State officials, industry reps visit The Gardens to tout nursing home changes

WILKES-BARRE — Pennsylvania Acting Secretary of Health Dr. Debra Bogen and other state officials joined leaders of industry associations Thursday to tout improvements in long-term health care thanks to state collaborations with various agencies and facilities.

The word of the day: Resilience.

“To assure care for older population we must build resiliency,” Bogen said. The Department of Health established the Long-Term Care Transformation Office “to help staff recover and prepare for the future.”

“I want to thank you for your endless service and countless sacrifices,” Bogen told staff from The Gardens attending the event.

Moves to improve the industry began with 2019 grants from the federal Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, but gained urgency and focus when the COVID-19 pandemic exposed serious issues in many nursing homes. The state launched the transformation office and the RISE (Resiliency Infrastructure Support and Empowerment) program, initially concentrating on infection prevention and control and healthcare emergency preparedness.

But Bogen and others noted it has been evolving as the pandemic subsided, with longer term efforts to increase the pipeline for new workers to ease staffing shortages, more support for staff training, and strategies for staff retention. The Department of Health partnered with Department of Human Services (DHS), Pennsylvania Emergency Management Agency (PEMA) and four healthcare organizations — Representatives from the state departments and two industry organizations attended the media event and offered comments, as well as state Secretary of Aging Jason Kavulich.

The Gardens Administrator Jason Davies opened by noting the state help has improved training at the facility, with eight staff members enrolled in specialized courses at Drexel University. “The results are tangible,” he said, pointing out the The Gardens has been able to provide health care entirely with in-house staff while other facilities often rely on outside agencies for some services.

He also said the employee turnover rate at the facility is 4%, at a time “when the industry average is about 50%, and the industry standard is 10%

Human Services Executive Deputy Secretary Andrew Barnes noted the department is increasing licensing staff to speed up the process of getting trained workers the state clearances they may need. “These changes will help ensure we’re taking care of everyone in Pennsylvania.”

Aging Secretary Kavulich talked of his experience with aging family members and told the crowd “What all of you do every day is amazing. Care giving is the hardest job. I will say that until the day I no longer can.”

Pennsylvania Health Care Association President and Chief Executive Officer Zach Shamberg evoked chuckles when, grinning, he said he had left the house confident he was ready and well-dressed for the day in coat and tie, but felt his spirits fall when he saw Davies, nattily dressed in vest and tie with a neatly trimmed beard.

He then praised the state’s collaborative efforts to improve long-term care, noting Association members regularly say the biggest problems these days are recruiting, training and retaining staff.

Asked about a recent report by the state that The Gardens has been falling a little short in meeting new, more stringent nurse staffing requirements implemented this summer, Davies said that is the very reason for the media conference: showing the steps being taken by and success of the new collaboration of state departments, industry organizations and individual facilities.

“We are going to meet the new standards,” he said. “This is the first step.”