What Is a Healthcare Ombudsman? New York Guide for Facilities

New York long-term care facilities carry the critical responsibility of supporting their elderly residents to live happy and healthy lives. It’s a challenging job as healthcare administrators to juggle the duties of staffing, paperwork, regulatory compliance, and budgeting, which can make it difficult to focus on the care of each individual.

This is exactly why facilities should partner with their local healthcare ombudsman. New York staff and volunteers in the ombudsman’s office help educate, represent, and advocate for every long-term care resident living in a healthcare facility. In this guide, we outline the services provided by the New York state ombudsman program and show how working with your local healthcare ombudsman can boost patient satisfaction scores at your facility.

What Is the New York Ombudsman Program?

The federal Older Americans Act (OAA) requires every state to create a program to advocate for and address the complaints of elderly citizens in long-term care facilities, as well as those of their family members. These facility types include:

• Assisted living facilities
• Nursing homes
• Board and care homes
• Adult day care
• Hospice centers

The New York Long Term Care Ombudsman Program (LTCOP) is in place to support these healthcare residents throughout the state. Making each long-term care resident feel at home in their facility, and focusing on enhancing the quality of life of the individual, is the role of each care ombudsman. New York employs staff and enlists volunteers to help with this program, visiting residents and advocating for their welfare.

The main priority of each ombudsman is to serve the healthcare residents, not governmental agencies or licensing boards. Additionally, they’re not considered to be mandatory reporters of abuse because of confidentiality rules surrounding patient-identifying information. In serving the resident above all else, ombudsman representatives can work at the local, state, and national levels to resolve problems and improve care in long-term facilities.

What Does a New York State Ombudsman Do?

In the state of New York, long-term care ombudsman representatives work to provide oversight for long-term care facilities and ensure high-quality care for all. They do so in the following ways:

• Educating residents and their families on the services and resources available to them
• Advocating for change to improve each individual’s care
• Communicating among the individual, family, and facility to address complaints and identify possible solutions (these complaints can include issues like neglect, improper discharge planning, quality and choice of food, and poor medication distribution)
• Providing information regarding legal rights and policy changes to the public, and suggest changes to governmental agencies when necessary

These New York state ombudsman office representatives don’t provide direct care to patients, but instead focus on ensuring equal and regular access to state-funded ombudsman resources.

Who Does a Healthcare Ombudsman Work With?

The ombudsman (New York) works directly with the resident, their family members, and administration within the long-term care facility to improve the lifestyle of the individual. The healthcare ally can navigate through challenges among stakeholders by maintaining a level of neutrality, all in an effort to better the life of the patient.

In addition to working directly with unique patient situations, a healthcare ombudsman has frequent interactions with state program directors and political representatives to lobby for healthcare reform and appropriate treatment for the elderly. They represent the patient before governmental agencies, relaying complaints to the New York State Department of Health when necessary.

What Are Some Tips for Facilities Working With a State Ombudsman?

Keep in mind that the New York state ombudsman program was designed to help your facility, along with the residents you serve. Collaboration with this individual can help alleviate some of the burdens felt by your staff by working as a member of the healthcare team. The representative can:

• Educate members of direct-care staff working in your facility.
• Provide healthcare and legal resources to give current and future residents.
• Resolve a resident’s complaint before a formal grievance has been filed.

Understand that the ombudsman is required to perform annual visits at your long-term care facility to ensure safe and appropriate care. Ensuring that your facility standards are updated in accordance with current CMS guidelines prior to an ombudsman’s visit can save your facility money and time.

You can reach out directly to your state ombudsman with any questions or concerns you might have via the program’s ombudsman (New York) phone number: 1 (855) 582-6769.

Learn More Ways to Support Long-Term Care Residents

To best serve your facility’s residents, it’s important to work with your health ombudsman. New York, along with other states, has aimed to improve the care of its citizens through partnerships with these representatives. You, too, can help improve your residents’ quality of life. Follow along in IntelyCare’s newsletter as we discuss ways to improve the lives of healthcare staff and patients across the nation.