Revised NORS Data Collection effective October 1, 2019

Ombudsman programs report their activities such as facility visits, complaints received and investigated, information and assistance provided, and community education to the Administration for Community Living (ACL)/Administration on Aging (AoA) to be summarized in the National Ombudsman Reporting System (NORS). NORS data is available on the ACL website here and here and on the NORC website.  

The revised NORS data collection is effective October 1, 2019. The goal of revising NORS is to enhance ACL’s ability to understand and report on Ombudsman program operations, experience of long-term care facility residents, and changes in long-term supports and services policies, research, and practices.

NORC updated the four-part NORS training materials to reflect the updated codes, definitions, and activities and instruct programs on how to record the work they do. The ACL NORS data collection tables are below and available on the ACL website. States are to continue to use the current approved NORS codes and instructions and training materials to ensure consistent reporting until the updated data collection is effective on October 1, 2019.

• Introduction: NORS Revisions
• Table 1: NORS Parts A, B and C - Case and complaint codes, values, and definitions
• Table 2: Complaint codes and definitions
• Table 3: State Program Information
• Crosswalk A: NORS Overview
• Crosswalk B: Complaint Codes (Old NORS to Revised NORS)
• NORS Complaint Codes and Definitions (NEW!)
• NORS Complaint Codes (NEW!)
• Revised NORS Training Materials (REVISED!)
• Revised NORS Training Webinar Series
• Revised NORS FAQs (NEW!)

Revised NORS Training Materials

Part I Revised NORS Training Materials

• Revised  NORS Training Part I: Basic Principles (black and white version)
• Revised NORS Training Part I: Quiz (black and white version)
• Revised NORS Training Part I: Quiz Answer Sheet (black and white version)
• Table 1: NORS Parts A, B and C - Case and complaint codes, values, and definitions
• View the Part I webinar slides as a PDF and as a PowerPoint with presenter notes. 

Part II Revised NORS Training Materials

• Revised NORS Training Part II: Complaint Coding Basic Principles (black and white version)
• Revised NORS Training Part II: Complaint Coding Quiz (black and white version)
• Revised NORS Training Part II: Complaint Coding Quiz Answer Sheet (black and white version) NOTE: The answer to 4 in the D. Autonomy, Choice, Rights section was revised in September 2019, please use this version.
• Revised NORS Training Part II: Complaint Coding Beyond the Basics Quiz (black and white version)
• Revised NORS Training Part II: Complaint Coding Beyond the Basics Quiz Answer Sheet (black and white version)
• NORS Table 2: Complaint codes and definitions
• View the Part II webinar slides as a PDF and as a PowerPoint with presenter notes. NOTE: Revised to reflect changes in the quizzes/quiz answer sheets in September 2019. Use this version for training.

Part III Revised NORS Training Materials

• Revised NORS Training Part III: Verification, Disposition, Referral, and Closing Cases Basic Principles (black and white version)
• Revised NORS Training Part III: Verification, Disposition, Referral, and Closing Cases - Closing the Case (black and white version)
• Revised NORS Training Part III: Verification, Disposition, Referral, and Closing Cases Quiz (black and white version) NOTE: Questions 2 and 13 were revised in September 2019, please use this version.
• Revised NORS Training Part III: Verification, Disposition, Referral, and Closing Cases Quiz Answer Sheet (black and white version) NOTE: Questions 2 and 13 were revised in September 2019, please use this version.
• Table 1: NORS Parts A, B and C - Case and complaint codes, values, and definitions
• Table 2: Complaint codes and definitions
• View the Part III webinar slides as a PDF and as a PowerPoint with presenter notes. NOTE: Revised to reflect changes in the quizzes/quiz answer sheets in September 2019. Use this version for training.

Part IV Revised NORS Training Materials

• Revised NORS Training Part IV: Ombudsman Program Activities Basic Principles (black and white version)
• Revised NORS Training Part IV: Ombudsman Program Activities Quiz (black and white version) NOTE: Questions 9, 10, and 13 were revised in September 2019, please use this version.
• Revised NORS Training Part IV: Ombudsman Program Activities Quiz Answer Sheet (black and white version) NOTE: Questions 9, 10, and 13 were revised in September 2019, please use this version.
• NORS Table 3: State Program Information
• View the Part IV webinar slides as a PDF and as a PowerPoint with presenter notes. NOTE: Revised to reflect changes in the quizzes/quiz answer sheets in September 2019. Use this version for training.

Revised NORS Five-Part Webinar Series

This is a five-part webinar series on the revised National Ombudsman Reporting System (NORS) training materials created by NORC. The purpose of this webinar series is to introduce the new training materials to help programs prepare for the transition to new codes, definitions, and activities on October 1, 2019. 
NORC has updated the four-part NORS training materials to reflect the updated codes, definitions, and activities and instruct programs on how to record the work they do. 

IMPORTANT: In response to feedback received during the webinar series, NORC made six edits to the NORS training materials in September 2019. Please use the revised quizzes, quiz answer sheets, and PowerPoints above for Part II, III, and IV. 

Certificate of Attendance
Individuals that registered and attended all five live webinars will receive certificates of attendance directly from GoToWebinar. Unfortunately, individuals that watch the webinar recordings or that listened to the live webinars in a room with others will not receive a certificate of attendance since neither GoToWebinar or NORC staff can verify attendance. Those without certificates will need to speak with their supervisor about the process to prove attendance and get credit for the training. We are sending lists of attendees for each of the five live webinars to State Ombudsmen. Contact ombudcenter@theconsumervoice.org with questions.

Introduction to the revised National Ombudsman Reporting System (NORS) (February 5, 2019)

View the slides as a PDF and as a PowerPoint with presenter notes. 

• Table 1: Case Data Components
• Table 2: Complaint codes and definitions
• Table 3: State Program Information

Part I: Case, Complaint, Complainant, and Information and Assistance (February 27, 2019)

View the slides as a PDF and as a PowerPoint with presenter notes. 

Part II: Complaint Coding (March 19, 2019)

View the slides as a PDF and as a PowerPoint with presenter notes.

NOTE: Revised to reflect changes in the quizzes/quiz answer sheets in September 2019. Use this version for training.

Part III: Verification, Disposition, Referral, and Closing Cases (April 30, 2019)

View the slides as a PDF and as a PowerPoint with presenter notes.

NOTE: Revised to reflect changes in the quizzes/quiz answer sheets in September 2019. Use this version for training.

Part IV: Ombudsman Program Activities (Wednesday, May 29, 2019)

View the slides as a PDF and as a PowerPoint with presenter notes.

NOTE: Revised to reflect changes in the quizzes/quiz answer sheets in September 2019. Use this version for training.

Asked and Answered: Frequently Asked Questions about the Revised NORS (Tuesday, September 24, 2019)

View the slides as a PDF and as a PowerPoint with presenter notes.