Selecting The Right Nursing Home - Kick The Tires
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At one of my previous employers, we had a saying: "It is important to do some 'ground-truthing' before drawing any conclusions." Ground-truthing is, of course, going out into the field and seeing the place with your own eyes because you cannot take as gospel what you are told by others. A recent article from Reuters Money applies this principle to selecting a nursing home.
It is true: According to a GAO study, for-profit nursing homes "more frequent and serious deficiencies than non-profit homes." You need to "peek behind the curtain" and look behind the numbers when selecting an appropriate facility for you or a loved one.
In a previous post, I discussed the Medicare "Nursing Home Compare" website and the excellent information it provides. The NHC, however, should be a starting point for your research, not the "be-all-end-all" of it.
As suggested in my prior posts, and as reiterated by my colleague Jonathan Rosenfeld and others in the Reuters' article, in-person visitation to a nursing home during the selection process is just as important as the "numbers." Go to various facilities. Go unannounced if you would like. Look around. Is the facility clean no matter what time of day or night you visit? Do the residents look neat and clean or disheveled? Do the residents seem happy or over-medicated? Visit at meal-time; try out the food.
Choosing the right nursing home is a big decision. Do not rely upon "numbers" alone. Do not simply take the recommendation of someone, whether they are a friend or not. You wouldn't buy a car based on MPG and recommendations, would you? You need to "kick the tires" to make sure the car you are considering is the right one for you. You take it for a test drive. Shouldn't you do the same when making the decision of which nursing home is right? The answer is undoubtedly: Yes!
