U.S. News & World Report has once again named the ACC Care Center one of the Best Nursing Homes for 2022-2023 in the categories of Long-Term Care and Short-Term Rehabilitation.
“ACC Care Center is among the elite 16% of SNFs that earned a High Performing rating, the highest possible achievement,” according to their announcement.
U.S. News rated 15,178 skilled nursing facilities in the U.S. Only 2.2% of them were rated High Performing in both the Long-Term and Short-Term categories. ACC Care Center was one of them!
The Best Nursing Homes ratings are based on an in-depth analysis of publicly available data, including information that is not factored into the Star Rating system of the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS). The U.S. News ratings recognize that patients undergoing relatively short-term rehabilitation have very different needs from those who require longer-term care. For example, the rating for Short-Term Care Rehabilitation factors in the care delivered to patients after a hospitalization for surgery, heart attack, stroke, injury, or similar condition. “No one wants their loved one to go back to the hospital either during or after their rehabilitation,” says Melanie Nazareno, the Care Center’s Quality Care Manager.
Although numbers drive the rating systems from US News and CMS, the ACC Care Center staff does not obsess with trying to ace the test. “The award is just a reflection of what our staff has been doing for years – providing the best care in an environment that feels like home,” says Tamara Kario, the Care Center Administrator. She points out that the residents, not just staff, feel a shared responsibility to make sure everyone in the “household” is doing well. Residents show concern for other residents and often ask about staff when they haven’t seen them for a while. “It’s a very special dynamic. The pandemic has brought residents and staff even closer,” she says.
Tamara credits Dr. Scott Stringer, ACC’s Medical Director, for empowering staff to bring up issues that seem small but have a big impact on quality and can even save lives. One recent example involved a resident who was in short-stay rehabilitation following knee surgery. In the middle of the night, she called the certified nurse assistant (CNA) and said she felt like she was having indigestion. Her baseline measurements were normal, but the CNA felt there was something more going on based on subtle changes in the resident’s appearance. The CNA brought this to the attention of the nurse on duty. After a short discussion, they sent the resident to the emergency room. It turned out that the resident was having a heart attack. She received life-saving treatment, got well, and later went back to the Care Center and finished her physical therapy stay. “It was beautiful to see this resident doing so well,” says Tamara.
The industry-wide staffing shortage continues to impact the operations and finances of ACC Care Center. Nurses everywhere have quit their profession or left for higher-paid jobs at hospitals. Tamara says, “There are so many oppressing forces, including inflation and family matters brought on by the pandemic that nurses have to deal with.” She is glad that many of ACC’s former nurses have kept in touch and some have even come back. “They tell me that grass is not always greener on the other side.”
Melanie Nazareno points out that, despite these woes, ACC Care Center maintains its Five Star quality rating from the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services. “Vaccination rates, infection control, incidents of falls, rehospitalizations, pressure sores, and urinary tract infections are just a few of the measures we report to CMS every month,” she says.
One hundred percent of ACC Care Center residents completed their primary COVID-19 vaccination series, compared to the national average of 86% at other skilled nursing facilities. The vaccination rate among staff versus the national average is similarly high.
The use of psychotropic medications at SNFs is another reported measure worth mentioning. “ACC’s use of these drugs is way below state and national averages,” says Melanie. “Honestly, it’s because we have a great activities director and good life enrichment activities. Our staff is trained to try non-drug interventions to manage behavioral issues. If someone is yelling or causing a disturbance, let’s find out why. In many cases, patients are experiencing physical pain, a personal loss, or they simply have to go to the bathroom. We can do something about this that doesn’t involve going to the medical director first.”
ACC is honored to receive the Best Nursing Home rating from U.S. News & World Report. “Our soft skills have gotten us here,” says Tamara. “To achieve such high-quality scores, you really have to know what’s going on with your residents, and this is only possible when you listen to them.”
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