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In March 2011, the Office of the Inspector General of the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services released a startling report. Their conclusion was:
Almost all nursing facilities employed one or more individuals with at least one criminal conviction. Our analysis of FBI-maintained criminal history records revealed that 92 percent of nursing facilities employed at least one individual with at least one criminal conviction. Nearly half of nursing facilities employed five or more individuals with at least one conviction.
That’s amazing and sobering. The report goes on to say:
Forty-four percent of employees with convictions were convicted of crimes against property (e.g., burglary, shoplifting, writing bad checks), making it the most common type of crime committed. Overall, 5 percent of nursing facility employees had at least one conviction in FBI-maintained criminal history records. Most convictions occurred prior to employment. Eighty-four percent of employees with convictions had their most recent conviction prior to their beginning date of employment.
In California, this could also happen with in-home care companies because California does not currently regulate the in-home care industry.
However, in-home care companies that are certified by ABHC or CAHSAH are required to perform criminal background checks on prospective new employees. In a future article we’ll talk more about this certification requirement and what protections it does, and does not, provide.
A Servant’s Heart Care Solutions is certified by CAHSAH. We conduct background checks on all employees using the California Department of Justice “LiveScan” system and we never hire individuals who have had any prior criminal convictions.
To read the entire OIG report, see: NURSING FACILITIES’ EMPLOYMENT OF INDIVIDUALS WITH CRIMINAL CONVICTIONS
Originally posted 2011-04-07 12:00:00.
