|
E-mail this page to a friend!
Long-Term Care
Americans Rank Nursing Homes Below Drug Companies
for Doing Good Job
Kaiser Health Poll takes detailed look at attitudes
about long-term care
July 16, 2005 – One of the staggering results of a
new study of public attitude by the Kaiser Health Poll shows American’s
rank nursing homes below drug companies in the share of adults who say
they are doing a “good job” serving health care consumers. Compared with
others in the health care industry only 35 percent of people say that
nursing homes are doing a "good job" - far fewer than report the same
about nurses (84 percent), doctors (69 percent) and hospitals (64
percent).
Most Americans (84%) have had at least some
experience with nursing homes – either as a patient or a visitor, and
nearly half (46%) say a family member or close friend has been in a home
in the past 3 years.
There is a fair amount of concern about paying for
long-term care, with nearly three in ten (28%) adults saying they are
“very” worried that they won’t be able to pay for nursing home and home
care services. Just over one-quarter (26%) of adults say they have given
“a lot” of thought to how they will pay for long-term care, and this
share increases with age.
Views On Nursing Homes
Most adults agree that nursing homes provide a safe
environment for people who need them (69%), but are more mixed on the
affordability and quality of nursing home care. While more than half
(53%) of the public agrees that nursing homes provide an affordable way
for people to get round-the-clock care, nearly four in ten (39%)
disagree (including 21% who “strongly” disagree). Similarly, while
nearly half (46%) of the public agree that nursing homes provide
high-quality services, a similar share (42%) disagree.
| |
 |
|
| |
Views Of
Nursing Homes In Relation To Other Industries
A large majority of the public
says nurses (84%) are doing a “good job” serving consumers, and
somewhat smaller majorities say the same about doctors (69%) and
hospitals (64%).
Fewer adults say pharmaceutical
companies (43%) do a “good job” serving health care consumers,
and fewer still say nursing homes (35%), health insurance
companies (34%), and HMOs (30%) do a “good job”. |
|
Indeed, the public is somewhat wary of nursing home
care - twice as many adults say being in a nursing home makes people
“worse off” than they were before (41%) as say that nursing homes make
people “better off” (19%). Furthermore, few people say they would choose
to get care in a nursing home (12%) over a hospital (39%) if they
required round-the-clock care.
While most Americans agree that nursing home staff
members are concerned about the well-being of their patients (68%), many
believe nursing homes are understaffed and poorly managed, and say
families of nursing home residents are not involved enough. Nearly
three-quarters (74%) of the public agrees that nursing homes don’t have
enough staff (including 50% who “strongly” agree). About six in ten
agree that nursing home staff are poorly trained (60%), and that there
is too much waste, fraud and abuse by nursing home managers (58%). More
than six in ten (64%) agree that families of those in nursing homes are
not involved enough in what’s going on.
Paying for Long-Term Care
In terms of paying for long-term care, three in ten
(30%) adults say insurance would be the main source of funds if they or
a family member needed nursing home care. Fewer say personal savings
(16%) or government programs such as Medicare or Medicaid (13%) would be
the main source. In reality, private insurance is estimated to pay for a
small share of nursing home expenses (8%), while Medicaid (46%) is the
major source of financing for nursing home care.
Few Americans report having long-term care
insurance - just over two in ten (21%) adults say they have a long-term
care policy. The most commonly cited reason among those without a policy
is cost (59%). However, nearly one-third (32%) of people without
long-term care insurance say it’s just not something they’ve ever
thought about.
The public is mixed on whether a federal tax-credit
would encourage them to buy long-term care insurance. About half (48%)
say a tax credit would make them more likely to buy a policy, while the
same share (48%) say it would not.
Government’s Role In Long-Term Care
Americans see a role for government in regulating
nursing home quality. About six in ten (63%) adults agree that there is
not enough government regulation of the quality of nursing homes and
almost half (48%) say nursing homes are not paid enough by the
government and other insurers.
Sources of Information About Nursing Homes
Many Americans are unsure of where to get advice
and information about nursing homes -57% say they would not know where
to go for advice or information if a family member needed nursing home
care. The public seems most comfortable getting information and advice
about nursing home care from personal sources. Many more say they would
be “very likely” to go to friends and family (59%) or their doctor (54%)
for information, compared with government websites (27%), community
service agencies (25%), books/reports (25%) or government programs
(23%).
For the full report, including charts –
Click Here.
Click to More Senior News on the
Front Page
Copyright: SeniorJournal.com |
