Thread by @EthnicMediaSvc

🕚Today at 11am PST we'll be discussing how #longtermcare facilities can better protect residents' rights, including the right to #vote. Watch the livestream 👇@justiceinaging @CalAging @annachodos
ethnicmediaservices.org/media-briefing…

Welcome to today's briefing in partnership with the @CAPublicHealth's #VaccinateAll58 campaign and @CalAging. Our first speaker today is Blanca Castro, CA State Long-Term Care Ombudsman and a "fierce defender" of the rights of longterm care facility residents.

Ombudsman is a Swedish word that means advocate, says Castro. There are about 300k people in CA, she notes, who go into some 12k long term care facilities in the state.

Medicare pays for the first 100 days, Castro says. Private plans or MediCal cover longer term stays. There are many low income people who struggle to afford these stays.

"You still matter," says Castro, adding her agency is tax funded. "You're tax payer dollars go to paying for individuals in longterm care settings."

Every individual has rights that must be protected and honored, Castro stresses. "We had almost 40k complaints last year," says Castro. "We are your voice. We are there to work with staff... and enforcement agencies."

"The main question we ask is, 'What do you want? What does resolution look like to you.'" Dignity and independence are priorities for Castro's agency.

There is also a crisis line for complaints. Contact Adult Protective Services (APS) 1-833-401-0832

"We are social animals. We need voice, touch, contact." Facilities locked down during #Covid, turning residents into prisoners. What that taught us is that, it did not have to be that way. Every #longterm care facility must have an infection control plan in place.

Washing hands, wearing a mask... now there are specific requirements for all facilities that they must maintain, says Castro. "What we did learn is the isolation... made residents' conditions worse."

Dementia patients, or patients with chronic conditions were made worse during the pandemic. "We have now in place very specific laws" that can help ameliorate these challenges.

The Nursing Home Reform Act states all residents have a right to equal care, regardless of the form of pay, says Hagar Dickman, Staff Attorney with @justiceinaging. Facilities must also provide all forms of care available.

Facilities also cannot create care plans without discussing them with residents' and their families, says Diskman. Waking times, meal times and types of food must also be flexible, she notes.

To what extent are #longterm care facilities observing these rights? The Reform Act sets out a comprehensive list of rights, she notes. "Enforcing these rights falls to residents and family members," Dickman acknowledges.

Residents and their families have to know what these rights are and be willing and able to enforce them, she notes. "Black Americans are 3x more likely to reside in poor performing facilities."

What we do as advocates has to start from this perspective: disparities and who is suffering most from these, according to Dickman.

@annachodos is Associate Professor of Medicine with Zuckerberg San Francisco General. Residential care facilities and nursing homes often have the same people. Skilled nursing facilities have an acute rehab component, she says.

Skilled nursing facilities have 24/7 medical care, explains Castro, where as assisted living facilities are not allowed to have these resources and so should not be accepting patients that have these requirements.

What worries me, and what we know, is that vaccines "completely turned the ship around" in terms of risks from #Covid, says @annachodos. Not getting the #vaccine does put people at risk.

As of today, 13% of overall Covid deaths are residents in longterm care facilities, says @annachodos. @AARPCA has a Covid dashboard which notes many facilities are still not fully vaccinated and remain understaffed.

Data shows as nursing ratios go up, infections go down. "Understaffing in some of these settings worries me... we want to keep our eye on ensuring people's access to life saving vaccines."

Everyone in a nursing home is our neighbor... they are part of the community. We put a dotted line around nursing homes... isolating them. We see this in the lack of attention to protecting the rights that they deserve, says @annachodos

Equitable access to quality care is on the fore of our minds at all times, says Dickman of @justiceinaging.

California is working to improve wages and conditions for people working in longterm care facilities. "It is a challenging job... but people do it because they want to help," says Castro.

Jerry Kirouac is a Long Term Care Ombudsman for a Veterans care facility in Redding, Ca. and has brought 3 residents who will share their stories. "One of the biggest problems we have... is lack of facility knowledge. It is that training," Kirouac says.

Our next speaker is Billy Ball, 84. "This place is good for me," he says, praising the staff. Though he notes understaffing is a challenge. As far as voting, Ball has used mail in ballots and says he has not seen any issues with voting.

Linda, 75, is a navy veteran who says equitable treatment is an issue. "Sometimes I find a lack of conflict resolution from the administration," she says, sharing a troubling experience with a fellow resident that she says was "swept under the rug."

Billy Thomas, 79, is a Marine Vet. He says communication in the facility is lacking. Concerns and complaints don't often reach admin.

A common misconception residents feel, especially when they are diagnosed with cognitive illnesses... people seem to think they lose a lot of rights when that happens, says Kirouac. The only agency that can take your rights is the court, he says.

Sometimes the complaints we come across as ombudsman may seem trivial, but for residents these issues are of paramount importance, and it is our job to advocate for them. This is key for people with cognitive decline. "Sometimes people become defeated," says Kirouac.

What can media do to raise awareness about rights of longterm care residents? "Asking residents and making sure they have a voice," says Castro. "Think about it as your civil rights."

If you are not happy with how you are being cared for, you have the right to voice those concerns, she adds. This also pertains to family members. "You can organize as residents and as family members. You have the right to do that."

Continuing to talk about resident rights, and also what the options are for enforcing those rights... how to enforce them and who can help, these are key, says Diskman of @justiceinaging.

Promoting family councils can also serve as a powerful tool, she adds, particularly for those impacted by disparities in care. Power in numbers can take away the isolation and the fear in pressing these rights.

The voice of residents is crucial, says @annachodos. We need to give people options, and find creative solutions to avoid the kind of lock downs we saw during #Covid. "Resident voices can help guide the way."

"Get everyone working together," says Billy Ball. "We're like a family here. Let's work together."
"I would like to see more involvement with the community," says Linda L. "If there is media involvement, conditions are usually better."

So many people just don't know that assistance is out there, says Kirouac. "The ombudsman is one of the best kept secrets in the US," he says. So get the word out.

Thank you to all of our speakers today and to @CalAging and to @CAPublicHealth for this important discussion. In case you missed it you can catch a recording here: ethnicmediaservices.org/media-briefing…

@threadreaderapp unroll