Any rating system is less than perfect. The newer the system, the more likely it is to be less complete and less rich than it has the potential to be.

Assuming the ratings, of course, are developed by independent, credible sources, over time they can serve as one piece of information to help make decisions.

These do not include, in our view, anonymous ratings of anything. If you have an opinion, be willing to stand behind it. If you and your best friend can’t agree on what to serve at a holiday meal or which dog is right for you, why would you trust total strangers to pick a doctor, hospital or nursing home? You need to know who is behind a rating, the measurements used and why they are considered an important quality indicator.

This story provides an update on how the new nursing home ratings system, developed by the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services, is doing after its introduction.

Kaiser Health News/Washington Post

… (Patient name) is “one of millions of people who have visited the Nursing Home Compare site since it was overhauled and the nation’s 15,600 homes were rated in December. But there’s debate among industry and consumer groups about how well it’s meeting the public’s needs. The federal agency that runs the site plans to survey users later this year on exactly that question.

“The industry, which had sought to delay the system’s rollout, complained that the grading system was started much too quickly. Nursing homes say the information, gleaned from homes as well as from state inspection reports, misleads families and patients because it doesn’t give an accurate picture of the amount and kind of care in each facility.

“A leading consumer group wants the site to provide more details about inspection results and quality-of-care measures. Consumer advocates and industry representatives are calling for changes in the way the ratings assess staffing, which all sides agree is the best indicator of quality of care. Nursing homes say simple counting of workers does not reflect the care patients actually receive, while consumer advocates complain that employee information that comes from homes is unchecked and may contain errors.”

Source: Kaiser Health News/Washington Post, July 14, 2009