During a public meeting this week, the Schuylkill County commissioners approved the transfer of over $72,000 from the county’s general fund to the county’s nursing home, Rest Haven in Schuylkill Haven. The amount covered a retroactive payment of a 2 percent wage increase in 2011 for nursing home employees. According…
An article on McKnight’s Long-Term Care News is reporting that lawmakers have introduced a proposal that would require skilled nursing facilities to conduct a drug regimen review process as well as provide monthly reports on the use of antipsychotics in facilities. Called the Improving Dementia Care Treatment in Older Adults…
In November of 2011, an 80-year-old resident of Warner’s Home for the Aged in Altoona died 12 days after being admitted to the facility. As a result, the home’s owner and two aides are facing neglect charges in the resident’s death. According to an article on WRTA.com, a doctor told…
On Friday, two remaining residents were evicted from White Owl Manor in Mahanoy City and the doors were padlocked because the owner did not take action on a judge’s order. According to an article on the RepublicanHerald.com, White Owl Manor operated for many years as a personal care home, but…
On Thursday, a judge approved the sale of personal property belonging to Saint Catherine Medical Center in Fountain Springs. According to an article on the RepublicanHerald.com, the building will almost certainly cease to be a hospital as a result of the ruling. This ends the hospital’s 129-year history here in…
A local man is using the power of the web to keep Pleasant Valley Manor Nursing Home in county hands. His decision to take action came about two weeks ago when he read in the Pocono Record that Monroe County Commissioners said that not “one more dollar of tax should…
An attempt to see if financial incentives might improve quality of care at nursing homes had mixed results, according to an article on McKnights.com. The Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services conducted a pilot program where nursing homes would be rewarded if they met financial savings goals and improved quality…
On Friday, four long-term care residents received certificates for completing Pennsylvania’s Empowered Expert Residents (PEER) program. The program is designed to empower nursing home residents to speak out about quality-of-life issues. According to an article on TheTimes-Tribune.com, the training is led by the non-profit group Serviing Seniors Inc., of Lackawanna…
Anyone with relatives in the Berwick Retirement Home in Berwick, Columbia County, should take heed to the following article from WNEP.com. A former employee has been charged with stealing $24,600 from residents while she worked at the home. And according to police, that number could grow. Berwick police said the…
As Pennsylvania’s new Voter ID Law continues to keep people in the state talking, it also brings up a new responsibility for nursing facilities: issuing photo identification to residents if necessary to allow them to vote. Both the PA Department of Health (DOH) and the PA Department of Public Welfare…