We wanted to spotlight one of our clients, Chuck Lloyd, administrator of Oak Creek Rehab and Mountain View Geriatric Psych Hospital as his story of becoming a Social Worker, then advancing to Administrator, and now Hospital Administration is inspiring.
A Day in the Life of Chuck Lloyd, NHA, Oak Creek Rehab & Mountain View Geriatric Psych Hospital Kimberly, Idaho.
Chuck first became interested in the health care field early on in his life. His grandfather experienced a stroke and from that incident Chuck witnessed different aspects of health care as his family cared for his grandfather at home. He then started his career in the Social Services field, wanting to have a positive impact on people’s lives. While in Social Services he observed aspects of the nursing home administrator that were of interest; so much so that Chuck continued his education to gain his Nursing Home Administrator (NHA) degree. He also completed his MBA in Health Care Management and currently is in the process of obtaining his doctorate in Health Care Administration.
Chuck’s first building as a Social Worker was a geriatric psych building. This experience was interesting enough to lead Chuck to have his career focus on behaviours and geriatric psych. As a NHA in a geriatric psych building, he has many challenges on a day-to-day basis. Foremost is to provide the highest level of services for each resident as possible. He also ensures the care of the resident is as individualized as possible while maintaining overall safety of the residents and staff members. Other daily challenges include focusing on retention of staff members in a behaviour unit. Staff burn out is an area to be addressed on a daily basis due to the challenges of caring for residents with unpredictable behaviours.
Future plans for Chuck and his facility include increasing community referrals both locally and throughout the state. Addressing the needs of the Veterans Affairs population is also a needed focus for this area as well. Reports have shown that people are living longer, which indicates the potential need for more amongst the geriatric population. Challenges with reimbursement are always on the future plans list. Insurance companies are looking to cut reimbursements in all areas. We are challenged daily to ensure our documentation is at the highest standard to paint the picture of what we do for our residents everyday. Chuck also works diligently at addressing staffing issues. In the behaviour facility, we need to have a higher staff ratio to ensure the safety of residents and staff.
Rehab therapy has become a vital part of the behaviour resident’s stay in the facility. Rehab staff members have to be able to individualize the treatment plan to accommodate the resident’s specific needs and potential behaviours. Resource Utilization Group (RUG) scores are vary depending on the overall picture of the resident. But, by focusing on the every day activities of the resident from early morning to night, we can capture the resident at their optimal times for therapy interventions. The use of the Allen Cognitive Level has also been a welcome aspect of the resident’s cares. The scores are used to ensure proper discharge plans.
We appreciate Chuck and all he has done for our residents, community and staff members!
