Considering Long-Term Care? The Fourth Thing You Need To Know

By now, you've likely narrowed down your long-term care search to a type of licensed care, and one with relatively few licensing or abuse concerns.  You're ready for an in person tour and visit.  Bear in mind that you may be touring with the admissions or marketing personnel vs. the adminstrator of the facility.  Regardless, you'll want to ascertain the following:

 

 

1) What is posted within clear site of both visitors and residents?  Look for an Ombudsman poster

 

2) Do residents appear engaged, supervised, and cared for?

 

3)  Are snacks, water, and fresh fruit visible in common areas for residents to consume?

 

4)  Are there any obvious signs of disrepair, unclean areas or surfaces, or safety hazards?

 

 

1)  Does your facility use an Acuity Based Staffing Tool (Assisted Living, Residential Care, Memory Care)?  Are you able to staff to the level the staffing tool requires?

 

2)  Is your facility fully staffed?  Are you using agency staff or are all the staff employed by your facility? What is your turnover rate?

 

3)  What training program do you use?  How long do staff shadow other staff before working unsupervised?

 

4)  How long has your current administrator been at the facility?  Is your administrator registered?

 

5)  Do you have a staff person fully dedicated to activities?  What activities do you offer and what is your plan for engaging residents who may not be aware of activities or hesitant to participate in them?

 

6)  What is your daily budget per resident for meals?  How do you accomodate special diets, assure that residents are consuming their meals, and staying hydrated?

 

7)  Do you have a call light record that shows the length of time between when a call light is activated and when it is answered?  What is the average response time?

 

8)  Where do you have cameras and video in your facility, how long is the video tape kept, who is authorized to see it?

 

9)  Do you have any current abuse investigation or ongoing licensing violations occuring?  

 

10)  May I see a sample admission agreement, resident bill of rights, resident care plan, and policies and procedures?

 

While guidelines for desired answers are noted above, what may be more critical is how facility staff react to the fact you are asking the questions at all.  Imagine the communication you would wish to receive if you or your loved one were to move into this setting.  Would it be transparent, respectful, and productive?  If not, this could pose a problem when discussing care planning, concerns or conflict down the road.