CEDAR SINAI PARK CEO David Fuks stands at the new ramp that will lead down to the living room of Robison Jewish Health Center. Though RJHC just received a “no deficiency” state survey, the staff doesn’t assume that means things can’t be improved. Fuks said staff considered the old straight ramp a potential “wheelchair luge.” The new, more gradual ramp is just one way staff looks to continually improve the home, said Fuks.

Home humble over perfect score

By DEBORAH MOON

article created on: 2008-12-01T00:00:00

When Robison Jewish Health Center received its fifth perfect nursing home state survey in seven years, RJHC Administrator Kim Fuson said, “We are humble, this is not the time to sit on our laurels. It’s time to raise the bar again.”

All 142 nursing homes in Oregon are surveyed by the Oregon Alliance for Senior and Health Services every year to see if they meet more than 500 regulations. State surveyors spend five to seven days in each facility creating a snapshot of its compliance. According to the OASHS, the average number of deficiencies per facility is five. For five of Fuson’s seven years as administrator of RJHC, the nursing home has had zero deficiencies.

In addition to meeting state standards, the home also strives to meet the Jewish community’s standards, said David Fuks, chief executive officer of Cedar Sinai Park, which encompasses RJHC and Rose Schnitzer Manor assisted living facility.

“We are doing sacred work that is helping the community live up to the fifth commandment” to honor our parents, he said.

“This community really supports this facility through our allocation from (the Jewish) Federation (of Greater Portland), direct donations and support of our events,” he said. “That support makes it possible for us to staff at a level where the quality of care can be very high and where, regardless of their ability to pay, every client gets a high level of care.”

Those staffing levels and quality are the key to Robison’s history of strong surveys, according to both Fuks and Fuson.

Fuson said that the surveyors have consistently told her they are impressed with the “remarkable heart and remarkable skill” of Robison’s staff in all areas. After confidential meetings with clients, she said the surveyors have commented on the incredible relationship between staff and clients.

The first requirement in every job description at Robison, said Fuks, is “to care.”

“You can teach the skill but not the heart,” agreed Fuson.

In every department from nursing to housekeeping, staff-client relationships are strongly encouraged, said Fuson.

Those relationships are able to develop, said Fuson, because of department heads who encourage ownership, responsibility and problem-solving by each staff member. She said employees feel valued and that their opinion is valued, which also results in a lower turnover than the industry standard.

On the nursing staff, Fuson credited nursing director Laurie Wilson’s longevity and understanding of all her staff’s challenges with creating a culture of personal responsibility. Wilson first joined RJHC as a certified nursing aid, then after finishing to nursing school, returned to hold positions of increasing responsibility on the nursing staff to ultimately become director of nursing.

“She has created self-directed, independent work teams with the ability to problem solve to better serve the residents,” said Fuson.

Fuks said those staffing skills will be especially important when CSP builds a new nursing facility based on the household model in coming years.