To listen to an extended version of this article, check out the McKnight’s Newsmakers Podcast featuring Derek Prince.
Q: You’ve agreed to be party to a lawsuit seeking to throw out the CMS nursing home staffing rule. How does HMG pursue quality in the tough Texas staffing environment?
A: There are some of our 5-star facilities, specifically in Texas, and some of the ones that are named in the lawsuit, where we have 5-star overall quality ratings, 5-star quality outcomes. But just because of the nature and the number of staff that are available in the state of Texas, we have 1 or 2 stars in our staffing categories. From my perspective, when you’re looking at measuring the effectiveness of the care delivery in a skilled nursing facility, I think the quality number should come first and then the staffing number.
Q: What are your biggest pain points when it comes to hiring?
A: Staffing over the last few years has been extremely difficult. It’s not just in our profession or healthcare. I think the labor force in general has been shrinking, and I’m quite certain that everyone has been aware of that, even the lawmakers and the long-term bureaucrats at CMS. … Our most difficult thing at HMG, it really is our lack of registered nurses. I think registered nurses are extremely important. However, there are a lot of people that are important in our facilities. Our CNAs are the backbone of what we do. Our LPNs, they’re also amazing. To pick just one group to say you’ve got to have this amount … that’s the most challenging.
Q: Why get involved in the lawsuit?
A: We instill in all of our folks: Take care of people and we can always defend if you’re doing what’s right and trying to make stuff better and you’re trying to take care of our population. So in this particular instance, we believe that the lawsuit is what’s right. … If not us, who? This is the time to step up. We have to walk the walk.
From the July/August 2024 Issue of McKnight's Long-Term Care News
