Published: December 29, 2008 11:30 pm      

Mixed results for area nursing homes

GREENVILLE — Of the seven nursing homes in Hunt County, four have received the federal government’s lowest staffing rating, while only one received the highest.

The Five Star Quality Rating system by Medicare was implemented to assist consumers, their families and caregivers in comparing nursing homes. The system offers a comprehensive examination of all major aspects of care in a nursing home. The ratings are based on health inspections, staffing and other quality measures.

The staffing rating is calculated by examining the number of staff hours per resident per day, which is then case-adjusted, to account for the different levels of resident needs.

Briarcliff Health Center of Greenville, Greenville Health and Rehabilitation Center, Legend Greencrest Healthcare in Greenville and Smith Nursing and Rehabilitation in Wolfe City all received one star in the staffing category. The rating examines the staff to resident ratio, and how many of the staff are trained nurses. According to a Medicare news release, since staffing needs can vary, the ratings also consider differences in how sick the nursing home residents are in each facility.

On the other hand, Hunt Regional Medical Center received five stars on the rating. It was also the only facility to receive a five star overall rating. Oak Manor Nursing and Rehabilitation in Commerce received two stars, and a rating for Park Haven was unavailable.

Overall ratings fared much better for nursing homes in the county. Briarcliff Health Center, Legend Greencrest Healthcare, Oak Manor and Smith Nursing received four stars. Greenville Health and Rehabilitation and Park Haven each received three stars.

Of the nation’s nearly 16,000 nursing homes, approximately 22 percent received the lowest rating, while only 12 percent received the highest rating.

A complete listing of the ratings can be found at http: //Medicare.gov/NHcompare