Several nursing home facilities in our area are included in the list of those that were found to have violations, ranging from minor on up, resulting from a recent state inspection report. According to NJSpotlight.com:
The most recent data on inspections of New Jersey nursing homes show a wide range of differences in the number of violations found at facilities.
An analysis of the results of the three most recent inspections by the state Department of Health found only one problem at 29 of 331 nursing homes that accept Medicare or Medicaid patients, or 9 percent of all, in their most recent inspections conducted between February 2011 and July 2012.
Another 18 percent, or 60 nursing homes, had more than 10 violations, with 11 of those having more than 20 problems discovered.
This is already a concern for some 42,000 New Jerseyans age 65 and older who live in nursing homes and similar facilities, according to estimates from the U.S. Census Bureau for 2011.
And as the baby boomers age into their 60s and beyond, it will become a concern for a growing number and their loved ones.
State officials inspect homes on contract with the U.S. Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services to ensure the facilities meet federal standards and provide acceptable care to residents.
Inspectors typically spend several days at a location, checking compliance with about 1,500 state and federal regulations involving such areas as residents’ rights, dietary services, housekeeping, staffing and quality of care.
You can read the full story at NJSpotlight and click on the dots that correspond to local facilities included on an interactive map to see which ones have been cited for which kind of violations.
Thank you for this posting. Twenty-five percent of people who live to age 65 will need nursing home care at some point, not to mention the numerous younger disabled people who reside in nursing homes. The quality of nursing home care affects us all, if not because we or our loved ones might need it than because of the substantial public investment in nursing home care.
In short, we need and deserve high quality care from the nursing homes in our communities!
Baristanet readers should know also, in terms of this report, that problems in nursing homes tend to be under-identified by inspectors and, when they are identified, tend to be under-rated in the scope and severity of the harm caused. People should use the inspection findings for homes they live in or are considering to evaluate and ask questions. In addition, I strongly recommend reviewing a facility’s page on Nursing Home Compare (at http://www.medicare.gov) for further information.