SEIU rallies nursing home workers for higher staffing ratios

Mar. 14—LIMA — Representatives from the Service Employees International Union rallied with CareCore nursing home workers Tuesday as the union seeks a lower ratio of residents to nursing aides at Ohio nursing homes and representation on a statewide accountability task force.

Gov. Mike DeWine established the task force in February to improve the quality of care in Ohio's nursing homes, as Ohio ranks within the bottom quartile for overall nursing home quality in the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services' most recent quality star ratings, according to a press release from the task force.

The task force has started meeting with residents, families, nursing home administrators and regulators ahead its May deadline. But the SEIU 1199, which represents health care and social service workers in Ohio, Kentucky and West Virginia, wants its members to participate too.

"We're trying to let the bigwigs know that to have better quality for our residents, we need more staffing," said Michael Pinn, a state-tested nursing assistant for CareCore, a for-profit nursing facility in Lima.

CareCore earned one star from CMS for overall quality, with below-average ratings for staffing and health inspections, according to its latest CMS rating.

Pinn said staffing levels at CareCore have deteroriated since he started working there roughly 10 years ago. "We're getting more residents," Pinn said, "but the ratio from staff to residents is too high."

That's a common trend Jennifer Anderson has witnessed as an administrative organizer for the SEIU in Northwest Ohio. Anderson, a former STNA herself, said a lot of buildings in this region have an average of one STNA per 20 residents.

"It's ridiculous," Anderson said. "They're not safe. ... What if a fall happens? What if you have a life-threatening matter? How are you going to support that?"

The nursing home task force held its first community listening session in Columbus last Friday, with another 10 listening sessions and a dozen task force meetings planned ahead of the May deadline.

Still, SEIU 1199 Director Vanessa Dalesandro said the task force needs to hear directly from nursing home workers.

"Workers are not a piece of that conversation, and that's a problem," Dalesandro said. "It's a problem for us because workers are capable and competent enough to take care of our loved ones, but they are not worthy enough to have a seat at the table and be a part of the conversation. We've got to make sure that workers have a voice."

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