The COVID-19 pandemic has demonstrated that the current design for nursing homes is not conducive to infection control, Kenneth Scott, MD, wrote in Forbes.
CMS reported a total of 1,163,417 confirmed COVID-19 cases and 154,578 deaths among nursing home residents as of Aug. 7. Shared rooms and bathrooms in nursing homes make it challenging to prevent infections from spreading, Dr. Scott wrote.
Dr. Scott recommends three ways to prioritize infection control:
- Promote vaccination and masking among staff who have frequent contact with patients.
- Build new nursing homes with better layouts and fewer patients per room.
- Penalize nursing homes that don't meet health and safety standards.