Florida nursing homes face significant staffing challenges amid COVID-19 surge, survey shows

Most Florida nursing homes are facing significant staffing challenges, a new survey from the Florida Health Care Association finds.

The July survey reached 310 nursing homes and 23 assisted living facilities across the state, which revealed that 92% are facing staffing challenges amid the current surge of COVID-19 and the delta variant.

The survey also showed that about 9 in 10 FHCA member facilities said their overall workforce situation has gotten worse since 2020.

“These survey results make it clear that Florida’s long-term care workforce is facing serious challenges,” FHCA CEO Emmett Reed said in a statement. “Our state must make significant investments in our long-term care facilities, so they have the resources necessary to recruit and retain the best caregivers to join the front lines. This includes making sure our facilities are properly funded so providers can offer meaningful jobs with competitive wages, and in turn enhance the overall quality of care for their residents.”

The survey found other signs of struggling nursing centers — 88% of institutions said they had experienced staff shortages within the last month, and 52% are having to reduce admissions as a result.

Staffing shortages have led 92% of nursing homes to use temporary staffing and other approaches to meet needs.

And, it costs them. The survey found that 63% of FHCA members indicated their budget could not sustain current efforts to meet staffing needs for more than six months.

The solution? About 80% of member facilities said higher reimbursements that enable them to offer better staff pay and benefits would help improve their ability to recruit and retain staff.

As nursing homes struggle with staffing, Florida has continued to lead the nation in the numbers of new COVID-19 cases.

The number of COVID-19 patients in Florida hospitals hit another record Sunday, filling 13,435 beds, the Florida Hospital Association reported.

That record day, reported by Florida officials to the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services and then publicly shared through a tweet by the Florida Hospital Association, now is well above any count seen before this summer.