Topeka — Two years ago, Kansas lawmakers put $3.7 million in a new program aimed at helping nursing homes raise their workers' wages. They put in another $4 million last year.
Better pay, they figured, would reduce staff turnover. But they were wrong. Turnover went up 9 percent.
While many nursing homes struggle to keep workers, Tonganoxie Nursing Center is experiencing a turnover rate of just 6 percent this year. Wednesday, Vickie Dohle, center, a certified nurse aide for 13 years at the center, visits with resident Velma Fowler. At left is Fowler's daughter, Phyllis Rice of Kansas City, Kan.
And so long as turnover remains high, quality care for the state's elderly is imperiled. When nursing homes are cited for not properly feeding or cleaning their residents, the problems generally are due to a shortage of workers.
Despite the increase in worker turnover, key lawmakers are slow to call the Quality Enhancement Wage Pass-Through Program a failure.
"We didn't put enough money into it," said Sen. Sandy Praeger, R-Lawrence, chairwoman of the state's Long-term Care Task Force. "We put in $3.4 million, but there were requests for something like $9 million.
"And then when you take into consideration the tight economy and unemployment being what it is, we're lucky turnover didn't go up any more than it did."
The program was aimed at retaining low-wage nursing home workers, the ones who do everything from cleaning bedpans to feeding patients.
"This is hard work," Praeger said. "It's a lot easier to flip burgers and not have to deal with all the stress and strain that comes with being a nurse aide."
According to a recent Division of Legislative Research Department report, 219 of the state's 357 nursing homes took advantage of the additional funding. The only homes eligible for the reimbursement are those that care for Medicaid patients and prove they raised workers wages for at least a year.
Latest data shows turnover at the 219 homes averaged 101 percent between Oct. 31, 1999, and June 30, 2000. That's a 9 percent increase from the year before.
The program has been dropped from this year's Department on Aging budget. Aging Secretary Connie Hubbell said she's encouraging nursing homes to adopt different management styles. Workers who feel appreciated tend to have less turnover, she said.
Hubbell said a McPherson nursing home last year began including nurse aides in the care-giving decisions made on one of its units.
"That unit has now gone a whole year with zero turnover, and they're looking at expanding it throughout the facility," she said. "That's the kind of thing I'm talking about."
Lawrence-area nursing homes also have started programs to reduce turnover.
"When our folks do something above and beyond the call of duty, they're praised and it's written down and posted on the bulletin board in the break room," said Mike Bartholomees, administrator at Tonganoxie Nursing Center. "We also have an open-door policy where employee concerns, good or bad, are taken seriously."
So far this year, he said, turnover at Tonganoxie Nursing Center stands at 6 percent.
"I agree that it's not just the money," said Vickie Dohle, a nurse aide at Tonganoxie Nursing Center for 13 years. "Everybody needs a pat on the back and 'job well done' every once in a while. You get that here."
No comments
Commenting is turned off for this story.