Rarely does the entire clinical staff at a nursing home walk out in protest of working conditions, but that was the case a few months ago in New Mexico. I was made aware of it when I received a call from an 82-year old woman in New Mexico who volunteers to help the elderly make decisions who are at the end of their life.
The manager is a company called OpCo NM, very original, and apparently they have been buying up nursing homes in New Mexico. She believed the people running it were formerly associated with Skyline Healthcare, the company that walked away from more than 100 leased nursing homes after sucking all the cash from them. While I could not verify the connection, given what I read, it sounds like the same quality of care, which was low.
The industry really needs to do something about repeat offenders. And while I know the Washington Post is about to come out with a very negative story on the assisted living and memory care market, I am guessing that there will be nothing comparable to what happened at Skyline Healthcare, and at that scale.
Caring for the elderly is one of the more important tasks in health care, and it is not easy. So, on this Thanksgiving Eve, we should all thank our caregivers for the hard work they do, often under trying conditions, like the COVID pandemic. Even when they fail in their task, my sincere belief is that they are trying their best. Can we really ask for more?
Have a Happy Thanksgiving.
