National Residents' Rights Month 2013

Residents' Rights Month is an annual event designated by the Consumer Voice and is celebrated in October to honor residents living in all long-term care facilities, including nursing homes, sub acute units, assisted living, board and care and retirement communities. It is a time for celebration and recognition offering an opportunity for every facility to focus on and celebrate awareness of dignity, respect and the value of each individual resident. The theme for Residents' Rights Month 2013 is, "Speak Out Against Elder Abuse!" with the goal of encouraging residents and others to be educated about and speak out against elder abuse.

 Click here to purchase 2013 Residents' Rights Month Products

Click here to view entries in the 2013 Resident's Voice Challenge

Click here to see Residents' Rights Month news and events happening across the country!

2013 Residents' Rights Month Packet of Materials

Each year, the Consumer Voice develops a packet to help you plan your Residents’ Rights events. The packet is completely downloadable and features ready-to-use items, including promotional materials, activities to celebrate Residents' Rights Month, training tools and resources.

Introduction & Overview

• A History of Celebrating Residents' Rights

• Information on Residents' Rights

• Residents' Rights Month Outline and Overview

Training Materials and Elder Abuse Resources

• NORC Issue Pages

  • Elder Abuse/Elder Justice

  • Residents' Rights

  • Ombudsman Training

• Administration on Aging's Year of Elder Abuse Prevention

• Administration on Aging's National Center on Elder Abuse

• Elder Abuse Risk Factors: Part 1 & Part 2 - Podcasts

• Ageless Alliance

• National Resource Center on LGBT Aging's Elder Abuse Resources

• Residents' Rights and the LGBT Community: Know Your Rights as a Nursing Home Resident

• Fact sheet on elder abuse from the World Health Organization

• Resources from World Elder Abuse Awareness Day

• Elder Abuse Toolkit from Alabama Department of Senior Services

• When the Going Gets Tough: Coping for Caregivers - Webinar from Rosalynn Carter Institute for Caregiving and the National Council on Elder Abuse

Promotional Materials

• Residents' Rights Month 2013 Flyer (pdf)

• Reasons Why Ombudsmen Should Participate

• Reasons Facilities Should Participate in Residents Rights’ Month

• Sample Ombudsman Newsletter Article

• Sample Letter to the Editor

• Sample Press Release

• Proclamation - Governor

• Proclamation - Mayor

• National Residents' Rights Month 2013 Logo (pdf)

• National Residents' Right Month 2013 Logo (jpeg)

The Resident's Voice Challenge 2013 - Click here to view this year's entries

The Resident’s Voice is an opportunity for residents from facilities across the country to share their ideas about this year’s Residents’ Rights Month theme with other residents, ombudsmen, families, community members and nursing home staff.

Residents are encouraged to think about and respond to the following questions:

1. Have you ever experienced having to speak out against elder abuse?

2. Why do you think it's important to speak out against elder abuse?

3. How can you encourage others to speak out against elder abuse?

4. What could facilities, families and communities do to make residents feel safe and know that their right to be free from abuse is supported?

Residents can respond to the questions in writing (poems, stories), through art of any kind or with video’s/recordings. We will post some of the entries on our website. We encourage facilities/families to frame resident entries and hang them in residents’ rooms or other areas of the facility.  

Submit entries to: info@theconsumervoice.org by July 12th.

• Resident's Voice Challenge 2013 Information Sheet

• Resident's Voice Criteria

• Photo Release Form

• Biopoem - This format can be used to collect information from residents to develop a poem about their lives.

• Resident Hero - This form can be used to collect information about residents to present in a faciltily open house or other activities. This information can be included with Resident's Voice entries posted within facilities or the community.

Residents' Rights Week Resources

• Learning Circle Exercise from the California Culture Change Coalition

• Resident Rights Report Sheet for 2013

• Residents' Rights Bingo Game (provided by The Legal Center)

Residents' Rights Month Products

Residents' Rights Month tote bags, key chains and magnets are now for sale in the Consumer Voice online store.

Residents' Rights Month 2013 News

• On August 19, 2013, California Governor Jerry Brown recently signed AB 937.  The bill clarifies that conservatees retain personal rights, including but not limited to the right to visitation, phone calls, and personal mail.  California advocate Linda Kincaid spoke at the Senate Judiciary Committee hearing.

• Alliance for Better Long Term is promoting Residents' Rights Month with four billboards that will appear throughout Rhode Island in October.

• In Kentucky, the Lexington Herald Leader published an op-ed on elder abuse by nursing home advocate and Kentuckians for Nursing Home Reform board member Jan Scherrer.

• Kentucky Legal Aid hosted its 14th annual Resident Council conference on October 8, 2013 in honor of Residents Rights month. The event is attended each year by 90 to 100 from approximately 16 facilities across the 10 county Barren River district. The event is held in Bowling Green, KY. The purpose of the day is to strengthen the resident council and to empower residents to have a voice in their facilities regarding issues that are important to them. Residents attended a workshop and discussed this year's theme "Speak Out Against Elder Abuse."

• In Kentucky, The Interior Journal published a letter on Residents' Rights Month by Sherry Culp from the Nursing Home Ombudsman Agency.

• The Illinois Nursing Home Abuse Blog featured an article on this year's Residents' Rights Month theme "Speak Out Against Elder Abuse." 

• In Illinois, the Quad-Cities Online posted a press release  on Residents' Rights Month 2013.

•  National Council of Certified Dementia Practitioners featured Residents' Rights Month in their newsletter.

• In Carterville, Illinois, The Ombudsman Program at Shawnee Alliance distributed and received proclamations of Residents' Rights Month from Mayors in their 13 county service areas. They developed and distributed Letters to the Editor and Press Releases to local papers. In an effort to raise awareness, they created postcards with this year's theme of Speak Out Against Elder Abuse and distributed them to Long-Term Care consumers and administrations in their area. 

• In Pennsylvania, an article from the Northumberland County Area Agency on Aging was featured on newsitem.com.

• In New Mexico, State Long-Term Care Ombudsman Sondra Everhart published a guest column in the Rio Rancho Observer.

• National Network of Career Nursing Assistants featured Residents' Rights Month in their October newsletter.

• In Texas, the Department of Aging and Disability Services featured Residents' Rights Month on their website.

• Governor Inslee in Washington proclaimed October 2013 Residents' Rights Month.

• In Mapleton, Iowa, The Mapleton Press published an article on residents' rights.

Residents' Rights Month 2013 Events

• In North Carolina, on October 15, 2013, The Durham County, North Carolina, Adult Care Home Ombudsman program volunteers hosted a public forum on this year’s Residents’ Rights theme, “Speak Out Against Elder Abuse.”

• In North Carolina, on October 17th, Triangle J Area Agency on Aging’s Ombudsman Program volunteers and Durham elder abuse task force (PEAVD) participated in Boom! Magazine’s Expo at North Gate Mall, Durham, North Carolina to “Speak Out Against Elder Abuse”.

• In Massachusetts, South Shore Elder Services is holding their 16th Annual Resident Council Recognition.  Keeping with the theme, they will be showing the DVD "Courage to Speak" followed by a discussion.  Approximately 55 residents from different facilities will attend.

• In Washington, DC, the Long-Term Care Ombudsman Program held their Residents’ Rights Month Luncheon.  This was an opportunity for residents of nursing homes throughout the District of Columbia to celebrate the rights they enjoy as residents.  Sara Cirba, Advocacy and Development Associate at the Consumer Voice, was a key note speaker at the luncheon and discussed the history of Residents’ Rights Month and why speaking out against elder abuse is so important.

• In Iowa, the Office of the State Long-Term Care Ombudsman held several events to celebrate Residents' Rights Month.

• The Wisconsin Board on Aging and Long-Term Care Ombudsman Volunteer Ombudsman Programs held eight Residents' Rights in-service trainings for all of the volunteer ombudsmen around the state in recognition of October as Residents' Rights Month.  Some sessions included Residents' Rights Bingo, discussions on boundaries, and interactive dietary presentations.

Does your organization have events planned to celebrate 2013 Residents' Rights Month? Send us information on your event to info@theconsumervoice.org, and we will post it on our website.

Return to Top