Across the country, residents of nursing homes and other long-term care facilities along with family members, Ombudsman program representatives, citizen advocates, facility staff, and others will honor the individual rights of long-term care residents by celebrating Residents’ Rights Month. Residents’ Rights Month is an annual event held in October by the National Consumer Voice for Quality Long-Term Care (Consumer Voice) to highlight the rights and well-being of residents living in all long-term care facilities. It is an opportunity to focus on dignity, respect, and the quality of life experienced by each resident.
Residents have the right to self-determination and to use their voice to make their own choices. This year’s Residents’ Rights Month theme, Join Us at the Table, highlights the central role that food, mealtime, and community play in residents’ daily lives. Food is essential to residents’ health, providing the nutrition and dietary requirements they rely on. But its significance extends beyond that. Food is comfort, culture, identity, and connection – a daily experience that shapes dignity and quality of life.
“Residents and the community can come together for support when facing challenges in long-term care,” said Lori Smetanka, Executive Director of Consumer Voice, “This year’s Residents’ Rights Month theme encourages residents to share their experiences, preferences, and traditions. It also encourages staff, family members, long-term care Ombudsman program representatives, and other advocates to come together to listen to residents’ experiences with food and dining, uplift their voices, and work collectively towards ensuring that every meal reflects dignity, choice, and respect.”
The Nursing Home Reform Law, passed in 1987, guarantees nursing home residents their individual rights, including but not limited to: individualized care, respect, dignity, the right to visitation, the right to privacy, the right to complain, and the right to make independent choices. Residents who have made their home in other types of facilities such as assisted living and residential care facilities maintain their rights as U.S. citizens. Residents’ Rights Month raises awareness about these rights and pays tribute to the unique contributions of long-term care residents.
The National Long-Term Care Ombudsman Program has worked for over 50 years to promote residents’ rights daily. More than 3,500 volunteers and 2,000 paid staff are advocates for residents in all 50 states plus the District of Columbia, Guam, and Puerto Rico. Authorized under the Older Americans Act and administered by the Administration on Aging/Administration for Community Living, the program also provides information on how to find a facility, conducts community education sessions, and supports residents, their families, and the public with one-on-one consultation regarding long-term care.
For more information about Missouri Long-Term Care Ombudsman program:
• Phone: 1-800-309-3282 (state office) or 660-240-9400 (Young At Heart Resources, local Area Agency on Aging)
• Website: www.health.mo.gov/seniors/ombudsman
• E-mail: LTCOmbudsman@health.mo.gov (state office), rwilliams@yahresources.org, or rwallinga@yahresources.org
