State ranks area nursing homes, long-term care facilities in resident satisfaction

The staff at Friends Care Community of Yellow Springs, which was the highest ranking nursing home in Greene County in a recent State of Ohio survey, pay attention to the whole person and the life their residents lived before coming there, said Mike Montgomery, executive director.

“They were professors, doctors, homemakers. They were everything,” Montgomery said about the residents.

When a resident dies, staff will line the halls as they are brought out of the facility, he said. They call it a “Walk of Honor” to commemorate the resident. The facility is also connected with a preschool, an independent living community for adults who are older, and a center for assisted care and rehabilitation services.

The state alternates each year between surveys on resident satisfaction and family satisfaction said Chip Wilkins, a local ombudsman who advocates for residents in long-term living facilities.

“A lot of times we look to see what the percentage would be of residents who are satisfied and would recommend that facility to friends or family because that typically is very telling,” Wilkins said.

The scores are based on residents’ perceptions of their facility’s activities, administration, meals and dining, direct care, nursing and other factors that affect their lives. The information was gathered in 2022 and 2023 by an independent research firm that did face-to-face interviews with a random sample of residents at the nursing homes.

“I know in the surveys they ask, ‘Overall, are you satisfied with the care provided?’ ” Wilkins said. “We want to see that at or above 80% that have positive reviews of the facility.”

In Montgomery County, Austin Trace Health and Rehabilitation ranked the highest in resident satisfaction.

“I think the standout part is our staff. They truly make it an amazing place,” said Nicole Grove, administrator at Austin Trace.

Grove said staff will connect with the residents and get to know them: “We just treat them like family.”

The highest ranked in Clark County was Vancrest of New Carlisle, which gave credit to both tenured and new staff for focusing on the residents and treating them with empathy.

“They’re truly doing it for the right reasons,” said Shari Folker, administrator at Vancrest. “They’re here to provide great care for our senior population for as long as they’re with us.”

Satisfaction surveys are a good tool for consumers in the community who are thinking about looking for a nursing home for themselves or a loved one, Wilkins said.

“It is an absolute must-review,” Wilkins said.

In addition to staff, top-ranking facilities say they also try to create a home-like atmosphere.

“We’re privately owned, and we put our residents and staff first,” said Lori Auer, administrator of Woodland Country Manor. Woodland Country Manor, Inc. was ranked second highest in Butler County.

“We just try to make it as homey as possible here,” Auer said.

Wooded Glen Health Campus in Springfield was ranked third highest in resident satisfaction in Clark County.

“We’re very much a customer service focused provider of senior living,” said Brody Evans, executive director of Wooded Glen.

Wooded Glen also conducts its own internal resident satisfaction survey every six months to help them gauge where there might be room for improvement, Evans said.

“We believe that if we take care of our residents first and our employees, then we’ll have good positive business outcomes as a result, so we’re really focused on elevating that resident experience on a daily basis,” Evans said.

Top nursing homes provide residents with choices in their environment, meals and activities, which Trinity Community at Beavercreek says helps foster a culture of “purposeful living” when residents are involved in shaping their care and daily routine.

“Additionally, our dedicated long-term staff provide a warm and supportive home-like setting,” said Laura Farrell, senior executive director at Trinity Community at Beavercreek, which ranked third highest in resident satisfaction in Greene County.

In addition to satisfaction surveys, people looking for a nursing home for themselves or loved ones can get a copy of the most recent resident council minutes.

“Every nursing home has a resident council, and it’s during those resident council meetings that complaints are brought up by residents and then passed on from the resident council president to the nursing home administrator,” Wilkins said. “That is available for review by prospective residents or their families.”

For families actively looking for a nursing home for a loved one, Wilkins recommended doing two visits to the nursing home under consideration, including one visit with a scheduled tour and one unannounced visit.

“The second one should always be an unannounced visit during a meal time just to see how staff and residents are interacting and maybe even talking to some residents and asking them what they like or don’t like about the the facility,” Wilkins said.