Care Facilities Should Be Checked Out
National Regulations Limited For Assisted Care Facilities
POSTED: 6:30 p.m. EST April 2, 2002
HOUSTON -- More Americans are faced with finding home care for aging parents, and assisted living centers are becoming a popular option over nursing homes. But assisted living centers are not regulated like nursing homes, so consumers need to know what to look for.
Joe Evans moved to a nursing home after he became disappointed with his assisted living facility. He did not receive the individualized treatment he was originally promised.
"They weren't consistent about giving him all the pills he needed or giving him the medicine on time or having the right medications there. Often times, they'd just run out of medications," said Ann Guise, Evans' daughter.
Unlike nursing homes, there aren't any federal regulations for assisted living facilities. The American Bar Association thinks that should change.
"There are all sorts of rules and regulations that provide you with a certain comfort level in nursing homes. There are no rules and regulations or standards that provide you with that same comfort level in an assisted care facility," said Robert Hirshon, with the American Bar Association.
"If you just look at the size of regulations, the nursing home is high in terms of pages and the assisted living is maybe a quarter of that," said Dr. Diane Persson, with the University of Texas Center on Aging.
Perssen said need to know what they are getting into.
"People go in thinking that they will be getting transportation provided, that there will be lots of activities, that there will be a nurse on staff. And then, they get there and that may be there for a while but not on a regular 24/7 kind of basis, so there are lapses with care," Persson said.
Personn recommended the following tips.
Joe Evans moved to a nursing home after he became disappointed with his assisted living facility. He did not receive the individualized treatment he was originally promised.
"They weren't consistent about giving him all the pills he needed or giving him the medicine on time or having the right medications there. Often times, they'd just run out of medications," said Ann Guise, Evans' daughter.
Unlike nursing homes, there aren't any federal regulations for assisted living facilities. The American Bar Association thinks that should change.
"There are all sorts of rules and regulations that provide you with a certain comfort level in nursing homes. There are no rules and regulations or standards that provide you with that same comfort level in an assisted care facility," said Robert Hirshon, with the American Bar Association.
"If you just look at the size of regulations, the nursing home is high in terms of pages and the assisted living is maybe a quarter of that," said Dr. Diane Persson, with the University of Texas Center on Aging.
Perssen said need to know what they are getting into.
"People go in thinking that they will be getting transportation provided, that there will be lots of activities, that there will be a nurse on staff. And then, they get there and that may be there for a while but not on a regular 24/7 kind of basis, so there are lapses with care," Persson said.
Personn recommended the following tips.
- Staffing: Find out the training requirements for staff and the ratio of residents to staff.
- Payment Rate: The average yearly cost for an assisted living facility is $25,000. Make sure you can afford the cost for years.
- Visit the facility. Check it out at different times of the day and talk to residents and staff.
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