The first week in October highlights and celebrates National Resident Rights Week. The theme this year is the dining experience – how residents and long-term care facilities (nursing homes and assisted living) can work together to improve the experience.
For many residents, eating becomes the highlight of their day. They look forward to the time when they can go to the dining room and have a meal and visit with other residents. If a facility isn’t aware of the importance of these times or does not invest staff time into making it an enjoyable experience, the residents lose – on many levels. How would you feel if the staff who are there to assist you didn’t take the time to make your meal times pleasant? Would you feel empowered? Would you feel that staff really cared about your needs? Would it make your overall experience in the facility better?
The national push for person-centered care, otherwise known as Culture Change, is encouraging long-term care staff and administrators to think about how the environment of the facility impacts the mental and emotional health of the residents. They are being educated about the links between good emotional health and good results in healing physical issues. They are also being shown how happy residents make for happy staff and happy staff decreases turnover and elder abuse. Simple concepts but often overlooked in the mass of rules and regulations and schedules that have to be met in everyday long-term care life…
The national Long-Term Care Ombudsman Program (and your state and regional Ombudsmen) are helping staff to understand how to make simple but effective changes that can have a powerful positive impact on the lives of residents. They are also being shown how this impacts their bottom line in a direct way. Supporting Resident Rights is one of those efforts. Besides being law, Resident Rights clearly identifies what residents should expect in the way of basic rights and support for preserving their individual dignity. No one wants to live in a long-term care facility. People enter facilities because they need the medical care and oversight offered. They don’t choose to lose their independence and sense of self. It is our responsibility as citizens and friends and family to ensure that they keep as much dignity and personal power as possible under the circumstances. Culture Change and Resident Rights support this human need for self empowerment.
Resident Rights
Celebrating Resident Rights in NC- find out what residents think
Culture Change
Culture Change Blog
Elder Abuse
Long-Term Care Ombudsmen Program
Become a part of the solution. Support Culture Change and person-centered thinking and care in your local facilities and as a national approach to long-term care.
Full Circle of Care
Your governmental non-profit source of information for family caregivers of older adults.
www.fullcirclecare.org
