Staffing Patterns in nursing homes have been scrutinized more since many are facing challenges in retaining staff or recruiting staff to join their team. I am very pleased that some organizations are putting the resident’s needs first and closing to admissions on days that the staffing pattern warrents it.

There is so much consumer education today that empowers family members to be aware of exactly what their loved ones should be receiving. Honestly, this is a wonderful blessing for family members. Many have no idea on what to expect when they relinguish the care of their loved ones to the skilled nursing industry.

I was fortunate being a nurse to know what I expected when I had to place my Aunt into a nursing home. I did not place her where I worked due to wanting to have boundaries. I did place her in a organization that had good ratings and I also knew some of the staff. That did not guarantee that my Aunt’s needs were always met to her liking. I continued to be her advocate until she passed and I was pleased with her care.

If you are a family member who needs help knowing how to navigate your loved ones care please see link for care planning needs below:https://theconsumervoice.org/uploads/files/issues/basics-of-individualized-quality-care-factsheet-final.pdf

This article reviews care planning issues that you may find helpful when monitoring the care of your loved one.

Now I was surprised when I reviewed what was being taught such as assessing your loved ones skin dryness and ensuring they are hydrated. That was not what suprised me rather I was suprised that the article teaches that if staff are short they may be withholding fluids. This was disheartening to me as I have never seen that happening in the facilities that I have worked in. Dehydration may occur due to residents not wanting to eat or drink and several other factors.

But then I thought, wow does this happen? Or is it possible that due to staffing issues my family member may not be helped with consuming meal time fluids because staff need to prioritize residents who are total feeds. So when I truly thought about this organization and what they teach, I became grateful that there is an organization who are looking out for all of our loved ones.

As healthcare providers, it does behoove you to check out this group and review their take on what the residents are requesting for them to advocate. They actually have residents who live in nursing homes letting them know what their concerns are. I am not sure that the residents who live in facilities are so open about their concerns with Nursing Home leadership than what I watched on this site. Nursing home residents do have resident council but it seemed that the actual you tube videos were very enlightnening.

If you are a family member who needs assistance with visiting your loved ones while in a nursing home. Please use contact link below. Skilled nursing support provides companion visits when families are unable. Family vacations, childcare issues, increased work demands, as well as your own health can interfere with family visits.

The information presented is informative and does not constitute direct legal or regulatory advice

September 2024\Skilled Nursing Support\maria.messina@skillednursingsupport.com

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