SACRAMENTO, Calif., Jan. 6 /PRNewswire/ -- FEDERAL REPORT CARD ON NURSING HOMES: PATIENT CARE IMPROVING
Health and Human Services (HHS) Secretary Tommy Thompson has stated the two-year evaluation of the federal Nursing Home Quality Initiative (NHQI) shows marked improvements in key indicators of care.
Launched in 2002 as a unique public-private partnership between government and long-term care providers, NHQI was designed to provide consumers with reliable, easy-to-understand, comparative information regarding care quality in nursing homes.
“The data we’re releasing...shows nursing home residents have better care and a better quality of life since we launched this program,” said Thompson at a recent HHS press conference. "...Fewer nursing home residents suffer from chronic pain and fewer physical restraints are being used to take care of elderly patients. Even more impressive, the prevalence of chronic pain in nursing homes has gone down in 50 out of 50 states.”
CALIFORNIA HAS BEST CITIES FOR NURSING-FACILITY CARE
Six of the 10 best U.S. cities for nursing-facility care are right here in California, according to a new study by Health Grades, a leading independent health-care rating company. None of the 10 worst cities is in California.
Nationwide, Health Grades ranks Los Angeles as the best major city for nursing-facility care. Long Beach, San Diego, San Francisco and Fresno are fourth through seventh, respectively, and San Jose ranks 10th.
To identify the best and worst cities for nursing-facility care, Health Grades first identified the 58 cities in the United States with 20 or more nursing facilities, then calculated the proportion of facilities in those cities that had four or more “actual harm” violations from health or complaint surveys in the last four years.
UCSF RESEARCHERS SAY CA NURSING HOMES SHOWED SIGNIFICANT IMPROVEMENT IN QUALITY OF CARE
Several indicators of nursing home care quality in California showed significant improvement between 2000 and 2003 according to the latest analysis of Department of Health Services’ survey data funded by the California HealthCare Foundation (CHCF) and conducted by the University of California, San Francisco (UCSF).
A key finding from the UCSF analysis shows that although quality varies widely among the state’s nursing homes, significant increases in staffing levels coupled with a decrease in deficiencies contributed to improving patient care.
Specifically, UCSF researchers found:
-- 69 percent of freestanding nursing homes are regularly meeting the state’s minimum staffing standard of 3.2 nursing hours per resident per day, up from 56 percent in 2001.
-- Average nurse staffing hours increased between 2000 and 2003 due to increased hours from licensed practical nurses and nursing assistants.
-- Nursing staff turnover rates averaged 64 percent in 2003, down from 84 percent in 2000.
-- The average number of deficiencies dropped from 13.2 in 2000 to 9.7 in 2003.
-- The number of homes in substantial or full compliance with federal standards -- at 9 percent -- was relatively unchanged between 2000 and 2003. Deficiencies received for very serious noncompliance or substandard care decreased 57 and 80 percent respectively.
-- The average nursing home received about one complaint per year for poor quality in 2003.
-- California nursing homes fared better than national averages on seven of nine measures for quality of life and clinical care. (Use of physical restraints was higher on average in California and there is no national measure for weight loss.)
“We’ve always known that California is on the leading edge of high-quality long-term care as it is in so many other areas, but it’s gratifying to see three independent reports validate our view,” said Betsy Hite, director of public affairs at the California Association of Health Facilities, a professional group that represents most California nursing facilities.
California Association of Health Facilities
CONTACT: Betsy Hite of California Association of Health Facilities,+1-916-441-6400, ext. 226, or Cell, +1-916-769-0098
Web site: http://www.cahf.org/
