What Consumers Say about Nursing Homes in Online Reviews
2018 Poster Session: 3rd Place Winner
Presented by: Yujun Zhu, M.S.G., [email protected]* - *Mr. Zhu is the team’s corresponding author. (See full list below.)
 
Background: Although patient-centered care is an expressed value of our healthcare system, no studies have examined what consumers say in online reviews about nursing homes (NHs). Insight into themes addressed in these reviews could inform improvement efforts that promote patient-centered NH care.
 

Methods: We analyzed NH Yelp reviews. From a list of all NHs in California, we drew a purposeful sample of 51 NHs, selecting facilities representing a range of geographical areas and occupancy rates. Two research teams analyzed the reviews using grounded theory to identify codes and tracked how frequently each code was mentioned.

Results: We evaluated 264 reviews, identifying 24 codes, grouped under five categories: quality of staff care and staffing; physical facility and setting; resident safety and security; clinical care quality; and financial issues. More than half (53.41%) of Yelp reviewers posted comments related to staff attitude and caring and nearly a third (29.2%) posted comments related to staff responsiveness. Yelp reviewers also often posted about NHs’ physical environment.

Conclusion: Our results are consistent with those from related studies. Yelp reviewers focus on NH aspects that are not evaluated in most other NH rating systems. The federal Nursing Home Compare website, for instance, does not report measures of staff attitudes or the NH’s physical setting. Rather, it reports measures of staffing levels and clinical processes and outcomes. We recommend that NH consumers consult both types of rating systems because they provide complementary information.

Authors:
Caitlyn Kellogg, B.A. [email protected]
Yujun Zhu, M.S.G., [email protected]* - *Mr. Zhu is the team’s corresponding author.
Valeria Cardenas, M.A.S.M., [email protected]
Katalina Vazquez, B.S. [email protected]
Kayla Johari, [email protected]
Anna Rahman Ph.D., [email protected]
Susan Enguidanos Ph.D., [email protected]
All authors are affiliated with the Leonard Davis School of Gerontology at the University of Southern California.
 

Click here for the final poster.