10 nursing home bondage than all other groups, while a number of "deficiencies" as well as "serious deficiencies" were "significantly higher" in a tip 10 bondage than any other group. Deficiencies embody failure to prevent pressure sores, resident weight loss, falls, infections, resident mistreatment, poor spotless conditions as well as similar problems.A friend landed in one of these big-chain places in another state after Medicare stopped payment for his hospitalization. From intensive caring with round-the-clock treatment, he was placed in a common room where he rarely saw a registered nurse. The only alloy on staff, a "medical director," was on vacation when he arrived, as well as no physician attended him for multiform days. His condition worsened, but no staff member apparently noticed. After a crisis, my friend was rushed into an ambulance as well as returned to a hospital as well as intensive care.Low staffing levels have been a concern, a investigate said, because they have been associated with poor "resident outcomes." However, such low levels mean low labor costs, which, a investigate said, "appear to be a management plan to reduce costs." It's about money, said McGinnis. "You cannot provide decent caring in a for-profit system." But, a investigate said a new healthcare bill, a Affordable Care Act, aims to make information more available in two critical areas. Facilities have been compulsory to report staffing data, so staff comparative measure can be checked. And transparency of ownership will be required."Currently, nobody take responsibility, nobody is held under obligation for problems," said Tippy Irwin, executive director of Ombudsman Services of San Mateo County, a nonprofit agency which investigates nursing homes.Prescott Cole, senior attorney at CANHR, suggests which families looking for a nursing home should: 1. Call a ombudsman program in their county for information as well as advice; 2. Visit prior to at different hours of a day to check out staff-to-patient ratio, as well as "just be there" to see what it's like.The authors of a investigate call for more research, especially for bondage purchased by private equity firms "because they have been under pressure to improve shareholder as well as investor values, with little oversight by regulators." You can find a essay online as well as in a imitation publication "Health Services Research." Addendum: a 10 largest U.S. for-profit bondage have been HCR Manor Care, Golden Living, Life Care Centers of America, Kindred Healthcare, Genesis HealthCare Corporation, Sun Health Care Group Inc., SavaSeniorCare LLC, Extendicare Health Services Inc., National Health Care Corp., as well as Skilled HealthCare, LLC.For comments or story ideas contact Joan Aragone at joanaragone@gmail.com.


Institute

No comments:

Post a Comment