Area nursing facilities among top in state

COLUMBUS — Ohio’s nursing home residents gave their facilities an 87.1 overall satisfaction rating, and assisted living residents gave their providers an 92.3 score in the 2011 Long-term Care Resident Satisfaction Survey, conducted under the direction of the Ohio Department of Aging. The current results demonstrate a continuing upward trend for resident satisfaction in both types of care settings since the state began surveying. Full results are posted on the Long-term Care Consumer Guide website at www.ltcohio.org.

“Ohio has taken a national lead in advocating for, and helping long-term care facilities achieve real culture change and provide the high-quality, person-centered care their residents desire and deserve,” said Bonnie Kantor-Burman, director of the department. “Staff, administrators, residents and their families are more interconnected than ever, and the caliber of care is improving as a result.”

Several area nursing homes and assisted living facilities were among the top 25 in each of those categories. In the nursing home category, Vancrest of Convoy (former Convoy Care Center) and Sarah Jane Living Center in Delphos were rated in the top 25. Among the top 25 in the residential care category were Roselawn Manor in Spencerville, The Gardens of Paulding in Paulding and Manor House Assisted Living in Antwerp.

Residents rated their satisfaction with their facility’s environment, activities, administration, direct care/nursing assistants, laundry, meals and dining, social services and therapy, as well as general satisfaction. Twenty-four nursing homes and 34 assisted living facilities received a score of 100 on key questions:  “Overall, do you like this facility?” and “Would you recommend this facility to a family member or friend?”

Beginning this year, the amount of a nursing home’s payment that is tied to achieving quality will increase from 1.7 percent of the Medicaid reimbursement rate to 9.7 percent. Satisfaction survey scores will be used to determine eligibility for three of the new measures: overall satisfaction; choice in rising and retiring times; and the ability of residents to personalize their rooms. Of 957 participating nursing homes, 256 would currently qualify for these three measures. Nursing facilities can learn about the new quality measures and obtain technical assistance through the state’s new Long-term Care Quality Incentive website at ltcquality.ohio.gov.

“Working together as staff, administrators, residents, families and advocates, we can and will achieve excellence in long-term care for all Ohioans,” added Beverley Laubert, the state’s long-term care ombudsman. “Consumers and their families are engaging more and more with their care providers, and the providers are responding. That is a win-win for all Ohioans.”

This was the third time the state has conducted a resident satisfaction survey of residential care facilities, better known as assisted living facilities. Ohio’s survey is the only statewide assisted living consumer satisfaction survey in the nation. Though results are not used in reimbursement formulas for residential care facilities, their availability on the Long-term Care Consumer Guide website helps the public make informed decisions in a tightly competitive market.

The survey was developed for the department by Scripps Gerontology Center of Miami University and the Margaret Blenkner Institute, and was conducted between July 2011 and January 2012 by Vital Research, LLC. Trained interviewers met face-to-face with a sample of residents at each facility to fill out the survey. In 2012, family members of Ohio nursing home residents will be surveyed about their satisfaction with the facilities. Residents of nursing homes and assisted living facilities will be surveyed again in 2013.