PALMELLE
The Palmelle read
Solid. Columbia Lutheran Home in Seattle is pulling off some impressive medical acrobatics, but they seem to be dropping the ball on the basic, human side of daily life. First, the good stuff: they’ve earned a HIGH_RN_COVERAGE flag with over an hour of registered nurse time per resident daily, meaning trained clinical eyes are actually watching for medical hiccups before they turn into emergencies. On top of that, their LOW_FALLS_MAJOR_INJURY flag proves that call lights are getting answered and aides are actually there to help people transfer safely, which is incredibly hard to pull off. However, we have to talk about the HIGH_WEIGHT_LOSS flag, where a double-digit rate usually means overworked staff are rushing through dinner and residents who need help eating just aren't getting it. Even more worrying is the HIGH_DEPRESSIVE_SYMPTOMS flag affecting nearly half the residents, a clear sign that people are likely marooned in their rooms without real social engagement or activities to keep them connected. Thankfully, they have zero federal fines on record. though we can't tell if that clean slate is from last month or five years ago. When you tour, skip the sales pitch and ask the director exactly how they plan to get residents out of their rooms and how many aides are actually in the dining room during the dinner rush.
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In their own words
No operator description yet.
Services
What they offer.
Levels of care
Amenities
What the data shows
The safety record, by the numbers.
Going right
5-star health inspection
Top federal score on the most recent inspection.
RN hours per resident, daily
Annual nurse turnover
No federal fines
Zero fines on record in the last 36 months.
Worth asking about
Antipsychotic, long-stay
Ask what behaviors the medication targets and what non-medication options were tried first.