Assessment and Care Planning Is the Key to Quality CareEvery person in a nursing home has the right to good care, under the law. The law states that the nursing home must help residents “attain or maintain” their highest level of physical, mental and emotional well-being. In order to provide good care, the staff must assess each resident and plan care to support each resident’s life-long patterns, and their current interests, strengths and needs. When residents and family members are involved in the care planning process, they can provide the staff with information needed to make sure residents get the good care they deserve.What Is A Resident Assessment? The Resident Assessment gathers information about how well residents can take care of themselves and when they need help in “functional abilities”. In order to help residents live more comfortably and feel more at home the staff should also ask about the resident’s habits, activities and relationships. The assessment will also help staff to look for what may be causing a problem. Knowing the cause of a problem helps staff to give correct treatment. Assessments must be completed within 14 days of admission and at least once each year, with reviews every three months and when a resident’s condition changes.What Is A Plan of Care? The Plan of Care is a strategy for how the staff will help the resident. It states what each staff person will do and when it will happen. Care plans must be reviewed regularly to make sure they are still working and must be revised as needed. For the care plan to work, the resident must feel like the plan meets their needs and they must be comfortable with the plan. A good plan should be specific, individualized and written in a language everyone understands. A good plan will reflect the resident’s concerns and support the resident’s well-being, functioning and rights, and not label resident’s choices or needs as “problem behaviors”. A good plan will use a multi-disciplinary team approach and use outside referrals as needed.What Is A Care Plan Meeting? The Care Plan Meeting is a meeting where the staff, the resident and the resident’s family talk about life in the facility. Care plan meetings must be held every three months, and whenever there is a big change in a resident’s physical or mental health that may require a change in care. The plan must be ...
