A group of people in our community is interested in learning more about the quality of nursing home care in Kansas and how nursing homes in our area compare with others across the state. What sources of information can you recommend? We don’t want to reinvent the wheel trying to do our own research.

Kansas Advocates for Better Care (KABC) is a statewide nonprofit organization working to improve the quality of long-term care in Kansas. One of its core services is FIND Fact Sheets that give statistical data on Kansas nursing homes. The fact sheets are available for $1.50 each.

For people like you wanting to look at the larger picture, there is an excellent, new reference tool titled “Kansas Care Home Choices, Comparative Information for Consumers.” The material in this guide is considered current from fall 2001 through spring 2002 when it will be updated.

Again, it has statistical information on all licensed Kansas Adult Care Homes.

This guide is available for $20. You can call (800) 525-1782 to order this resource or to talk with KABC about other resources.

Also, here are some helpful toll-free numbers that individuals in your group might find helpful:

 To report abuse, neglect and exploitation occurring in adult care homes, call (800) 842-0078.

 To identify concerns/problems with adult care homes, call the State Long-Term Care Ombudsman: (877) 662-8362.

 To receive preliminary information on legal issues, call the Elder Law Hotline: (888) 353-5337.

 To report suspected Medicare fraud: (800) 876-3160.

 To read regulations for Kansas licensed care homes, visit the Kansas Department of Health and Environment Web site: www.kdhe.state.ks.us.

 For additional information about senior services and aging issues, visit the Kansas Department on Aging Web site: www.k4s.org.

 For extensive, one-stop information about licensed adult care homes, contact Kansas Advocates for Better Care: www.kabc.com.

 For nationwide or statewide access to nursing home information, visit the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services Web site: www.medicare.gov and view the nursing compare pages.