{"id":11191,"date":"2019-06-17T07:00:01","date_gmt":"2019-06-17T12:00:01","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.senioradvisor.com\/blog\/?p=11191"},"modified":"2020-10-13T19:37:44","modified_gmt":"2020-10-14T00:37:44","slug":"what-you-need-to-ask-about-senior-community-staffing","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/d30braiqprupoq.cloudfront.net\/blog\/2019\/06\/what-you-need-to-ask-about-senior-community-staffing\/","title":{"rendered":"What You Need to Ask About Senior Community Staffing"},"content":{"rendered":"

What You Need to Ask About Senior Community Staffing<\/h1>\n

Last Updated:<\/strong> June 17, 2019<\/p>\n

When you\u2019re helping your parents find a senior community, there\u2019s so much to consider \u2014 the condition of the buildings and the services available, location and prices.\u00a0Perhaps the most important element, however, is the senior community staffing. After all, these are the people who will be helping your parents and senior loved ones each day.\"What<\/p>\n

According to a recent SeniorAdvisor.com survey of adults with parents in senior care, here\u2019s what you need to ask about senior community staffing before you sign on:<\/p>\n

1. How do staff members treat others?<\/h3>\n

You can see this for yourself when you visit (ideally, more than once, at different times of day), but you can also ask staffers what they like about their co-workers, ask the residents what they like about the staff and ask other visitors\u00a0how the staff treats them and their loved ones.<\/p>\n

2. How do staffers protect residents\u2019 dignity and privacy?<\/h3>\n

Are the staffers trained to call residents by their names rather than by generic nicknames like \u201choney\u201d and \u201csweetie?\u201d What are staffers trained to do if a resident demeans or harasses others?<\/p>\n

3. What are the health policies for staffers?<\/h3>\n

Are employees required to have yearly flu shots and tuberculosis screenings? What\u2019s the official policy on staffers coming to work if they are sick and what\u2019s the actual practice?<\/p>\n

4. What background checks do staffers go through?<\/h3>\n

Ideally, the senior care community will screen all potential hires through state and national law-enforcement databases. In some communities, a yearly check is required for all current employees.<\/p>\n

5. What is the employee turnover rate?<\/h3>\n

Turnover rates have been high for senior care communities<\/a><\/strong>\u00a0for decades because it\u2019s a hard job with relatively low pay. (The\u00a0national average salary for CNAs<\/a><\/strong>\u00a0is $24,000 a year.) According to a report by the American Health Care Association, a nonprofit senior-care trade group, turnover rates of less than 40% for CNAs and less than 30% for RNs are linked to\u00a0better-quality senior care<\/a><\/strong>.<\/p>\n

Some Additional Questions to Ask About Senior\u00a0Communities<\/h2>\n

Depending on the type of senior community you\u2019re looking for, you may need to ask some of the questions below.<\/p>\n

You can follow the links to complete checklists to download and print for assisted living<\/a><\/strong>, nursing home<\/a><\/strong>\u00a0and Alzheimer\u2019s care<\/a> <\/strong>communities:<\/p>\n