Dignity for All: Staffing Standards Now!
March 2, 2023 | Education, Resources
This month marks the one-year anniversary of President Biden’s announcement of historic nursing home reforms. Creating a minimum staffing standard, which would be the most significant increase in protections for nursing home residents in decades, was central to his plan. Since his announcement, the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) has embarked on a study to determine the minimum level of direct nursing care all residents need and has promised to propose a standard this spring.
The nursing home industry’s opposition to a minimum staffing standard has been fierce. The voices of residents and workers have been lost in the discussion. Over the next several months, Consumer Voice and resident advocates will center the discussion of minimum staffing standards on residents and workers by holding a series of events to uplift their voices. We must ensure that the primary focus of adequate staffing is on the residents and workers!
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February 23, 2023, 2:00pm ET
Dignity for All: Staffing Standards Benefit Residents and Workers
This webinar serves as the launch of our “Dignity for All: Staffing Standards Now!” campaign advocating for a minimum staffing standard in nursing homes. We discussed the importance of adequate staffing for residents’ safety and health. We also featured the voices of residents and long-term care facility workers, who shared what it is like to live and work in a nursing home without adequate staffing.
View the Webinar Recording and SlidesĀ»
March 9, 2023, 2:00pm ET
Dignity for All: Quality Jobs, Quality Care
The implementation of a minimum staffing standard would not only protect nursing home residents it would address the long-standing job quality problems that plague nursing homes. On average, nursing home staff turnover is 52% each year, which is the result of low-wages, poor benefits, inadequate training, and little opportunity for job growth. The burden of providing essential and critical care falls largely on women, a majority of whom are women of color, while they are treated poorly by nursing home owners and operators. Consumer Voice will be holding a discussion with members of the Service Employees International Union (SEIU) as we discuss what it is like to work in an understaffed facility and what a minimum staffing standard would mean to direct care staff in nursing homes.
March 23, 2023, 2:00pm ET
Webinar featuring the Voice of Residents
Join Consumer Voice for a webinar highlighting the experiences of long-term care residents. They’ll share, in their own words, how living in a facility with inadequate staffing affects their quality of life and the quality of care that they receive, and what it would mean for their lives to live in a facility with enough staff.
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What does it mean to you to live or work in a nursing home with inadequate staffing?
Take our survey to share your (or your loved ones’) experience of living or working in a nursing home without enough staff.