Pa. audit finds weakness in nursing-home staffing enforcement
An audit released Tuesday by Auditor General Eugene DePasquale found deficiencies in the way the Pennsylvania Department of Health enforced the state's minimum standard of 2.7 hours per day of direct nursing care.
An audit released Tuesday by Auditor General Eugene DePasquale found deficiencies in the way the Pennsylvania Department of Health enforced the state's minimum standard of 2.7 hours per day of direct nursing care.
The audit covered the period from Jan. 1, 2014, through Oct. 31, 2015. Only last July did the health department start accepting anonymous complaints about nursing homes. That was a second area of concern in the audit, because it likely compromised the department's ability to receive and investigate complaints, the audit said.
Finally, the audit found that the department exercised "considerable administrative discretion," preferring to educate facilities on ways to improve care first rather imposing civil fines.
Secretary of Health Karen Murphy requested the audit and said Tuesday that the department had already implemented many changes to address the audit's findings.
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