Department of Health

Investigation of Nursing Home Complaints

The Department of Health is responsible for investigating complaints about nursing homes. We examined whether the Department was performing these investigations in accordance with requirements. We found that improvements were needed in the timeliness of the investigations, as some investigations were not initiated, and others were not completed, within the required timeframes. For example, 18 percent of the investigations initiated during our audit period were not initiated within the required timeframes, and 33 percent of the active investigations had not been completed within the required 180-day timeframe. We also found that the required documentation was not always maintained for the investigations. We recommended that certain actions be taken to improve the timeliness and documentation of nursing home investigations.

For a complete copy of Report 2006-S-87 click here.
For a copy of the 90-day response click here.