Glossary, Resources, and Methodologies
The Following page provides definitions for commonly used senior care terms as well as the methodologies for the ratings provided by The Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS).
| SNF Terms and Definitions | |
|---|---|
| Aggregate Rating | Aggregate ratings on our site are a combination of the overall CMS ratings added and averaged. |
| Average Cost | Our average cost numbers are provided to give a general idea of what one may expect to be charged per day at the SNF/NF. They are only estimates to be used as a reference and are not verified. |
| Average Stay | Our average length of stay numbers are derived by reports the facility provides to the government. |
| CMS | CMS stands for The Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services which is a federal agency designed to run and manage Medicare and Medicaid. |
| Critical Access Hospital | A CAH is a smaller facility usually in rural areas. |
| Continuing Care Retirement Community (CCRC) | OCCRCs typically provide care ranging from apartments residents live in independently, to assisted living, to full-time care as their needs require. This type of care is usually rather expensive relative to other options and typically requires a substantial downpayment and monthly fees. |
| Custodial Care | Employees who help with activities like bathing, eating, getting dressed etc. Typically Medicare does not cover this. |
| Durable Medical Equipment | Walkers, wheelchairs, hospital beds, etc. |
| End-Stage Renal Disease | Complete kidney failure that requires dialysis or a transplant. |
| Fire Safety Deficiency | The nursing home failed to meet one or more of the Federal fire safety requirements |
| Full-Time Employee (FTE) | Healthcare.gov defines FTE as Full-time employees that work at least 30 hours per week combined with the total number of part-time employee hours divided by thirty. For example: if 3 part time employees worked a total of 60 hours they would count as two (60/30) full-time employees. |
| Health Deficiency | During the annual inspection the nursing home was cited for not meeting one or more of the Federal health requirments. |
| Home Health Agency | Home health agencies provide both medical and non-medical support in the patient's home for those not in need of a skilled nursing facility/nursing home. |
| Hospice | Hospices are designed to help with the many physical and emotional stresses created when yourself or a family member is terminally ill. |
| Inpatient Prospective Payment System | Facilities that have a contract with Medicare to provide care at a predetermined amount that is considered to be paid in full. |
| Living Will | States your wishes in regards to life-support and other medical decisions that you can not make at the time. |
| LTC | Typically stands for long-term care. Long-term care is there to help with both medical and non-medical needs of clients who can not care for themselves for extended periods of time. |
| Medicaid | A federal and state-run program that assists with medical costs for those with limited resources. |
| Medicare | The federal health care program for seniors (as well as some younger qualifying people). |
| Medigap Polic | Private insurance designed to fill gaps in your Medicare coverage. |
| Number of Certified Beds | The total number of beds available for Medicare/Medicaid members. Some nursing homes may have a combination of private and certified beds. |
| Nursing Home | Can be either a Skilled Nursing Facility or a Nursing Facility. Nursing Facilities participate in Medicaid while Skilled Nursing Facilities participate in both Medicare and Medicaid. |
| Occupational Therapy | Occupational therapy is designed to help you return to your normal daily activities like bathing, cooking, cleaning, and so on. |
| Ombudsman | In this setting an ombudsman is usually an intermediary who investigates complaints by residents and family members. |
| Physical Therapy | Physical therapy treats an injury or disease through various methods like exercise, massage, and light treatments. |
| Podiatrist | A podiatrist is a doctor specialized in issues concerning the feet (Foot doctor). |
| Preventive Services | Preventive health care designed to prevent or detect illness at an early stage so that treatment can be as effective as possible. |
| Resident and Family Councils | Councils are designed to help assist communications between residents and family members with the staff and ownership. |
| Skilled Nursing Facility | Skilled nursing facilities typically are able to provide additional rehabilitative including physical and occupational therapy. |
| Special Focus Facility | Some nursing homes have a history of failing to meet required levels of care and become special focus facilities until they correct their issues. |
| Total Number of Residents | While this number will always be changing, it is currently captured during the 3 weeks before the most recent inspection. |
| Overall Rating Methodology |
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CMS Decides the Overall Rating as follows:
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