New Jersey Nursing Home Rankings Available Online
Recently, U.S. News created a searchable online database for those wanting to review the overall quality of nursing homes in their particular area. The database – otherwise known as “Best Nursing Homes” – was created to assist the elderly, and their families, in finding the facilities that provide the best care and staffing almost anywhere in the United States, including here in New Jersey.
Hopefully, this new tool will not only help the elderly find nursing home facilities tailored to fit their needs, but also avoid facilities with past reports of nursing home neglect or abuse.
Nursing Home Database
According to U.S. News, roughly 3.3 million Americans will spend some time living in a nursing home in 2013 – meaning it is more important than ever to ferret out poorer performing facilities.
When producing its searchable nursing home database, U.S. News used information published by the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) in January 2013.
CMS had ranked nursing homes in three separate categories, which included the quality of medical care, staffing levels and health inspections. CMS gave each nursing home evaluated a rating of one to five stars – with five being the best – in each of these categories. Each home was also given an overall score based on the same one-to-five-star scaling system.
Fortunately, over 3,000 nursing homes nationwide received five star overall ratings – with 85 nursing homes in New Jersey receiving this high ranking. But tragically it was not all good news for New Jersey as nearly one-third of all nursing homes ranked received a rating of only two stars or less.
Specifically, 112 nursing homes of the 365 New Jersey facilities ranked – or roughly 31 percent – obtained two or fewer stars. Given these numbers, it seems clear that much can still be done to improve the care of the elderly in our state’s nursing homes.
Signs Of Nursing Home Abuse
In the unfortunate cases in which nursing home residents suffer neglect or abuse, family members need to be aware of the tell-tale signs – after all, family members may not have previously had access to an online nursing home ranking to tell them of the dangers associated with a particular facility.
For instance, it is important to be on the look-out for:
- Unexplained injuries such as bruises
- Unusual weight loss or malnutrition
- Untreated physical problems like bed sores
- Residents being left dirty, and living in unsanitary conditions
- Residents being left unattended for long period of times or in public locations
Abuse or neglect in nursing homes is appalling given the vulnerability of many of the residents in such facilities. Accordingly, if you or a loved one has been injured as a result of nursing home neglect or abuse, it is important to speak with an experienced nursing home injury attorney to ensure your rights are protected.
