New staffing ratios for Pa. nursing homes takes effect
news@greenecountymessenger.com
For the first time in 25 years, staffing standards at Pennsylvania nursing homes have been updated.
The staffing ratio increases passed by the Wolf Administration late last year went into effect July 1, marking the first time in state history a minimum number of nursing home caregivers are required per shift.
“This week, Pennsylvania is taking a major step toward improving resident care and protecting the safety of caregivers in skilled nursing facilities,” said Jeanne Parisi, deputy secretary for quality assurance at the state Department of Health, during a virtual press conference Friday. “Getting here has been a statewide collaborative effort that involved caregivers, allies for quality care, advocates, legislators and providers.”
One of those collaborators is SEIU Healthcare, Pennsylvania’s health-care worker union, which last year led protests for improved working conditions, better wages and health care.
“These past years, we have won improvements for our state’s most vulnerable. We’ve increased funding for nursing homes, we have more transparent ownership change … and we’ve won contracts … to lift wages and working conditions. We have a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity to make these reforms real and ensure every family in Pennsylvania has a quality choice (for long-term care),” said Matthew Yarnell, president of SEIU.
Yarnell said the staffing ratios are about creating “the kind of conditions that allow caregivers to … provide quality care,” which is vital for retaining dedicated, compassionate skilled nursing employees.
The staffing ratios will alleviate some of the stress and burnout caregivers experience as they struggle to provide quality care for all residents, thereby improving residents’ lives.
“I feel frustrated when we cannot do our jobs right because we don’t have enough staffing,” said Lindsey Burns, an LPN and union leader who works in New Castle.
Thanks to the new staffing ratios, now, during day and evening shifts, nursing home facilities are required to staff at least one nurse aide per 12 residents. During overnight shifts, one nurse aide must be staffed per 20 residents.
During the day, nursing home facilities must staff a minimum of one LPN per 25 residents. At least one LPN is required per 30 residents during evening shifts and 40 residents overnight. Facilities must also staff at least one RN per 250 residents at all times.
The new standards also increase the amount of time residents spend receiving direct nursing care within a 24-hour period. Starting July 1, residents should receive at least 2.87 hours of direct care, up from 2.7 hours.
“I was so excited to hear about the new staffing ratios because staffing ratios mean quality care for my residents,” said Liz Wright, who has worked as a certified nursing assistant in the Harrisburg area for more than 30 years. “I went into nursing because I wanted to help people. Residents typically get 15 minutes with us. That’s not enough time to do daily care the way it should be done. This is supposed to be their home. Inadequate staffing is unfair to the residents.”
Research shows understaffed nursing home facilities provide lower levels of quality care, said Whitney Lingle, executive director of the Center for Advocacy for the Rights and Interests of Elders (CARIE).
“As staffing levels increase in nursing homes, incidents of resident abuse falls,” added Becky Fortenbaugh, with the Office of the Long-Term Care Ombudsman.
Along with addressing staffing concerns, which existed pre-pandemic but were heightened and highlighted during COVID-19, the new state nursing home regulations call for transparency in ownership, required staff trainings and expanded residents’ rights.
The state DOH visits nursing home facilities about once every 15 months, said Parisi, and these new regulations will be enforced. Facilities that fail to adopt the new regulations will be subject to disciplinary action, which will be assessed on a case-by-case basis.
Pennsylvania’s nursing home facility standards will again be updated July 1, 2024, with tighter staffing ratios. The Biden administration is working to create a national standard, since states currently have their own.
“The bottom line here is residents need and deserve adequate staffing and quality care now. We really have a values challenge here. We have a national crisis that we here in Pennsylvania can lead in solving together,” said Yarnell. “This has been a long time in the making. We think (the new standards are) a step in the right direction. I think the whole country is looking to us. We can set an example.”