By Geralyn Magan
Researchers will study nursing home neighborhoods, communication with family caregivers, and the impact of COVID-19 on nursing homes.
Over the next 2 years, the LeadingAge LTSS Center @UMass Boston will conduct research studies focus on nursing homes, family caregivers, and the long-term services and supports workforce. All 3 projects are supported by the Patrick and Catherine Weldon Donaghue Medical Research Foundation.
NEIGHBORHOOD SOCIOECONOMIC DISADVANTAGE AND NURSING HOME OUTCOMES
The LTSS Center will work with Dr. Jasmine Travers from the New York University College of Nursing and Dr. Jason Falvey from the University of Maryland School of Medicine on a 2-year grant to assess the association between neighborhood socioeconomic disadvantage and the quality of nursing homes in those neighborhoods.
There is growing evidence that neighborhood-level factors—including poverty, the public transportation infrastructure, and housing quality—may influence both the quality and quantity of health care delivered to older adults. These factors, collectively known as “neighborhood socioeconomic disadvantage,” are especially relevant for nursing home residents, for whom even small declines in health status could result in hospitalization or death.
Researchers will assess the independent association between neighborhood socioeconomic disadvantage and the quality of the nursing home built environment, staffing, and nursing home care quality outcomes. Identifying neighborhood-level socioeconomic disparities in nursing home care will be an important first step in informing focused advocacy and policy change efforts at the state and federal levels and in promoting social justice and equity for vulnerable older adult populations.
COMMUNICATION AMONG FAMILY AND FORMAL CAREGIVERS
LTSS Center researchers Dr. Verena Cimarolli and Natasha Bryant will join Dr. Francesca Falzarano from Weill Cornell Medical College in studying how the perceptions of family caregivers regarding their communication with formal caregivers are related to resident outcomes in nursing homes and assisted living communities.
Considerable research has shown that better family-staff communication in nursing homes is associated with better resident quality of life and quality of care. However, it is unclear how this relationship generalizes to residents and their family caregivers in assisted living communities, or to various subgroups of family caregivers.
This study will attempt to fill these research gaps by examining how family caregivers’ perceptions of different aspects of their communication with formal caregivers:
- Affects the physical and psychosocial functioning of assisted living residents.
- Differs between nursing home and assisted living settings.
- Relates to family-related characteristics, like resident cognitive status and family caregiver distance from the resident, and disparity-related variables like socioeconomic status, race/ethnicity, and gender.
THE IMPACT OF COVID-19 IN NURSING HOMES
The LTSS Center will work with Wellspring Lutheran Services to investigate the impact of COVID-19 on certified nursing assistants (CNA) and nursing home residents when taking into account employers’ efforts to train and prepare CNAs for their work during COVID-19.
Researchers will use data from Wellspring’s WeCare ConnectTM, a multisite employee engagement and management system, and nursing home COVID-19-related data published by the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services, to:
- Describe CNA perceptions of the preparedness and quality of employer communication around COVID-19, and the overall stress and specific challenges that CNAs are experiencing during this crisis.
- Determine the association between these factors and the work-related well-being and job satisfaction of CNAs and the intent of CNAs to leave the job.
- Identify setting-level and CNA work-related characteristics associated with the health outcomes of nursing home residents/patients.
Insights from this study will help nursing homes plan their response to the current pandemic and prepare for future public health-related crises.