A new survey of nearly 2,500 skilled nursing and assisted living facilities reveals that these organizations have limited personal protective equipment (PPE) to care for a greater volume of patients, indicating a second wave of supply shortages.
The research from healthcare improvement company, Premier, Inc., noted that this next critical wave of shortages could occur during a time in which hospitals move to reserve beds for severe COVID-19 cases and post-acute settings see an influx of patients. “While senior nursing and assisted living facilities can serve as excellent sites for less critical cases, such moves cannot overlook supply and resourcing demands,” Premier’s survey suggests.
The survey of skilled nursing and assisted living facilities found that 24 percent of facilities do not have N95 masks on hand, and the majority of respondents have fewer than two weeks’ supply of surgical masks, isolation gowns and face shields. Other key products for which they have supply concerns include thermometers, exam gloves, alcohol pads, soap/detergent and hand sanitizer. Ninety-six percent are implementing PPE conservation strategies, the data showed.
On April 1, Premier advised the industry to expect immediate, urgent surges in critical supply shortages, as the COVID-19 crisis engulfs the U.S. healthcare delivery system. That survey data showed that the average respondent had 23 days of N95 inventory on hand. However, those with active COVID-19 patients had an average of just three days’ worth.
Seventy percent of senior nursing and assisted living facilities in this latest survey said they are not fully prepared to treat an increasing number of COVID-19 cases as the virus surges. Furthermore, 48 percent of respondents say they are experiencing challenges with staff attendance as a result of COVID-19.
The researchers noted that states are approaching capacity planning in nursing homes differently, as determined by hotspots. New York, for example, ordered all nursing facilities to accept hospital discharges, including patients who have tested positive for COVID-19, while Massachusetts is beginning to empty nursing facilities to become dedicated sites for coronavirus treatment.
A recent report from Black Book revealed that 90 percent of administrators expressed that because of scarce nursing personnel, nursing homes are forced to employ agency and per-diem clinical staff, of which they have no validation system to check their exposure status. As such, 96 percent of nursing and clinical staff surveyed stated in this report that they believe their facility may no longer be the best place to house susceptible elderly patients.
“In this next phase of the outbreak, states and healthcare providers are contemplating how they can best provide care for patients who need medical attention but are not critical care status,” noted John P. Sganga, senior vice president of alternate site programs at Premier. “Senior nursing and assisted living facilities can provide quality care for these patients, but this shift will increase their resource and supply needs, from PPE and tests to staffing. We already know that active cases of COVID-19 create surge demand of up to 17x for hospitals’ supplies, and our survey shows that nearly half of these post-acute facilities are already dealing with staffing challenges and that PPE remains elusive.”
