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February 10, 2015

Final Ombudsman Regulations on Display; to be published in tomorrow's Federal Register

Today the Administration on Aging at the Administration for Community Living (ACL) announced the Long-Term Care Ombudsman program final rule is on display in the Federal Register, and will be published officially and distributed widely this week!  With input from state and local ombudsmen and stakeholders from across the country, ACL has been working on the development of these regulations since 2011 in an effort to clarify ambiguities and resolve long-standing issues within LTC ombudsman programs.

Click here to view the published rule.

As states evaluate their compliance with the rule, ACL recognizes that some will need to make changes to address conflicts of interest and other issues.  To assist, ACL announced it will be available to states, long-term care ombudsman programs, and all other stakeholders for training, technical assistance, and support. Also, ACL has set up a dedicated email account, LTCOmbudsman.Rule@acl.hhs.gov, to field requests for assistance from states. In addition, the final rule will not be effective until July 1, 2016, in order to give states time to make changes.

The National Ombudsman Resource Center is working with ACL to coordinate a webinar to review the provisions and provide an opportunity for questions.   More information will be forthcoming as a date is set.

Be on the lookout for more information from NORC as we work to analyze the new rule for how it can more effectively help you to advocate for long-term care residents, and assist states with coming into compliance.

Questions? Contact NORC at ombudcenter@theconsumervoice.org.

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Resources on Resident to Resident Mistreatment Are Now Available in the Consumer Voice Store

Aggression between residents of long-term care facilities is a serious yet hidden problem. All residents have the right to be free from all forms of abuse, neglect, and exploitation, and have rights if they have been subjected to mistreatment.  Newly released from the National Consumer Voice for Quality Long-Term Care and the National Center on Elder Abuse, this brochure (and large print fact sheet) identifies mistreatment, shares information about an individual’s rights, and offers resources where they can go for help.

Hard copies of the resources are now available for sale in the Consumer Voice store. The brochure and fact sheet are also now available in the online store in packs of 25, 50 and 100. (Please contact info@theconsumervoice.org for information on larger bulk orders).

Order now!

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Low Vaccination Rate Among Nursing Home Staff Puts Residents at Risk

According to a study published in the American Journal of Infection Control, the vaccination rate for nursing home staff is only 54 percent.  The study surveyed 1,965 nursing home employees in Florida, Georgia and Wisconsin. Despite previous studies demonstrating the inverse relationship between staff vaccination rates and the likelihood of an influenza outbreak, only 54 percent of all nursing home personnel received an influenza vaccination during the 2010-2011 and 2011-2012 seasons, according to the study.  The susceptible elderly population relies on high staff vaccination rates for added protection against influenza outbreaks. For more information, read the press release from the Association for Professionals in Infection Control and Epidemiology.

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Do you manage volunteer ombudsmen? This call is for you!

NORC is hosting its first open discussion conference call for LTCO who manage LTCO volunteers on Friday, February 20, 3:00-4:00 ET.

The purpose of this call is to provide an informal forum for the exchange of ideas, sharing of best practices, and discussion of challenges regarding LTCO volunteer management. The call will have a flexible agenda consisting of topics suggested by LTCO who recruit, train, and manage LTCO volunteers.  There will be no formal presentations given on the chosen topics - they will serve to help get started and guide the discussion.

Since this is the first open discussion call, it will start with questions regarding risk management and the LTCOP. In preparation for an upcoming NORC webinar regarding LTCO volunteer management, NORC needs to learn more about how volunteer ombudsman managers identify and reduce risk related to working with volunteers and respond when a volunteer’s actions (or inaction) negatively impacts the long-term care program and those it serves.

There is no cost to participate in the conference call and no pre-registration is required. To join the call, please use the number and access code below and click on the link to log-in at the time of the call.

Since this is an open discussion, please send any topics, questions, or challenges for discussion to Amity Overall-Laib at aoveralllaib@theconsumervoice.org.

A reminder email with the call-in information and agenda will be sent at least a week before the call.

Please save the date!

Friday, February 20, 2015

3:00- 4:00 ET

Conference Call Number: 1-800-768-2983

Access Code:  562-9525

Log-in: https://cc.callinfo.com/r/1aazu9xpf268h&eom

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Spotlight on Giving: Share the Love


This Valentine's Day, share love with those who are important in your life.  Make a $10 contribution to the Consumer Voice, and we will post your message of love on our Share Love page.  Messages can be posted to consumers, family, friends, staff or volunteers.  Tell someone you care or that you appreciate all that they do.

Submit your message now!

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Spotlight on Educational Resources

The Consumer Voice and the National Ombudsman Resource Center have a multitude of resources available online covering a wide range of long-term care topics.  Visit the Consumer Voice website and the NORC website to explore all the available resources.  Take a look at this week's highlighted resource:

Fact sheets on Financial Exploitation in Nursing Homes and Assisted Living Facilities (also available in Spanish and Chinese) - Developed in part through a grant from the Administration on Aging for the National Center on Elder Abuse (NCEA), these fact sheets discuss the prevention, detection and reporting of financial exploitation in assisted living and nursing homes. There are separate fact sheets for residents of assisted living facilities and nursing homes and their family members. The consumer fact sheets provide an overview of residents’ rights and facility responsibilities related to resident finances, tips for protecting themselves and how to report incidents of financial abuse. The fact sheets for family and friends of residents also review residents’ rights and facility responsibilities, highlight warning signs and how to report incidents of financial exploitation.

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Free In-service Trainings, Tool Kit Available from National Council of Certified Dementia Practitioners

The National Council of Certified Dementia Practitioners and International Council of Certified Dementia Practitioners are offering free in-service trainings and a tool kit through March 15th which include Powerpoint downloads, handouts, pretests and post-tests to assist trainers in training staff, family, volunteers, first responders, students, members and congregations.  Each in-service is designed to be taught in 30 minutes and some examples of what you may choose to download include: Elder Abuse and Medications, Broken Trust: Elders, Family and Finance-Financial Abuse and Sexual Violence in Later Life among others. You can access these free resources by signing up here: http://www.nccdp.org/staff-education-week.htm

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In this Issue

Final Ombudsman Regulations on Display; to be published in tomorrow's Federal Register

Resources on Resident to Resident Mistreatment Are Now Available in the Consumer Voice Store

Low Vaccination Rate Among Nursing Home Staff Puts Residents At Risk

Do you manage volunteer ombudsmen? This call is for you!

Spotlight on Giving: Share the Love

Spotlight on Educational Resources

Free In-Service Trainings, Tool Kit from National Council of Certified Dementia Practitioners


4.1 It CAN Be Done!

As part of our nursing home staffing campaign, Better Staffing: The Key to Better Care, Consumer Voice is advocating for a minimum of 4.1 hours of nursing care per resident per day.  To show your support of this campaign, individuals can send us a photo with the slogan "4.1 - It CAN Be Done" by tweeting us pictures @ConsumerVoices, posting on our Facebook or emailing your photos to info@theconsumervoice.org.  Get the word out and encourage consumers to participate by sending in their photos too!


Calendar of Events

Thursday, February 12: How to Craft an Effective Advocacy Message, Advocacy skills training webinar from the Consumer Voice - Registration is almost full! Register ASAP!

Thursday, February 19: LGBT-Affirming Intake: Asking Questions about Sexual Orientation and Gender Identity, 3:00pm EST, Free NORC webinar for long-term care ombudsmen

Thursday, April 30: Delivering Your Message in Person: The Nuts and Bolts of Meeting with a Key Decision Maker, Advocacy skills training webinar from the Consumer Voice

Tuesday, June 30: Delivering Your Message: Utilizing Both Traditional Approaches and Social Media, Advocacy skills training webinar from the Consumer Voice

Thursday, August 27: How to Grow, Support, and Activate Your Network, Advocacy skills training webinar from the Consumer Voice


Your Car Can Help Promote Quality Care

Do you, a loved one or friend have a car that you or they would like to dispose of?  Now, Consumer Voice can help – and your used car can help Consumer Voice!  By working with our car disposal agency, Vehicle Donation to Any Charity (V-DAC), the proceeds from the sale of your car become a contribution to Consumer Voice.  

Note: We are actually registered with the service as “NCCNHR” so when asked which charity you would like to benefit, just say or type in “NCCNHR.”

Here is a link to our page on the V-DAC site http://v-dac.com/org?id=52-1122531 and you can get started there – or just call 877-999-8322 toll free.   And to discuss your donation with Consumer Voice, just write to us at info@theconsumervoice.org or call (202) 332-2275 x209


Join the conversation and follow us on social media!

Last Week's Most Popular Post:

Wednesday, February 4:
This Valentine's Day, share the love with those who are important in your life.  Make a $10 contribution to Consumer Voice, & we'll post your mesage of love on our website.

Last Week's Most Popular Tweet:

Friday, February 6
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#SharetheLove with your special #longtermcare #Valentine


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About The Gazette

The Gazette is a weekly e-newsletter, published by the National Consumer Voice for Quality Long-Term Care and the National Long-Term Care Ombudsman Resource Center. If you do not wish to continue receiving this publication, please unsubscribe below. Your contributions and comments are welcome and should be sent to info@theconsumervoice.org. Copyright © 2015.

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The Consumer Voice is the leading national voice representing consumers in issues related to long-term care, helping to ensure that consumers are empowered to advocate for themselves. We are a primary source of information and tools for consumers, families, caregivers, advocates and ombudsmen to help ensure quality care for the individual. The Consumer Voice's mission is to represent consumers at the national level for quality long-term care, services and supports.


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