Nursing Homes in Western Virginia Are Poor Performers

Dan Frith

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I posted a short blog last week about how most lawsuits against nursing homes were not frivolous as some commentators argue. I am firmly of the opinion that lawsuits keep the "fat corporate cats" honest! We all know the federal and state governments either don't have the budget or the willingness to go after those corporate owners, who often make financial contributions to the re-election campaign of politicians.

Well, now the story gets local. The number of violations reported in Roanoke-area nursing homes (Western Virginia) was higher than the national average in 13 out of 31 facilities. For example, Avante at Roanoke, a 130-bed facility in the Old Southwest neighborhood, had the most violations, with 28 health-inspection infractions and six fire and safety deficiencies. Average daily certified nursing assistant time per patient at Avante was one hour, 40 minutes -- less than the region's top performer by 70 minutes. You cannot provide needed patient care in 100 minutes per day. The 180-bed Virginia Veterans Care Center, another nearby nursing home, had 26 health and three fire and safety violations.

Read reporter Beth Macy's recent article in the Roanoke Times on the sad state of nursing homes.

Families in Western Virginia are not immune from the very serious problems which plague long term care.