October is Residents Rights Month

Across the country, residents of nursing homes and other long-term care facilities along with family members, Ombudsman program representatives, citizen advocates, facility staff, and others will honor the individual rights of long-term care residents by celebrating Residents’ Rights Month. Residents’ Rights Month is an annual event held in October by the National Consumer Voice for Quality Long-Term Care (Consumer Voice) to celebrate and focus on awareness of dignity, respect, and the value of long-term care residents.  

Residents have the right to self-determination and to use their voice to make their own choices. This year's Residents' Rights Month theme, Stand with Me, highlights the importance of solidarity and support for residents who stand up and advocate for their rights, as well as the value of encouraging the community to join residents in sharing their voices.

The Nursing Home Reform Law, passed in 1987, guarantees nursing home residents their individual rights, including but not limited to: individualized care, respect, dignity, the right to visitation, the right to privacy, the right to complain, and the right to make independent choices. Residents who have made their home in other types of facilities

The National Long-Term Care Ombudsman Program has worked for nearly 50 years to promote residents’ rights daily. More than 3,400 volunteers and 1,500 paid staff are advocates for residents in all 50 states plus the District of Columbia, Guam, and Puerto Rico. Authorized under the Older Americans Act and administered by the Administration on Aging/Administration for Community Living, the program also provides information on how to find a facility, conducts community education sessions, and supports residents, their families, and the public with one-on-one consultation regarding long-term care.    

Contact Cindy Tabor, District Long Term Care Ombudsman, or visit https://www.peadd.org/aging-ombudsman-services for more information.