Recently, the federal government proposed a new law that would stipulate how nursing homes need to be staffed, based on the number of people residing within the facility.
These new guidelines have met mixed reviews from those within the senior care industry. Some have stated that this is a big win for seniors and helps to ensure that the elderly will receive a higher quality of care when receiving skilled nursing care. Others have said that these expectations are not realistic and it is just placing nursing homes at risk of not being able to keep up with regulations and in fact, jeopardize the ability to care for seniors.
The proposed law doesn’t seem extreme on the surface. It would mandate three hours of nursing time per resident within a nursing home. 0.55 hours of that time would need to be with a registered nurse, while the remaining time could be with a nursing assistant. Rural nursing homes would have five years to get in compliance with this standard, while urban and suburban locations would only have three years to become compliant.
Each nursing home would need to have an RN on site 24 hours a day, seven days a week. Rural settings would have three years to comply; non-rural settings would have two years.
Again, this doesn’t seem too extreme on the surface, but the proposed new standards are about three times stricter than current standards. While nursing homes certainly want to ensure that they are adequately helping those that reside with them, many are now expressing concern that this would be detrimentally difficult to fulfill, especially with staffing and labor shortages all across the country–in nursing homes and in every other part of the economy.
For those that are already having trouble finding access to high quality senior care, this can be a disturbing prospect. Luckily, nursing homes are not the only type of care out there. Seniors can find care that meets their needs in a variety of settings, including in-home care. Finding the right care for your situation might mean looking beyond the nursing home model and exploring what else is out there. The ideal care will meet needs without taking away freedoms. Each situation is different.
Whatever challenges you might be up against when it comes to care, please know that you have resources on your side that can help. In fact, this is one of our favorite ways to help here at Paradise In-Home Care. Yes, we do offer senior care services, but we also do a lot more than that. We offer a free consultation service that is designed to answer questions, help you determine what the best course of action for your family is, and then get you pointed in the right direction. It’s completely free and comes with no obligation on your part.
It’s our way of giving back to families in our community and beyond. If you’d like to talk more about how senior care might be able to help you and your family out, please feel free to give us a call and start the conversation today.
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