Study: Staffing instability should be added to nursing home ratings

Nursing homes gained or lost a quality star when a “staffing instability” measure was included in the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services’ Five-Star metric to rank nursing homes, according to an article published in Health Affairs Scholar. The authors say adding staffing instability to the Five-Star ratings would empower people to make more informed decisions when selecting nursing home care and incentivize facilities to prioritize consistent staffing. The CMS currently evaluates staffing using the average number of hours per resident per day and turnover rates. In contrast, staffing instability accounts for daily fluctuations ─ from fully staffed to struggling to cover shifts ─ that averages do not capture. The authors believe adding staffing inconsistency would lead to better resident outcomes. (Newswise release, 1/14/25)