OIG: Nursing Homes Reported Wide-Ranging Challenges Preparing for Public Health Emergencies and Natural Disasters

Sep 1, 2023 | Nursing HPRD & Turnover, Research Studies of PBJ Data

News Digest: OIG finds challenges with nursing homes pandemic preparation

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Nursing Homes Reported Wide-Ranging Challenges Preparing for Public Health Emergencies and Natural Disasters

Although most nursing homes met Federal emergency preparedness requirements, an estimated 77 percent reported challenges with preparedness activities intended to ensure that resident care needs are met during an emergency. The most frequently cited concerns among nursing homes were ensuring proper staffing during emergencies and transporting residents during evacuations.

WHY WE DID THIS STUDY
OIG has identified emergency preparedness and nursing home safety as priorities. Nursing home failures to adequately plan for and respond to public health emergencies and natural disasters have led to tragic results. Although such outcomes were not typical, they point to the need to identify the source of breakdowns and to strengthen nursing home preparedness efforts.

HOW WE DID THIS STUDY
We surveyed a random sample of 199 nursing homes located in geographic areas rated by the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) as having a very high or relatively high risk for natural hazards. We received responses from 168 nursing homes and projected the results to all nursing homes in the FEMA risk areas. Respondents rated how challenging each of

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Office of the Inspector General. “Nursing Home Capabilities and Collaboration to Ensure Resident Care During Emergencies”.” Department of Health and Human Services, 1 Sep. 2023, oig.hhs.gov/oei/reports/OEI-06-22-00100.asp, September 2023.

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OIG: Pandemic Data Shows Major Changes Needed in Nursing Home Staffing, Surveys, Infection Control

A staggering number of nursing homes reported challenges in meeting the care needs of their residents during public health emergencies and natural disasters due mostly to inadequate staffing, with transportation, communication and infection control and prevention also being among key areas hampering these efforts.

This is according to the latest report issued Wednesday by the Office of Inspector General (OIG).

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Siddiqi, Zahida.  “OIG: Nursing Homes Hard-Pressed to Meet Resident Needs in Emergencies Due to Staffing.” Skilled Nursing News, 8 Sept. 2023, skillednursingnews.com/2023/09/oig-nursing-homes-hard-pressed-to-meet-resident-needs-in-emergencies-due-to-staffing.

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Nursing homes reveal widespread emergency planning barriers in new OIG report

More than three-quarters of US nursing homes in areas at high risk for natural disasters face significant challenges in preparing for them, estimates a new federal report issued early Wednesday.

The report used surveys with nursing home leaders to identify ongoing concerns, many of them often in play even when a facility has met the technical requirements for emergency preparedness outlined by the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services.

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Marselas, Kimberly. “Nursing Homes Reveal Widespread Emergency Planning Barriers in New OIG Report.” McKnight’s Long-Term Care News, 5 Sept. 2023, www.mcknights.com/news/nursing-homes-reveal-widespread-emergency-planning-barriers-in-new-oig-report.

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