A CNA assists a resident at Genesis HealthCare

For employers seeking to improve quality of care by improving the quality of direct-care jobs, PHI has created a new resource at its website: profiles of “best practices” employed in nursing homes and home and community-based settings.

The practices featured in the profiles — which are based on care organizations throughout the country — exemplify PHI’s “quality care through quality jobs” philosophy. For most of the organizations, the improved job quality can be directly linked to higher recruitment and retention among direct-care staff.

“We’ve identified organizations that value their frontline workers; we feature the important elements of the practice, measurable outcomes, and lessons learned,” said PHI Director of Evaluation Marcia Mayfield.

Examples of Best Practices

Some of the best practices profiled by PHI are:

• Providence Mount St. Vincent — The Mount, as its residents and employees call it, uses a person-centered approach to care, giving its direct-care staff more autonomy. Consequently, workers report higher job satisfaction, and the Mount’s turnover rates are notably low.
• Genesis HealthCare — This long-term care provider, which maintains a network of more than 200 facilities in 13 states, gives certified nursing assistants (CNAs) the ability to advance their careers by becoming Geriatric Nursing Assistant Specialists. CNAs must undergo a 10-week training before earning their promotion, which includes a wage increase and increased responsibilities.
• Cooperative Home Care Associates — CHCA, a PHI partner organization, uses an integrated training model to ensure high-quality care. Applicants to CHCA first undergo rigorous assessment before being accepted into the pre-employment training program. Graduates of the initial 4-weeks of training receive a bevy of post-employment training and supports, such as peer mentoring and case management support. The program ensures that CHCA’s home care aides are well-positioned to succeed in their roles as caregivers.

PHI will publish 20 best practice profiles and several multimedia case studies of particularly innovative care facilities throughout the year. The best practices and case studies are made possible with support from the Hitachi Foundation.

– by Matthew Ozga