Ratings: Bad nursing homes outnumber good

Five nursing homes in the Triangle rated "much above average" in a federal consumer rating system unveiled today, but more than twice as many others were deemed "much below average."

The federal Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services released the ratings for individual homes online this morning. They included ratings for 32 nursing homes in Wake, Durham, Orange, Chatham and Johnston counties.

The ratings were based on health inspections, staffing and various quality measures. The poor ratings reflected such factors as high staff turnover, patients with bedsores, use of restraints and unrelieved pain.

It is the first time that such ratings have appeared on Medicare's online information site: medicare.gov/nhcompare.

Kerry Weems, acting administrator for the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services said the ratings are an attempt to make it easier for families to find meaningful information about nursing homes. He said the ratings are not intended to replace physical visits to nursing homes.

"We hope that this new system will make choosing a home even easier," Weems said.

The top-rated homes in the five Triangle counties are:

Hillcrest Convalescent Center, Durham

Glenaire, Cary

Mayview Convalescent Center, Raleigh

Carol Woods, Chapel Hill

The Cedars of Chapel Hill.

The lowest-rated homes in the five counties are:

Carver Living Center, Durham

Grace Healthcare of Durham

Treyburn Healthcare Inc., Durham

Unihealth Post-Acute Care of Durham

Capital Nursing and Rehabilitation Center, Raleigh

Cary Health and Rehabilitation

Guardian Care of Zebulon

Litchford Falls Healthcare, Raleigh

Raleigh Rehab and Healthcare

Britthaven of Chapel Hill

The Laurels of Chatham

Brian Center Health & Retirement, Clayton

Liberty Commons, Benson