Staffing at Some Nursing Communities Fell During Early COVID-19 Outbreaks

A Wall Street Journal analysis of federal data indicated that caregivers at dozens of nursing communities declined to very low levels on some of the worst days of the COVID-19 pandemic. Up to 127 hard-hit communities on a single day had nurse-staffing levels that fell at least 25 percent below their levels for the comparable days last year. For many days in April, the number of communities with virus outbreaks that had such shortages was over twice typical levels at those same communities in the months prior to the pandemic. More than 300 communities with virus outbreaks reported at least one day in the second quarter of this year in which staffing levels slipped more than 40 percent below their levels for the comparable day in 2019. Shortfalls during the April peak were triggered by waves of sickness among staffers, quarantine requirements for people potentially exposed to the coronavirus, and call-outs spurred by fear of infection and lack of child care. Experts say those factors exacerbated nursing communities' difficulty in providing care to residents. American Health Care Association Chief Medical Officer David Gifford said reduced staffing may have ensued from nursing communities' precautions. Journal data analysis showed some hard-hit communities saw their staffing ratios improve by late August, and experts say declining numbers of residents — mainly on account of COVID fatalities and a lack of new admissions — was likely the cause.