INFLUENCE OF ADMINISTRATOR AND FACILITY CHARACTERISTICS ON NURSING HOME PERFORMANCE (QUALITY OF LIFE).

Description

Demographic trends have particular significance for South Carolina where the projected rate of growth in population over age 65 is expected to outstrip the growth rate of the elderly population in the U.S. as a whole. Since disability and rates of institutionalization increase dramatically with age, it appears that South Carolina would face a greater need for nursing homes. Qualified nursing home administrators, with the mandate to ensure quality of care and quality of life in nursing homes, would be in much demand. To confront issues of quality in nursing homes, the federal government has implemented stiffer standards for resident care, and has authorized the states to periodically monitor compliance with those standards. qualifications of administrators have also received much attention. Minimum educational requirements to license administrators have been raised. However, it has been unclear as to what influence the required qualifications actually have on the performance of nursing homes. This exploratory study is based on a survey of 129 (75%) practicing nursing home administrators in South Carolina. A profile of the administrators is developed. Performance is measured by the number of deficiencies cited during certification inspections. Influence of administrator characteristics, preparation in the domains of practice, administrative stability, and administrative effort on performance is analyzed and discussed. Facility characteristics are used as constraint variables. The final multiple regression model explains 31% of the variation in performance. Whether or not the administrator has formal education in nursing, administrator's length of employment at the facility, amount of time spent in resident care functions, proportion of Medicare residents, affiliation with a small chain (less than five facilities), and location of the facility in a large community of 50,000 or more (or large city suburb) were found to have a positive influence (fewer deficiencies) on performance. Annual compensation, proportion of African-American residents, and time spent by the administrator in family relations show an inverse relationship to performance. Variables pertaining to perceived preparation did not appear in the model. Most of the relationships can be explained by the contingency theory of leadership. Management and policy implications, and recommendations for further research are presented.

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