August 03, 2004
August 3, 2004
LANSING – Governor Jennifer M. Granholm today announced that the Department of Community Health (DCH) is now responding to serious complaints about nursing home care within 24 hours and is providing a 24-hour hotline to handle complaints at any hour of the day. The new complaint response program is the direct result of Public Act 189 signed by the Governor in July.
"This gives families peace of mind when they believe a serious violation has occurred at a nursing home facility," Granholm said. "With this new 24-hour hotline, complaints can be received after-hours and on the weekends when many families visit their loved ones in nursing home facilities."
The new law requires DCH to respond to certain serious complaints about nursing homes within 24 hours. These "priority complaints" include injury of unknown origin to a patient, sexual assault, intimidation or threatening actions toward a patient, a fall that resulted in a fracture and is a result of suspected abuse and/or neglect, inadequate staffing that negatively impacted a patient’s health or safety, and failure to obtain appropriate care or medical services.
The new law also changes how DCH handles complaints, removing the requirement that all complaints be put in writing by the person reporting it. Now, complaints will be taken over the phone, with DCH staff assisting the caller in reducing the oral complaint into a written one within seven days.
"This ensures a timely response to a serious complaint," Granholm said. "Although DCH already prioritizes complaints that involve abuse and injury, this new law gives the department a clear criteria for what constitutes a priority complaint. It is unconscionable to let a serious complaint drag on for weeks."
The new law is Public Act 189 of 2004 (HB 4062) sponsored by State Representative Lisa Wojno (D-Warren) and went into immediate effect on July 8, 2004.
Citizens needing to make a complaint can call 1-800-882-6006. The hotline is not staffed 24 hours, seven days a week, but is monitored once every 24 hours and responded to.
