Hebrew Home for the Aged at Riverdale

5901 Palisade Avenue, Riverdale, New York 10471

Hebrew Home for the Aged at Riverdale is located in Riverdale, New York. It has 90 certified beds that have been approved by the federal government to participate in Medicare and Medicaid, with an average of 82.6 residents per day. Hebrew Home for the Aged at Riverdale is not in a Continuing Care Retirement Community, and it is not in a hospital. It has a Resident Council to facilitate communications with the staff. The facility is a nonprofit corporation doing business under the legal business name of Hebrew Home for the Aged at Riverdale.

The Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) gives each nursing home an overall rating* on a scale of 1 to 5 stars: 5 stars = much above average, 4 stars = above average, 3 stars = average, 2 stars = below average, 1 star = much below average. The CMS also assigns star ratings in the categories of health inspections, staffing, and quality of resident care. The overall rating for Hebrew Home for the Aged at Riverdale is 5 stars.

Hebrew Home for the Aged at Riverdale’s star rating for health inspections is 5 stars. New York State inspectors regularly conduct full inspections of nursing homes for compliance with federal Medicare and Medicaid regulations. In addition, at any time during the year a nursing home may also be inspected based on a complaint submitted by a resident or based on an incident self-reported by the facility.

The date of the most recent health inspection of Hebrew Home for the Aged at Riverdale was October 27, 2017. In that report 2 health citations were noted. The average number of citations for New York is 4.8 and the average number of citations in the United States is 7.8.

During the August 31^st inspection, deficiencies noted included:

• the facility did not ensure that treatment and care for each resident was provided in a manner that enhances or maintains his or her dignity. Specifically, staff was observed entering a resident's room without knocking and/or introducing self before entering.
• The facility did not ensure that garbage and refuse were disposed of properly. Specifically, the kitchen compactor area was observed with food and debris littered around the area and a strong foul smell that wafted into the building.

According to the CMS, higher staffing levels may mean higher quality of care for residents. Thus, the CMS reviews the staffing levels. Specifically, it looks at the number of hours per resident of licensed nurses, registered nurses, nurses aides, licensed practical/vocational nurses, and physical therapists. For staffing, Hebrew Home for the Aged at Riverdale received 2 stars which is a “below average” rating.

• The total number of licensed nurse staff hours per resident per day at Hebrew Home for the Aged at Riverdale is 58 minutes, while the New York average is 1 hour and 31 minutes and the national average is 1 hour and 33 minutes.
• The registered nurse hours per resident per day at Hebrew Home for the Aged at Riverdale is 38 minutes compared to 42 minutes for New York and 41 minutes for the United States.
• The licensed practical/vocational nurses (LPN/LVN) hours per resident per day at Hebrew Home for the Aged at Riverdale is 20 minutes compared to 49 minutes for New York and 53 minutes for the United States.
• The nurses aid hours per resident per day is 2 hours and 2 minutes, while the New York average is 2 hours and 15 minutes and the national average is 2 hours and 19 minutes.
• Hebrew Home for the Aged at Riverdale provides 4 minutes of physical therapist staff hours per resident per day, compared to the New York average is 7 minutes and the national average is 5 minutes. However, not all nursing home residents require physical therapy.

Hebrew Home for the Aged at Riverdale’s star rating for overall quality of resident care is 5 stars which is a “much above average” rating. Facilities are also rated on their quality of care for short-stay residents and long-stay residents. Short-stay residents are those who spent 100 days or less in a nursing home, or residents covered under the Medicare Part A Skilled Nursing Facility benefit. Long-stay residents are those who spent over 100 days in a nursing home. Hebrew Home for the Aged at Riverdale also received 5-star ratings for both short-stay residents and long-stay residents.

When evaluating a facility for quality of care, the CMS focuses on statistics related to hospitalizations, specific health care concerns, mobility, and flu and pneumonia prevention.

For hospitalizations, CMS’ review of records determined that 16.9% of Hebrew Home for the Aged at Riverdale’s short-stay residents were re-hospitalized after a nursing home admission. The average for New York is 20.4% and national average is 22.6%.

As for outpatient emergency department visits, for Hebrew Home for the Aged at Riverdale, the percentage of short-stay residents who have had an outpatient emergency department visit is 5.2%, while the New York average is 8.8% and the national average is 10.7%.

As for long-stay residents, for Hebrew Home for the Aged at Riverdale, the number of hospitalizations per 1,000 resident days is 1.32, while the New York average is 1.55, and the national average is 1.75.

As for the number of outpatient emergency department visits per 1,000 long-stay residents, for Hebrew Home for the Aged at Riverdale the number is days is 0.22, while the New York average is 0.74, and the national average is 1.03.

Pressure ulcers, also referred to as bed sores or pressure injuries, are injuries to skin and underlying tissue resulting from prolonged pressure on the skin, such as staying in one position for a long time. In some, but not all instances, pressure ulcers can be indicative of negligent care. 1.9% of the skilled nursing facility residents at Hebrew Home for the Aged at Riverdale had pressure ulcers that were new or worsened while residing at this facility. The national average is 1.6%.

In addition, the percentage of long-stay high-risk residents at Hebrew Home for the Aged at Riverdale with pressure ulcers is 7.7%, compared to the New York average of 8.6% and the national average of 7.4%.

Nursing facilities are also evaluated for their flu and pneumonia prevention measures. 86.8% of Hebrew Home for the Aged at Riverdale’s short-stay residents received the needed flu shot for current flu season. This percentage is higher than both the New York and national averages which stand at 82.6% and 82.3%, respectively.

As for the percentage of short-stay residents who needed and got a vaccine to prevent pneumonia, the percentage for Hebrew Home for the Aged at Riverdale is 89.9%, while the average for New York is 79.3% and the average for the United States is 83.2%. For long-stay residents, the statistics are similar.

98.7% of Hebrew Home for the Aged at Riverdale’s long-stay residents received flu shots, compared to the New York average of and 97.0% and the national average of 95.6%. Similarly, 98.2% of Hebrew Home for the Aged at Riverdale’s long-stay residents received a vaccine to prevent pneumonia compared to the New York average of 93.6% and the national average of 93.7%.

Nursing homes that are certified by Medicare and/or Medicaid must meet standards set by the government to ensure residents are safe. Fire safety specialists inspect nursing homes to determine if a nursing home meets the Life Safety Code (LSC) requirements, a set of fire safety and emergency preparedness requirements set by the CMS. These requirements are aimed at preventing fires, or protecting residents in the event of an emergency like a fire, hurricane, tornado, flood, power failure, or gas leak.

The most recent fire safety inspection was October 27, 2017. During that inspection 5 citations were noted, which is higher than the New York average of 3.5 and national average of 2.9.

Hebrew Home for the Aged at Riverdale has not received a penalty from the federal government in the last 3 years. When a nursing home gets a serious citation or fails to correct a citation for a long period of time, that facility may be assessed a penalty. A penalty can be a fine against the facility or a denied payment from Medicare.

The information about the performance of Hebrew Home for the Aged at Riverdale is from Medicare.gov and is based on past performance. Past performance is not an indicator of future performance. Further, we recommend that you check the statistics yourself at Medicare.gov for both accuracy and updates. Choosing a nursing home is a very difficult decision, and we make no representation as to the quality of any of the facilities or their ratings on the site.