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Specialized Information for:
Nursing HomesAssisted Living/Board & Care Home and Community Based Services
Menu
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Specialized Information for:
Nursing HomesAssisted Living/Board & Care Home and Community Based Services
Consumer Voice Reports
Quality Care, No Matter Where: Successful Nursing Home Transitions Report
This report produced by the National Consumer Voice for Quality Long-Term Care examines nursing home transitions nationwide and how they can be improved from the perspective of both the individuals who had moved back into the community and the programs that assist them. The findings from interviews and surveys with these individuals are presented, along with policy recommendations for making the transition process go more smoothly for consumers from beginning to end. Large font version.
Successful Transitions: Reducing the Negative Impact of Nursing Home Closures (2018)
The toolkit includes the Executive Summary and State Case Studies from the Consumer Voice's report on nursing home closures.
Federal Reports
OIG Report: Gaps Continue to Exist in Nursing Home Emergency Preparedness and Response During Disasters: 2007–2010
Federal regulations require that Medicare- and Medicaid-certified nursing homes have written emergency plans and provide employees with emergency preparedness training. In a 2006 report about nursing homes that experienced hurricanes, the OIG found emergency plans lacked many provisions recommended by experts. In response, the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) issued guidance checklists for emergency planning of health care facilities, long-term care (LTC) ombudsman programs, and State survey agencies (SA). The OIG conducted the above study to assess emergency preparedness and response of nursing homes that experienced more recent disasters.
Poorly Performing Nursing Homes: Special Focus Facilities Are Often Improving, but CMS’s Program Could Be Strengthened (March 2010)
U.S. Government Office of Accountability. View the highlights.
Improving the Quality of Care in Nursing Homes (IoM, 1986)
NORC Resources
Quality Care in any Setting: Using Ombudsman Knowledge to Help Consumers (February 2010)
This paper is intended to help ombudsmen recognize the knowledge and resources about quality of care that they have and be alert for opportunities to share key information about quality of care with consumers.
Medicaid Bed Hold Policies by State (October 2012)
Consumer Voice Resources
Consumer to Consumer: Tips for a Successful Nursing Home Transition
Moving out of a nursing home and back into the community can be difficult. The purpose of this Tip Sheet is to share with you suggestions for steps you can take to make your move go as smoothly as possible. These recommendations come directly from people who have already transitioned so you can learn from their experiences.
This Tip Sheet is designed to be used along with a checklist that takes you step by step through what you can do before, during and after your move in order to make your transition a success. The checklist is included with permission of the Independent Living Research Utilization (ILRU) and IL-NET. Large font version.
How To Guide for State and Local Advocates
This How To Guide is intended to equip state and local advocates with information and tools to advocate for improvements to nursing home transitions. The recommendations found in the Quality Care, No Matter Where: Successful Nursing Home Transitions Report are elaborated on and examples are provided within this guide. Large font version.
Nursing Home Resident Conference Call Series
For the past three years, the Consumer Voice has hosted a series of free national conference calls for residents of nursing homes. They provided hundreds of residents across the country with education and resources to become empowered advocates for quality care and quality of life, both for themselves and for their peers who lack the capacity to self-advocate. Click on the links below to learn more about each call and to access pertinent informational handouts.
Family Council Brochure
The Consumer Voice has created a new brochure to help educate on the topic of empowered, effective and independent family councils. The brochure contains information on what a family council is, rights and best practices, resources and grant opportunities, and examples of family council activities. This is an excellent resource for current family councils or those interested in starting a council. Check it out to learn more!
Staffing section of the Consumer Voice website
Federal Resources
FastStats for Nursing Home Care (2014)
These stats were compiled by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.
Additional Resources
Nursing Home Regulations Plus
An online compilation of state and federal nursing home regulations. Nursing Home Regulations Plus also contains a comparative analysis of numerous topics dealing with nursing home regulations.
Nursing Home Staffing Standards in State Statutes and Regulations (Charlene Harrington, 2010)
View nursing home laws and regulations here.
All CMS Survey and Certification Letters can be found on the CMS website here.
Survey and Certification Letters About Nursing Homes and the Ombudsman Program:
Supporting Well Informed Consumers: The Role of the Long-Term Care Ombudsman (May 2005)
This paper grew out of a session with the same title at the 2004 Annual State Ombudsman Conference, where panelists Becky Kurtz, Sharon Zoesch, and Linda Sadden shared their practices and stimulated dialogue on the responsible sharing of LTCOP data with consumers. The paper explores federal requirements and national recommendations; uses for LTCOP data; program practices in sharing data; essential elements for responsible sharing; and key points on the hallmarks of programs that are sharing data and the need for continued dialogue on the issue.
Using Resident Assessment and Care Planning as Advocacy Tools: A Guide for Ombudsmen and Other Advocates (Updated November 1995)
This paper looks at achieving quality care for nursing home residents through the resident assessment and care planning process. Ombudsmen can utilize the assessment and care planning processes in their advocacy work as demonstrated in the paper.
The Role of the LTC Ombudsman in Culture Change: Promoting Resident Directed Care in Nursing Homes and Assisted Living (2007)
This resource brief is designed to generate ideas about how long-term care ombudsmen can promote systemic, resident-directed care practices in facilities. Included are examples of state and local ombudsman program involvement in promoting culture change practices, offers tips for ombudsman advocacy, discusses the role of the ombudsman and lists salient resources.
Ombudsman Best Practices: Supporting Culture Change to Promote Individualized Care in Nursing Homes (2000)
This paper presents long-term care ombudsman practices in supporting culture change in nursing homes, drawing on lessons learned by state ombudsman programs that have engaged in such initiatives. It includes an overview of the issues, relevant practice precedents and examples of best practice. The section “Lessons Learned” examines important considerations for state and local ombudsmen who want to begin or continue culture change efforts.
Ombudsman Role in Nursing Home Closures and Natural Disasters (2000)
This NORC document includes a tool kit for local ombudsman response and information on transfer trauma.
AoA Issues Information Memorandum Washington, DC (February 2003)
Administration on Aging provides guidance on ombudsman access to resident records under HIPAA Privacy Rule. Read the memorandum for answers to your questions.
State Ombudsman Data - Nursing Home Complaints (2003)
Nursing Homes: Who Owns Them (2001)