A summary report of surprise inspections of New Mexico’s assisted living communities and nursing facilities is being called a “gotcha” moment by an industry representative, who said the “splashy” release undoes good faith created with providers.
Last week, the state released a report detailing findings of surprise inspections of 91 facilities in May, including assisted living communities, nursing homes and skilled nursing facilities. Inspectors looked at the condition of the overall facility environment, resident rooms, resident appearance, resident activities, staff member/resident interactions, sounds and smells.
According to the report, 77 facilities scored 80% or above, with 11 of them — all except one were assisted living communities — achieving a perfect inspection score. But the state noted that almost 90% of facilities failed at least one portion of the inspection.
Four facilities failed — two facilities had findings so “egregious” that they were immediately reported to the state abuse, neglect and exploitation hotline. Morado Senior Living in Albuquerque was one of those communities reported for a resident who temporarily went missing.
Infractions detailed in the report ranged from so-called “egregious incidents” requiring immediate reporting to administrative violations of rules and regulations — such as a strong urine, feces, disinfectant or chemical odor; a lack of proper signage: and failure to post food menus for residents.
The head of the New Mexico Health Care Association / New Mexico Center for Assisted Living told McKnight’s the inspections and “splashy results release” felt like a “gotcha” moment.
“At no point has the association or our members or facilities been engaged in this process in a way that helps improve resident care,” Executive Director Vicente Vargas said. “Is there room for improvement? Absolutely. But all we’ve seen is this report has been used to paint a picture of facilities that is not a complete picture.”
Vargas said that NMHCA / NMCAL has “more than put our best foot forward” to engage in a collaborative way with the state.
“But this feels like a ‘gotcha,’” he said. “That starts to undo a lot of the good faith that’s been created between providers and the state.”
Assisted living communities earning perfect scores were Brookdale Valencia, Montecito Santa Fe, Heartfelt Manor Incorporate, La Vida Llena, Three Rivers Estates, Beehive Homes of Roswell LLC, Pacifica Senior Living Santa Fe, Montecito Santa Fe Memory Care Community, Kingston Resident of Santa Fe and Casa Angelina Southeast LLC. Only one skilled nursing / nursing facility, La Vida Llena in Albuquerque, earned a perfect score.
Gov. Michelle Lujan Grisham (D) called the inspection findings “unacceptable.”
“My administration is committed to working collaboratively across agencies to protect our most vulnerable residents and ensure that every resident receives high quality care and lives with dignity,” she said.
The state’s new Healthcare Authority will continue conducting unannounced visits of long-term care facilities, the governor said. Lujan Grisham also encouraged members of the public to apply for volunteer ombudsman positions to provide a voice for residents of assisted living communities and nursing homes.
Read more state news here.
