Lorien Health Services Named a Best Nursing Home by U.S. News & World Report
December 12, 2022
ELLICOTT CITY, MD—Lorien Health Services, a family-owned and operated assisted living/nursing home company and industry innovator, is among the 16% of facilities nationwide that were recently recognized as Best Nursing Homes for 2022-23 by U.S. News & World Report.
Five Lorien Health Services locations earned Best Nursing Homes status by achieving the highest possible rating of “High Performing” for short-term rehabilitation and/or long-term care, including Bel Air, Bulle Rock, Columbia, Mays Chapel and Mt. Airy.
As nursing homes and facilities across the country continue to rebound from the effects of the pandemic, the U.S. News Best Nursing Homes ratings offer individuals and families a starting point in their search for a nursing home—whether they are in need of short-term rehabilitation or long-term care, or they’re interested in knowing the quality of a home’s overall care.
U.S. News gives the designation of Best Nursing Home only to those homes that satisfy U.S. News’ assessment of the appropriate use of key services and consistent performance in quality measures.
“Since Lorien’s founding over 45 years ago, we’ve been guided by our founders’ pride of ownership and their principal value that ‘we are family taking care of families, friends and neighbors,’” said Lou Grimmel, CEO of Lorien Health Services. “Being recognized by this prestigious ranking is a testament to Lorien’s team taking this approach to heart, while tackling unprecedented challenges throughout this pandemic. Our team also embodies a care-forward perspective that can be seen every day through their dedication to our residents and communities.”
Now in its 13th year, the U.S. News Best Nursing Homes ratings and profiles offer comprehensive information about quality of care, COVID vaccination requirements for residents and staff, flu and pneumonia vaccination rates and infection control violations listed on the resident safety summary. Individuals can easily conduct customized research for a highly rated nursing home by location, size and Medicare and Medicaid coverage.
This year’s methodology included an emphasis on nursing homes meeting certain standards of patient safety, which could limit a home’s ability to achieve a “High-Performing” rating. These standards included a minimum threshold for the staff COVID vaccination rate, overuse of antipsychotic drugs and frequent visits to the emergency department, among other criteria.
Nursing homes that have below a 75% COVID staff vaccination rate are not considered a leading facility. A significant percentage of short-term rehabilitation and long-term care programs that would otherwise have qualified as “High-Performing” were downgraded for failing to meet that vaccination rate.
The ratings include data on staffing, success in preventing ER visits and pneumonia vaccination rates, among other metrics. Among the 15,178 nursing homes evaluated by U.S. News, 1,658 were “High Performing” in short-term rehabilitation, 1,103 were “High Performing” in long-term care and 335 were “High Performing” in both.
The short-term care rating incorporates measures of quality, including consistency of registered nurse staffing, use of antipsychotic drugs and success in preventing falls.