HARRISBURG (Newsradio 1020 KDKA) — The Pennsylvania Department of Health has reported its September 2020 findings for nursing home inspections.
Last month, 543 inspections were conducted at 361 different facilities.
366 of those checks came in the form of complaint investigations.
And of the complaints, 230 were somehow related to COVID-19.
No sanctions were set into motion, though.
"We know that congregate care settings, including nursing homes, have been challenged by the COVID-19 pandemic," Dr. Rachel Levine said. "That is why we remain committed to protecting the health and well-being of our most vulnerable Pennsylvanians by continuing to hold nursing home operators accountable, as necessary, to ensure they are providing safe care. If you see something at a nursing home that doesn't seem right, we encourage you to speak up."
Moving forward, anyone who wants to make a complaint regarding a nursing home can do so by anonymously calling 1-800-254-5164 or emailing c-ncomplai@pa.gov.
There is also an online form that can be filled out with any complaints.
Facilities that are given citations are asked to provided a plan of correction for the issues that were found during an investigation.
Then at that point, a surprise follow-up will be conducted after the correction proposal is given along with a projected completion date.
Investigating reports, or surveys, are posted on the Department website 41 days after the conclusion of the check-in.
Investigations of this nature are also performed for the Centers for Medicaid and Medicare Services (CMS).
Sanctions can be given, which would affect a facility's licenses and admission procedures.
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