March 4, 2013 - Cabarrus County

ANNUAL REPORT
of
CABARRUS COUNTY
ADULT CARE AND NURSING HOME COMMUNITY ADVISORY COMMITTEES
REPORTING YEAR: 2012 CHAIRPERSONS: Karen Pensgen, ACHCAC
Karen Gabbert, NHCAC
Introduction
When there is a decline in an individual’s personal or mental health, families often find they need
assistance in caring for their loved one. There are two basic types of facilities available: (1) Adult Care
Home and (2) Nursing Home. An adult care home offers people with mild health problems a unique
environment in which to live by offering residents the comforts of home, as well as a social community in
which to stay active. In addition to the comfort factor, adult care homes offer residents medical
supervision and minor medical care to go along with assistance with basic daily living activities such as
bathing, eating, dressing, cooking and housekeeping.
A nursing home offers the higher level of care required by a person who has a severe or debilitating
physical or mental illness and is unable to care for himself or herself. These facilities are fully staffed and
residents are monitored. Residents in both types of facility have rights and responsibilities as outlined in
the Nursing Home and Adult Care Home Resident Bill of Rights. The ADULT CARE AND NURSING HOME
COMMUNITY ADVISORY COMMITTEES are appointed by the Commission and are charged with
monitoring facility compliance. They do so by visiting each facility on a quarterly basis and submitting a
written report that is public record and kept on file with the Regional Ombudsman.
Purpose of the Community Advisory Committee
Community Advisory Committee members are volunteer advocates who are appointed by the county
commissioners to serve on the nursing and adult care home Community Advisory Committees (CAC) in
each county (G.S. 131E-128 and 131D-31). There are over 1,300 volunteers state-wide. These volunteers
are trained and assisted by regional ombudsmen. Beginning 2012, Cabarrus County had five nursing
home CAC volunteers and 12 adult home volunteers. The primary purposes of the advisory committees
are to maintain the intent of the Resident Bill of Rights within nursing homes and adult care homes and to
promote community involvement and cooperation with such homes to ensure quality of care for older
adults.
Were all the homes in Cabarrus County served by the Committees?
All homes were visited during 2012. The Nursing Home (NH) CAC completed 100 percent of its required,
quarterly visits to the seven homes in Cabarrus County. The Adult Care Home (ACH) CAC was able to
complete 100 percent of its required quarterly visits to the twelve homes. This committee is divided into
two sub-committees; one sub-committee visits on weekdays; the other schedules visits in the evening
and Saturday mornings in order to attract employed people.
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