By CLAIRE SANT
BGSU Student Contributor
The Ohio Department of Aging held a public forum at the Wood County Senior Center Tuesday afternoon (Aug. 20) to collect insight and experience from community members regarding senior care. Family members of senior citizens were in attendance, along with board facilitators to engage in discussion with attendees.
In February 2024, the department launched version one of the Nursing Home Quality Navigator (NHQN) which aims to help families or caretakers find a good fit for their loved one, or themselves.
It was created by the Ohio Department of Aging in conjunction with InnovateOhio Platform, the Ohio Department of Health, and the Ohio Department of Medicaid.
“We’re working on this updated tool, which will be expanded to include assisted living facilities,” Dr. John M. Weigand, medical director of the Ohio Department of Health and Aging. We’re excited to expand the offerings and functionality of this tool, especially concerning assisted living.”
It has been a helpful tool for people in the community, and some people had wished the tool was accessible earlier for their advantage. News of navigator advancements, forum and opinion was still welcomed on how to improve existing homes.
An attendee Lisa Urrutia, with senior care experience from her mother explained the need for a revamp within care facilities and the chain of command. There are no standards for memory care that reach all homes, and individual facilities use different standards for which patients belong where, she said.
“I wrote a ton of letters, and have heard from no one,” Urrutia said. “You need to standardize assisted living and memory care.”
The date for the added assisted living feature is still to be determined, however, the first version is still available for use at the following link: https://aging.ohio.gov/care-and-living/nursing-home-navigator/nursing-home-navigator.
