Governor signs an executive Order to increase oversight
By Jeffrey J. Downey, Esq
The number of nursing home complaints increased by almost 60% between 2018 and 2024, according to State Health Commissioner Karn Shelton, who delivered the news last month to the Joint Commission on healthcare. Equally important, there is a huge backlog of over 1000 complaints waiting to be investigated.
“This is no surprise,” explains Virginia nursing home attorney Jeffrey J. Downey. “I’ve had several clients complain that their complaints do not get investigated. It’s important to understand that the Virginia Department of Health has limited resources to conduct these complaint investigations. Generally, nursing homes, also known as skilled care facilities, get investigated annually by the Department. However, if a resident or a family member files a complaint about poor care, it can result in a separate investigation. That investigation can lead to a finding of deficiencies, which forces the facility to come up with a plan of correction to fix the problem.
In response to this surge of complaints, Governor Youngkin signed an executive order to strengthen oversight. Executive order 52.
The executive order notes that there is currently a 43% vacancy rate for nursing home inspectors who conduct inspections. The executive order seeks to do the following:
- Increase workforce capacity through a recruitment campaign for nursing home inspectors to fill all vacancies on this team, establish a Northern Virginia regional OLC office with a dedicated inspection team, and utilize various traditional and non-traditional recruiting methods to achieve these goals.
- Strengthen nursing home oversight through the creation of an Advisory Board on Nursing Home Oversight and Accountability that proposes recommendations on policies and practices to improve resident well-being and quality of care and elevates standards across nursing homes.
- Modernize operations by automating licensing and inspection processes, expanding digital tools, and assessing Artificial Intelligence (AI) solutions to reduce administrative burdens.
- Increase transparency with a new public nursing home information portal showing inspection and survey results, disciplinary actions, and key facility performance metrics.
“While the Governor’s executive order may be helpful in increasing the number of nursing home inspectors, it does little to address the root causes of nursing home neglect,” explains Downey. “Virginia must mandate increased staffing levels in Virginia skilled nursing facilities. Substandard care is often related to a lack of staffing and/or staff training. Lack of adequate staffing leads to adverse outcomes like pressure wounds (bed sores or decubitus ulcers), falls, overmedication, medication errors, impaction, elopements, assaults, malnutrition, severe dehydration, physical abuse and wrongful death. Virginia is a state with vast resources and a strong tax base. We should not be ranked 38th out of 50 states in quality of care for our vulnerable seniors.”
If you or a loved one has experienced neglect or abuse in a nursing home or assisted living facility, call the Law Office of Jeffrey J. Downey for a free initial consultation. Mr. Downey, who has been practicing law for over 37 years, has a track record of holding nursing homes accountable for their mistreatment of their patients.
We handle cases in Virginia, Maryland and Washington D.C.
Email: jdowney@jeffdowney.com
Phone: 703-564-7318
On the web at Jeffdowney.com