Copyright © 2011 Consumer Voice, All Rights Reserved. Privacy Statement / Terms of Use
1001 Connecticut Avenue, NW • Suite 425 • Washington DC • 20036
(P) 202.332.2275 • (F) 202.332.2949
|
|
Nursing Home Resident: Getting Quality CareThis page contains resources and information to help you advocate for quality long-term care. Click on the topic areas below to find more information.
Residents’ RightsResidents’ Rights are guaranteed by the federal 1987 Nursing Home Reform Law, and nursing homes must meet federal residents’ rights requirements if they participate in Medicare or Medicaid. Visit the links below for consumer information and resources that can help you support an individual resident's rights or be involved in an important national awareness campaign. View the Residents’ Rights fact sheet to learn more about the topic. October is National Residents' Rights Month 2011! Law and RegulationsThe Nursing Home Reform Law is the Omnibus Budget Reconciliation Act of 1987 (OBRA '87) was landmark legislation for federal standards for nursing home care. Click on the above link to learn more about OBRA. Resident CouncilsResidents in a facility can join together to form a united consumer voice which can communicate concerns to facility administrators and work for resolutions and improvements by forming a resident council. Visit the Resident Council Center to learn more about resident council rights, regulations applying to long-term care facilities, effective council advocacy and tools for forming an effective council and more. Fact Sheets – ResidentsFact sheets are to-the-point summaries on the most common issues facing nursing home residents. Each document answers key, frequently asked questions. View Consumer Voice’s fact sheets for residents of nursing homes. Encouraging Comfort Care: A Guide for Families of People with Dementia Living in Care Facilities Resident-Direct Care or "Culture Change"The Consumer Voice encourages all residents, family members and advocates to learn more about the resident directed/centered care, also called "culture change," that is in many ways the full implementation of the 1987 nursing home reform law. Click here to learn more and to access several valuable resources. Citizen Advocacy GroupsCitizen advocacy groups (CAGs) are groups of concerned citizens who work to improve the quality of care for nursing home residents in their locality, state, or region. Members of these groups are often people who have had loved ones in nursing homes and are concerned about nursing home residents. The groups share a commitment to improving the quality of care and life for residents who are in need of long-term care. They may be able to inform you about resources in your state, the quality of care in particular facilities, and the current status of nursing home reform in your state. Visit the Citizen Advocacy Group Center to learn more about CAGs, and to find a CAG in your state so that you can connect with others who are interested long-term care reform. Consumer Voice Projects with ResidentsGiving Voice to Quality Project - 2009 Free Resident Conference Call Series For the past three years, the Consumer Voice has hosted a series of free national conference calls for residents of nursing homes. They provided hundreds of residents across the country with education and resources to become empowered advocates for quality care and quality of life, both for themselves and for their peers who lack the capacity to self-advocate. Click on the links below to learn more about each call and to access pertinent informational handouts.
Other ResourcesPiecing Together Quality Long-Term Care: A Consumer’s Guide to Choices and Advocacy Stories from the Field: LGBT Older Adults in Long Term Care Facilities Your Discharge Planning Checklist: For patients and their caregivers preparing to leave a hospital, nursing home, or other health care setting Jessica Brill Ortiz, program manager, and Becka Livesay, program associate – communications and outreach, presented an overview of the Consumers for Quality Care, No Matter Where initiative at the 2011 Aging in America conference in San Francisco. The presentation detailed the Consumer Voice’s work with advocates across the country to empower consumers to be self-advocates for quality care while building a bridge between the aging and disability communities. In keeping with this work, the presentation outlines the steps taken to make the consumer guide easily accessible to persons with disabilities on the Consumer Voice website using low-cost and effective technology. Also highlighted were three citizen advocacy groups’ work to develop and distribute a state-specific guide aimed at educating and empowering older adults and persons with disabilities in need of long-term-care services to make informed decisions and become self-advocates for quality long-term care. The Consumer Voice is in the process of developing a “How To” document to help citizen advocacy groups across the country produce and disseminate their own guides. Access the presentation slides online. Looking for information for residents of long-term care? Visit the Resident Section of our website. |