DataPoint: Nursing Home Deficiencies

In a review of the most recent surveys of all New York State nursing homes, the top five citations represent 25 percent of all statewide deficiencies. The most commonly cited statewide deficiency involved the storage, cooking, and service of safe and clean food. The food safety citation represented 6 percent of all citations and was a top 10 deficiency in each of the seven Department of Health (DOH)-defined regions. Keeping accurate, complete, and organized clinical records became a more common citation, representing 3 percent of all citations in New York State. Clinical record keeping was a top 10 deficiency in the New York City, Long Island, Buffalo, and Northeast New York regions during the review of recent surveys.

The Buffalo region saw the largest decline in overall citations, with deficiencies falling from 9.6 per home to 8.1 per home in a six-month span. Outside the Buffalo region, citations were consistent with survey results from September 2016.

The regional and statewide analysis is based on health surveys performed in the 15-month period ending in March 2017. The top 10 report can be found here. The average number of deficiencies by region is available here.

Contact: Ken Allison, kallison@leadingageny.org, 518-867-8820