Important Note Regarding Staffing Data 

In 2001, a collection of experts prepared a report regarding nursing home staffing for the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services, which is part of the federal government’s Department of Health and Human Services. The experts’ 2001 study concluded that for long-term residents, a staffing level of approximately 4.1 hours per resident per day (or, more specifically, 4.08 hours per resident per day) “improve[d] outcomes and avoid[ed] selected care problems.”

The experts also described this staffing level as a threshold “below which quality of care was compromised . . . .” In its research, SEIU has found that many Manor Care facilities staff below this 4.1 hours per resident per day threshold, as described in greater detail in other pages at this site.

In the past, SEIU has described the staffing levels identified in the 2001 report in a variety of ways. Going forward, SEIU will describe the 4.1 hours per resident per day threshold by pointing out that it was identified by experts in a 2001 study as a threshold below which quality of care was compromised.

In many cases, we will also note that this threshold was identified in a study or report prepared for the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services. Materials on this site and others have been revised to be consistent with this language.