Long-Term Care
Publication of Medicare's Nursing Home Compare report card in 2002 encouraged nursing homes to improve quality of care, but providers did not necessarily produce positive changes in all areas studied, according to a study in Health Services Research.
Researchers found that in the year following publication of the report card, the percentages of long-term physically-restrained residents and residents with bed sores decreased. However, the percentages of long-term residents who had difficulty performing daily activities and those with infections did not change, according to the report.
The authors recommend that educational efforts should accompany publication of report cards and that additional policy efforts be made to help nursing homes identify the best ways to improve care (Mukamel et al., Health Services Research, August 2008).