Waltham nursing homes earn top stars for care

A federal agency released a star-based rating system last week for nursing homes that accept Medicaid or Medicare, awarding high rankings for most of the city’s elder living facilities.

The new ratings, found at www.medicare.gov/nhcompare, use previously accessible data to award each home a certain number of stars. Five stars means "much above average," four "above average," three "about average," two "below average" and one "much below average."

Marquardt Nursing Center on Trapelo Road received five stars, the highest ranking facility in Waltham. Located on the grounds of the Walter E. Fernald Developmental Center, the 29-bed facility is overseen by the state Department of Mental Retardation. The nursing center will remain open even after Fernald closes in July 2010, said Marquardt officials.

Nursing center administrator Rita Nevulis said the five stars was a result of the center’s staff.

"I think our staffing at the Marquardt does a tremendous job and I think it shows in the care our patients receive," she said. "Right now (the new system is) at the beginning stages, but I think it will be good in the future for family members or guardians to take a quick look and compare where they want to send their loved ones to a nursing home. I just think it’s a tool that families will be able to use."

The second highest ranking facilities in Waltham were the nonprofit Maristhill Nursing home at 66 Newton St. and the for-profit Meadow Green Nursing Home at 45 Woburn St., each earning four stars.
"We’re very pleased because it shows we’re above average, although there’s always room for improvement," said Carolyn Fenn, administrator for the 123-bed Maristhill Nursing Home.

She said the ranking is a valuable tool but encourages families to look at a variety of factors when selecting a nursing home.

" Choosing a facility is a very difficult and complex process and there are many factors that go into that decision," she said. "We strongly urge residents and families to look at the whole picture."

Coming in at the bottom of the list with one star is the for-profit Piety Corner Nursing Home Inc., a 34-bed facility located at 325 Bacon St.

Representatives from Piety Corner Nursing Home Inc. and Meadow Green Nursing Home, could not be reached for comment.

Before the new system, consumers had reported difficulty using and understanding the federal database for rating nursing homes, said Kerry Weems, the acting administrator for Medicare and Medicaid.
The star ratings are calculated by looking at recent state inspections, staffing ratios and quality-of-care measures, including the frequency of bed sores, the provision of proper medical care and changes in residents’ mobility. Nursing homes also receive one to five stars for each of the three categories.
State nursing home associations said they support any rating system that will help consumers but found fault with some aspects of the new initiative.

"There’s definitely a lot of improvements that could be made," said Elissa Sherman, the president of the Massachusetts Aging Association, a group representing nonprofit nursing homes.

Alice Bonner, the executive director of the Massachusetts Senior Care Association, a group that includes for-profit homes, agreed, saying that many homes did not necessarily deserve their rankings.

"Any new scale like this is going to have some wrinkles," she said. "When you have a rating system like this, you know some facilities are not going to be put in the right place initially."

Specifically, Sherman and Bonner said the ratings did not take into account patient satisfaction surveys and had been developed like the curve for a college exam, with state nursing homes competing against each other for the highest categories rather than working toward a set numerical goal.

Sherman and Bonner also said inspections were somewhat subjective but had been weighted more heavily than staffing or quality measures in the federal formula. Area results show a number of homes scoring well in other categories but receiving just one star for inspections, held every nine to 15 months.

The overall star ratings will be updated quarterly, with Weems welcoming critiques and promising to make site improvements, such as adding satisfaction surveys.

Jeff Gilbride can be reached at 781-398-8005 or at jgilbrid@cnc.com.