Kentucky Initiative for Quality Nursing Home Standards

KYIQ Mentoring Project

The KYIQ Group is working in partnership with the State Long Term Care Ombudsman organization (SLTCO) to initiate a voluntary Mentoring Program. The goal of the program is to provide a way for Kentucky facilities to share their experience and expertise with others in the field who want to enhance their programs.

The KYIQ Group has visited a number of nursing homes throughout Kentucky during the launching of its KYIQ Best Practices Award. We have observed and been introduced to many creative and innovative practices that contribute significantly to the quality of care for residents. It is our hope that the Mentoring Project will enable those and many other facilities to actively participate in a mentoring initiative that will ultimately establish an enhanced quality of care for every resident in a nursing home in Kentucky. See below to learn more about how it works.

On July 23, 2009, Ms Kimberly Baker, the State Long Term Care Ombudsman, sent a letter to all Administrators of nursing homes in Kentucky. The letter describes the background of the project and asks for participation in creating a database of the “Best Practices” in place in facilities across the state. Click here to read the July 23, 2009 letter.

Facilities may submit a list and description of their “Best Practices” through this website. The information will be forwarded to the State Long Term Care Ombudsman’s Office and added to the database which will be available to all providers and staff. The following form (see below) is included for your convenience.

Best Practices Form

Facility Name:

Address:

City:

County:

Contact Name:

Email:

Phone:

Our Best Practices:

1. Describe the practice:

Type comments here.

2. Describe how this practice has improved quality of life for your residents and/or improved work conditions for your staff:

Type comments here.

Example:
1. We instituted a personal choice bathing program with a dedicated bathing specialist. Residents choose time of day and frequency, as well as choose tub, shower or bed bath.
2. This increased CNA efficiency, reduced complaints and disruptive behaviors, and showed improved skin conditions.

(We understand that this information will be included in a database which will be made available to all providers and staff throughout Kentucky)

Click "submit" button below to send your Best Practices list for the database.

How a Mentoring Project Works

A voluntary agreement will be reached between a facility with a best practice in place and one that desires to implement that practice, or enhance their program. This agreement will be detailed through a Mentoring Letter Agreement which will describe the scope and length of the project, the desired results and establish benchmarks to assess progress as the project evolves.

KYIQ and the SLTCO office will be available to help coordinate and will monitor the progress of each relationship. Our goal is to create a cooperative environment that, over time, will make ‘best practices’ become ‘standard practices’ and will demonstrate that these practices can be implemented within normal budgetary constraints.

Any questions can be addressed through the “Contact Us” page.