Nursing Home Improvements Good for Family Members Too
(As published in the April 7, 2004 Tampa Tribune)

Suzan Cameron

I only vaguely remember reading in the Tampa Tribune about the legislature having passed nursing home reform legislation in 2001. At the time I was way too busy with my then 85-year-old mother to pay much attention.

Momma had lived independently for over 50 years in the Florida Panhandle, but now she was here in Tampa with me and living at a rehab center. Before her retirement she was a talented archaeologist, but now, a series of falls and health reversals had left her in a wheelchair and totally dependent on the staff at the nursing home. I felt a daughter's guilt that we couldn't care for her in our own home, so instead, I spent a huge amount of time in the facility and watched the staff like a hawk. There never seemed to be enough of them, and on the weekends it was always a different nurse, a different nurse's aide and hardly any support staff like there was during the week.

I turned into the family member from hell! I spent a lot of time in the director of nursing's office letting her know that I was definitely not satisfied. I wasn't saying their care was substandard; I was saying it was below my standard. Momma had lived there only for about a year, but our family was feeling the strain.

I don't remember exactly when, but slowly it seemed things - little things, at first - were getting better. Momma seemed better dressed. Her outfit matched. Her hair and makeup looked like she had just come from the salon (You know about us southern women and our hair and makeup!). She seemed much happier and settled.

Around the nursing home, things just seemed to slowly calm down. There were more certified nurse's aides to spend more time with Momma and the other residents, so there was less rushing around. With less staff turnover, I started to see the same nurses and the same aides, even on the weekends. The temp agency nurses were gone. I remember saying to my husband, David, "You know, maybe now we can go away on a weekend."

After four years, I can honestly say my now-89-year-old mother wouldn't be alive today were it not for the quality of care she has had and the attention and love of those around her.

I'm just one daughter of one Florida nursing home patient, but I've seen both the "before" and the "after" of the 2001 nursing home law with my own eyes, and there's simply no comparison. I hope the Florida Legislature remembers there are literally thousands of people like my mother and my family who are counting on them to do the right thing.

Susan Cameron of Tampa has given testimony at state legislative hearings on nursing homes and long-term care.