The Relationship Between Volunteer Long-Term Care Ombudsmen and Regulatory Nursing Home Actions

Abstract

This study assesses the relationship between the presence of Oregon volunteer long-term care ombudsmen and externally handled abuse complaints, survey reports, and regulatory sanctions. In 1987, new amendments to the Older Americans Act mandated long-term care ombudsmen access to nursing homes. No studies have systematically examined the relationship between these empowered ombudsmen programs and regulatory abuse investigations, survey findings, or sanction activities. Contrary to pre-1987 studies, this research found that the presence of ombudsmen was related to increased abuse reporting and abuse complaint substantiations, more survey deficiencies, and higher sanction activity.

Elder Abuse and Neglect in Medicine and Law: The Need for Reform

“…245 Ombudsmen may be mandatory reporters of elder abuse. 246 Reliance on ombudsmen to intervene in situations involving abuse may be problematic. Some writers have argued that ombudsmen lack the training and experience to identify such situations and provide mediation.…”

Evaluation of the Impact of a Volunteer Ombudsman Program: The Rhode Island Experience

“…Cherry's (1991) analysis of ombudsmen in Missouri uniquely established a relationship between the presence of volunteers and improved quality of care, including fewer survey deficiencies. Nelson, Huber and Walter's (1995) examination of Oregon's program, in contrast, found a moderate tie between volunteer ombudsmen and survey deficiencies (though not statistically significant). A third area of concern in evaluation has been the resolution of complaints and concerns of residents.…”

“…A third area of concern in evaluation has been the resolution of complaints and concerns of residents. Both the New York and Oregon programs corroborated a higher incidence of complaint reporting as a result of the introduction of volunteers (Nelson, 1995;Nelson, Huber & Walter, 1995) and possibly greater sanction activity. A final component that has been frequently analyzed concerns the orientations of the volunteers themselves towards their work and differentiation among state programs with regard to the primary orientation of volunteers.…”

Correlates of Reported Complaints by Volunteers in an Ombudsman Program in Nursing Facilities

“…When ombudsmen were present, complaints related to activities of daily life increased although mandated reports of abuse were similar regardless of the presence of ombudsmen. Later research concluded the presence of ombudsmen was associated with survey reports, penalties, and the number of abuse complaints managed by outside facilities (Nelson, Huber, & Walter, 1995). Castle (1997Castle ( -1998 observed that visits by ombudsmen were associated with lower mortality rates among residents.…”