Association between nursing home staff turnover and infection control citations

Area of Science:

• Healthcare quality and safety
• Infection prevention and control
• Geriatric care and long-term care

Background:

• Nursing home staff turnover is a persistent challenge impacting care quality.
• Infection control is critical in nursing homes to prevent outbreaks.
• Understanding factors contributing to infection control deficiencies is essential.

Purpose of the Study:

• To examine the relationship between nursing home staff turnover and infection control citations.
• To determine if staff turnover influences the presence and severity of infection control violations.

Main Methods:

• Utilized secondary data from US nursing homes (2017-2019) including Payroll-Based Journal and Nursing Home Compare.
• Employed statistical models to assess the association between nursing staff turnover and infection control citations.
• Defined turnover as the percentage of nursing staff hours provided by employees with less than 60 days of experience.

Main Results:

• Increased nursing home staff turnover was associated with a higher probability of infection control citations.
• Licensed practical nurse (LPN) turnover showed a conditional association with infection control citations.
• Higher staff turnover correlated with more severe citations, including 'pattern' and 'widespread' infection control violations.

Conclusions:

• Staff turnover is a significant predictor of infection control deficiencies in nursing homes.
• Addressing staff turnover is crucial for improving infection control and resident safety.
• Findings underscore the need for strategies to reduce turnover and enhance infection prevention protocols.