Cheney Care Center employees were a key part of how the facility got exceptionally high grades in a recent Department of Social and Health Services inspection.
There are places where one wants, and expects, perfection in a product or service.
The doctor conducting surgery, a pilot guiding you along at 35,000 feet, and the engineer who designed the high bridge one speeds across on the interstate are just a few.
The expectation that the care received in a person's waning years is, perhaps, another, but one that maybe is not thought about until it's time to move into assisted care. And sometimes that is not up to standard.
Except if one lives in the numerous parts of the Cheney Care Center, the local skilled nursing facility that recently passed rigorous inspections with some of the highest grades possible.
The state of Washington has 220 skilled nursing facilities and Cheney's was among just 10 percent with similar good marks. A visit to medicare.gov will reveal the survey results and allow consumers to see how everyone rated.
"As a skilled nursing facility we're surveyed once a calendar year by residential care services, which is part of DSHS (Department of Social and Health Services)," Keith Fauerso, executive director and administrator, said.
What differentiates a skilled facility are a number of things, including the offering of nursing care 24-7, along with in-house therapy, to name a couple. On the flip side, some group homes are not staffed with nurses around the clock.
The federal government mandates that all skilled nursing facilities be surveyed. "There's probably 5,000 regulations that we have to comply with," Fauerso said.
The process studies negative outcomes, "So the focus is all negative," Fauerso said. "They do not note anything unless it's negative." They also look at what Fauerso called "Little warm fuzzies, but not much."
The staff and management is prepared for the surveys at all times because the arrival of the inspection team is unannounced, Fauerso explained.
"We have a window of several months when it might come, but that's not always the case," Fauerso said. In 2015, the survey occurred in April and May while in 2016 it came in July. "They have a 15-month window," Fauerso said.
Inspectors come in to see what's happening, and the process is quick. "As soon as they drop their things they're out on the floor," Fauerso said.
The inspection lasts a week with a team checking essentially every inch of the facility to make sure the proper level of care is being administered.
Fauerso called the time where the survey is being conducted as being "onerous," and complete with "heightened anxiety."
Cheney Care has a capacity of 54 residents, with 32 of 46 being part of the study. Auditors found two of what Fauerso said were "D-Level" deficiencies. "They are basically the lowest level where you have to write a plan of correction," he added.
The high marks earned by Cheney Care are something that comes from a team effort, Fauerso said, and involves the entire staff of 110.
Fauerso is not the only person who has been on staff for an extended time. Others he noted have 10 or more years, some approaching 20, and that continuity is critical in the care that is offered.
Another factor in the good "report card," is that Cheney Care is unique in that it is the only skilled, not-for-profit facility that was founded by community effort in the state, Fauerso said. "It was a huge undertaking," he added.
The major difference, Fauerso said, "Is the (for profits) margin is maybe 3-4 percent and what ends up getting reduced is staffing levels."
In a non-profit, while there still needs to be a profit, it is much smaller. "We don't have a mission if there is no margin," Fauerso said with a chuckle. "We have to have some margin."
Cheney Care, which opened in its current location in 1976, is the city's fourth-largest employer behind Eastern Washington University, the Cheney School District and city of Cheney.
"We're a significant economic force for Cheney," Fauerso said of the community's biggest private employer.
With costs about $9,000 a month to be housed at Cheney Care, residents expect, and appear to be getting as good a bang for the buck as possible.
Cheney Care Center is located at 2219 N. Sixth St. To contact Cheney Care Center call (509) 235-6196 or http://www.cheneycare.com.
Paul Delaney can be reached at pdelaney@cheneyfreepress.com.
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