Why SNF Operators Should Keep a Close Eye on Local Markets

Operator investment in talent, company culture and technology, along with a close eye on local markets, are key to survival at this stage of the pandemic. That’s with skilled nursing care becoming an increasingly localized, segmented industry, according to Bill Kauffman, senior principal with the National Investment Center for Seniors Housing & Care (NIC). Kauffman […]

Better training, Career Paths Key to Rebuilding Nursing Home Workforce

Skilled nursing facilities will need solutions to better retain and attract operational staff like New York-based New Jewish Home’s Geriatric Career Development program. Nevertheless experts say that investment in a universal direct care workforce may be needed. The direct care workforce, which includes certified nursing assistants (CNAs) in nursing homes, typically provide between 60-to-80% of […]

Only 58% of Nursing Home Staff are Vaccinated, Industry Hoped for 75% Today

The American Health Care Association and National Center for Assisted Living (AHCA/NCAL) on Wednesday issued a statement indicating the nursing home industry has fallen behind its vaccination goal — 75% of staff vaccinated by June 30. The current national percentage of vaccinated skilled nursing facility staff is sitting at 58% on average as of June […]

With Influx of Cash and Market Competition, Skilled Nursing Leadership Should Invest in Talent for the Long Haul

A unique combination of investor interest, public attention and a floundering workforce offers the skilled nursing industry a unique chance to reinvent itself. Owners and operators of nursing homes need to be working with industry partners to drive not just anyone to the SNF workforce, but individuals with a drive and talent to recast the […]

NIC Survey: 66% SNFs Report Move-In Acceleration, But Staffing Shortages Persist

Operators across the senior living spectrum are reporting that occupancy rates are starting to pick up, with skilled nursing facilities recovering the fastest. Staffing shortages, however, appear to be getting worse. That’s according to the National Investment Center for Seniors Housing & Care’s (NIC) most recent survey of skilled nursing and senior living executives, now […]

94% of Nursing Homes Face Staffing Shortages

Of 616 nursing homes surveyed by the American Health Care Association and National Center for Assisted Living (AHCA/NCAL), 94% said they are experiencing a staffing shortage. Nearly three-fourths of respondents indicated that their workforce situation has worsened compared to 2020, largely due to higher turnover associated with the COVID-19 pandemic. Facilities are actively trying to […]

Trilogy Health CEO: We Aim for 90% Occupancy Recovery in 2021, Eye Ancillary Service Growth

Trilogy Health Services, one of the largest skilled nursing and senior living providers in the United States, is aiming to recover 90% of pre-pandemic occupancy by the end of the year. The Louisville-based company also is pursuing selective new developments and is seeking to grow through its ancillary services business, while addressing workforce challenges through […]

CEOs See Long-Term Care Occupancy, Staffing As Top Post-Pandemic Challenges

While occupancy numbers are enjoying a modest upward trend, skilled nursing operators face an uphill battle to strengthen long-term care metrics into the next year. And, staffing issues also loom large and are commanding attention from SNF operators. These were among the big topics under discussion at Tuesday’s Synergy Summit, where leaders with providers Marquis […]

New CNA, LPN Contracts Raise Nursing Home Wages Across United States

Nursing home operators across multiple states have raised wages for certified nursing assistants and licensed practical nurses, thanks to a combination of union actions, post-pandemic market dynamics and public policy shifts. But with operators still facing acute financial pressures, raising wages is not a simple matter. Larger structural changes are needed to support higher wages […]

Minority Representation Needed in Highly-Skilled Health Positions — That Includes the SNF Space Too

The National Academy of Medicine’s “Future of Nursing 2020-2030” report charts a path past the pandemic for every type of nurse, including those within the skilled nursing spectrum, with a focus on health equity. The term refers to an effort to make sure everyone is getting access to a healthy lifestyle, including health care professionals, […]

Competition for Nursing Home Workers Hits An All-Time High

The most agonizing struggle to find and retain operational staff at skilled nursing facilities continues to be a condition in search of a cure. The pandemic worsened the situation, magnifying concerns about health and safety, which were then piled onto already low wages and relatively uncompetitive pay. Hero pay has been a nice gesture, but […]

Health Affairs Study Clashes with Previous Reports on Nursing Home Shortages

Public policy journal Health Affairs this month reported a modest decline in nursing home staffing levels for the majority of 2020, rather than a drastic shortage in staff suggested by various news reports over the course of the year. Taking data from the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services Payroll Based Journal (PBJ) system, Health […]

Lawmakers Highlight Health Care’s Workforce Shortages, But Long-Term Care Garners Little Attention

Long-term care facilities were mentioned only briefly during a U.S. Senate hearing on Thursday concerning health care workforce shortages, before leadership turned to broader issues of primary care physician scarcity and how rural and ethnic shortages in the sector will be exacerbated by the pandemic. Early in the conversation, Sen. Susan Collins of Maine, a […]

How Goodwin House is Combatting and Solving the Staffing Challenge in Nursing Homes

Hiring and retaining entry-level workers for skilled nursing facilities (SNFs) is a challenge one localized operator has overcome, making it a proud outlier when it comes to meeting the industry’s biggest challenge. Goodwin House Inc. operates two Northern Virginia communities – Goodwin House Alexandria; and Goodwin House Bailey’s Crossroads – and has overcome the obstacles […]

To Address Staff Shortages, Nursing Homes Should Follow Home Care’s Recruiting Lead

Nursing home leaders have routinely pointed to staffing shortages as a top operational challenge, even in the years leading up to the COVID-19 pandemic. Now, the public health emergency has even further exacerbated the hiring challenges operators face. Those challenges were quantified recently in a Health Affairs study that examined pre-pandemic payroll-based journal (PBJ) data […]

Despite Vaccine and Occupancy Progress, Operators Report Record-High Use of Temps, Overtime

Even as the nationwide vaccine rollout eases the clinical crisis in U.S. nursing homes, operators across the senior living spectrum are reporting the highest levels of agency staffing use and overtime pay since the pandemic began — indicating that the longstanding workforce crunch in the sector only has only continued to worsen. That’s according to […]

Lawmakers, Providers Call for Temporary Nurse Aide Extension — as ProMedica Tries to Fill 1,500 Jobs in One State Alone

With skilled nursing facilities facing significant staffing shortages amid the ongoing fallout of the COVID-19 pandemic, a group of lawmakers and operators called for making it easier to retain temporary nurse aides hired during the public health emergency — with one major operator reporting 1,500 unfilled jobs in the state of Pennsylvania. Luke Pile, vice […]