A Closer Look at How Nursing Homes Are Regulated in New Jersey

Sooner or later, the time comes and a beloved member of your family is getting up there in age. A nursing home is usually the best decision, especially if the person in question is battling some health issues. But even though you know that’s the right decision, it doesn’t mean it’s easy. In fact, it’s one of the hardest ones you’ll make in your life. 

The good news is, that nursing homes are safe and people are well cared for. Or are they? They all have those glossy brochures and smiling elders on them, but should you really believe a brochure and a few nice words when you’ve already read horror stories about neglect and abuse in nursing homes?

Of course, there are regulations in place that (are supposed to) make sure everyone is doing their jobs properly and all seniors are living their best lives. At least that’s how it is in theory.

What’s Working and What Isn’t in New Jersey’s Nursing Homes

 All nursing homes in New Jersey have to comply with federal and state regulations, which are intended to protect the residents and make sure they receive quality care. 

Unfortunately, not everything is working quite like it should; some aspects of the legal framework work fine; but others don’t. 

1. The Good

One extremely positive aspect is the oversight. In New Jersey, nursing homes have regular inspections and performance checks, and they’re carried out by state authorities. The inspections check whether the facilities meet basic care and safety standards.

Public reporting tools like Nursing Home Compare are yet another step in the right direction for family members looking up nursing homes regarding staff care or health inspections and, ultimately, quality. Such tools allow families to check such information in nursing homes, making it more convenient for families to find a suitable setting.

Correction in infection control has also improved, especially as a result of the COVID-19 pandemic. Resident rights issues have also improved such that all state and federal laws now protect patients from neglect and abuse. 

2. The Bad

Definitely, there are lots of great things. However, there are still some major nursing home issues that haven’t been fixed.

One big problem is that many of the facilities do not have adequate staffing, and that prevents them from being able to provide full care for all of their residents. Another issue affecting nursing homes is that different regulations have different enforceability. Some of the nursing homes comply with the rules; while some can break the rules continuously without consequence.

Lodging a complaint usually takes a long time for the investigation process and the resolution of problems. Not infrequently, families with complaints wait for weeks or months before action can be seen taking place. Then there are penalties, which are far too weak in most cases. Nursing homes that have violations might get fined, but fines are usually too low to deter further violations. 

Last, but certainly not least – agencies who oversee nursing homes are short on staff, as well, so they can’t inspect all facilities often enough. 

What Families Can Do When Problems Occur

If you think something isn’t right, you need to act quickly. Don’t second-guess yourself and don’t delay.

Signs of poor care include injuries your loved one can’t explain, bad hygiene, or emotional changes like fear or withdrawal. Also, look at how clean the facility is as a whole and see what the atmosphere is like. Another thing you should do is to check public records and reports from the inspection to see how the particular nursing home has done in the past. 

If you indeed find problems, you can file a complaint with the New Jersey Department of Health. The department will then investigate, but make sure to follow up with them to check that your concerns have been addressed.

To more clearly illustrate the North and Central Jersey nursing home business, we’ll show some helpful statistics for nursing homes in the area.

As you can see Toms River has the highest amount of registered beds by far. The number of patient stays and the total revenue is also mirroring the previous number. Troy Hills, also known as Parsippany, sits at 118 beds and 26,566 stays making the average stay per bed 225.14 days. This means that nursing homes in Parsippany aren’t crowded, and there’s enough supply for future residents. 

Whippany and Wayne are showing a different story, however. Whippany has 288.32 days as the average stay per bed, while Wayne’s is at 335.54 days (almost a full year). This data shows that Whippany and Wayne have a much higher demand for nursing home placements than Troy Hills.

While areas such as Whippany and Wayne might have more serious nursing home crowding issues, and thereby the quality of service might be suffering, areas where there’s less demand could be as worrisome. 

If there’s less profit like it is in Toms River, nursing homes might invest fewer resources in quality, safety measures, technology, staffing, training, and education – and this will (likely) lead to determinants for the nursing home residents.

If the issue is serious, like neglect or abuse, the best thing to do would be to contact a lawyer in the city/town you’re in. Get a good quality nursing home abuse and neglect lawyer in Toms River, NJ. You’ll be working closely with them, so it’s a lot easier if they’re close to you. 

Of course, if you live in any other area, just contact a specialized attorney in your local area.

Conclusion

So, what are the key takeaways from all of this? Well, it all comes down to ensuring the nursing home your loved one is in (or will be in) is of top quality. If you notice that anything is not up to standard, raise your complaint with the nursing home management. But if those complaints fall on deaf ears, then you have more powerful tools at your disposal – for our fellow New Jersyans, you have the New Jersey Department of Health.

Keep your loved ones happy and safe!