Nursing Home Quality Scores Drop under New Federal Standards
Are you in the process of selecting an Oklahoma nursing home for yourself or a loved one? Unfortunately, the Sooner State is notorious when it comes to the quality of its assisted living facilities. Therefore, you should do extensive research and be absolutely certain of your decision before you sign a contract. If you do end up facing any issues with the nursing home, whether it’s negligence, abuse, or any other serious matter, don’t hesitate to contact experienced OKC nursing home abuse attorney Ray Maples for help.
You can call our office at (405) 883-4487. You may also call us 24 hours a day, seven days a week at (405) 883-4487. We offer free, comprehensive consultations.
Higher Standards Are Revealing Lower Quality Facilities
Recently, the federal government has implemented new, stricter standards in their Nursing Home Compare website’s rating system for assisted living facilities in the United States. This has resulted in lower scores for nearly a third of the nation’s nursing homes.
The new rating system reflects sweeping changes in the way the federal government is now evaluating nursing homes. The revamped assessments include measures of each facility’s usage of anti-psychotic drugs and refined metrics which evaluate staff adequacy, a vital component of quality elderly care.
The last time new standards were implemented was back in 2008. Under the old ratings system, most facilities reached five-star status, even though reports and studies indicated that a significant percentage of nursing home residents experienced at least one instance of abuse or negligence. The federal Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) addressed the discrepancy by raising the bar for performance.
The biggest drops came in scores for quality of care, where the average for all nursing homes fell from 4.18 stars to 3.3 stars. Additionally, nearly 20 percent of all nursing homes received the lowest possible score on the newly implemented measure of excessive or unnecessary anti-psychotic drug use. Other data used for the quality measures include the prevalence of bedsores, fall accident rates, and the use of physical restraints.
Although approximately 61 percent of the more than 15,000 facilities covered by Nursing Home Compare got lower quality-of-care scores as a result of the new standards, only about 28 percent dropped one star in their overall ratings. Close to three percent fell two stars.
As comprehensive as the Nursing Home Compare rating system is, prospective nursing home residents and their family are encouraged to tap other resources, such as local long-term care ombudsmen, and to seek feedback from residents when considering a facility.
We’re Here when You Need Us
Unfortunately, it is entirely possible for an individual to register with a highly-rated facility, only to suffer negligence or abuse. If you or an elderly loved one ever become the victim of such ill treatment, remember that Attorney Ray Maples is always available to fight for your rights.