Ladies' Home Journal

NCCNHR Welcomes Ladies Home Journal Readers

The June issue of Ladies' Home Journal has brought important attention to the struggle families go through trying to get good care for loved ones in nursing  homes. Martha Deaver featured on the cover of the article received the NCCNHR 2005 Janet Tulloch Advocacy Memorial Award for her exceptional work as a citizen advocate for long-term care residents.  The article helps to reinforce NCCNHR's long-term care agenda:

• workforce issues including training, adequate benefits, staff empowerment, and the need for a minimum staffing standard
• the high cost of poor care (pain and suffering as well as the high financial costs of unneeded hospitalizations)
• the need for strong, swift and sure enforcement that particularly addresses facilities that are repeat poor performers
• the importance of preserving residents' rights and access to civil justice

This page provides links to resources that may be useful to readers of the Ladies Home Journal and the article by Michael J. Weiss, "It Broke My Heart That I Couldn't Protect My Mom."

TOPICS:

Consumer Guide to Choosing a Nursing Home - This guide provides tools that can be used by family members who are searching for a facility.

Nursing Home Compare - This tool on the Medicare website at http://www.medicare.gov/NHCompare/Home.asp displays quality measure data, deficiencies and other information about nursing homes. It is organized by state and county to help you search for facilities near you or anywhere in the country.

Culture Change - transforming the culture of aging.  Learn more about it.  See also: Pioneer Network - a movement based on person-directed values.

Consumer Information Sheets:

Assessment and Care Planning: The Key to Good Care
The Basics of Individualized Quality Care
Abuse and Neglect
Malnutrition in Nursing Home Residents

Additional NCCNHR information sheets

How to Speak Out for Good Care for Your Loved One -

Family Councils - Family members in a facility can join together to form a united consumer voice which can communicate concerns to nursing home administrators and work for resolutions and improvements by forming a family council. Find out how to join or start a family council, rights of family councils and more.

Citizen Advocacy Groups - concerned citizens who work to improve the quality of care for nursing home residents in their locality, state, or region. Find a group near you.

Nursing Homes: Getting Good Care There, 2nd edition. A valuable tool for consumers seeking quality nursing home care. Order now.

Long-Term Care Ombudsmen - An Ombudsman is an advocate for residents of long-term care facilities. Ombudsmen provide information about how to find a facility and what to do to get quality care. Contact your local ombudsman for information about facilities in your area. You can find contact information and more on the National Long-Term Care Ombudsman Resource Center website at www.ltcombudsman.org.

Neglect and Abuse - To learn more about Neglect and Abuse in Nursing Homes see our wake-up call and Faces of Neglect project.

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Addressing workforce issues is essential to seeking quality care.  The petition in the Ladies' Home Journal endorses U.S. Rep. Waxman's bill which is based on NCCNHR Staffing Standards.  Please sign and send in the petition included in the article.  The petition to improve nursing home care is in support of the Nursing Home Staffing Act of 2005 (H.R. 4293). You may also find and sign the petition on line at: http://www.lhj.com/nursinghome.

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Join NCCNHR today.

Remember or Honor Your Mother on Mother's Day with a donation to NCCNHR.

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