Nursing
homes contain private rooms and semi-private
rooms. Private rooms cost more than a semi-private
room. Most of the room types in a nursing home
are semi-private. Semi-private rooms are modeled
after hospital rooms, in which they contain two
beds seperated by a privacy curtain.
Nursing
homes are licensed and regulated by The Missouri
Department of Health and are individually certified
by the state of Missouri for Medicare and Medicaid.
The health care is supervised and authorized
by a physician. Additionally, all nursing homes
must meet federal requirements.
When selecting a facility, research each facility in the area and personally
inspect the facility before signing a contract. The Missouri State Ombudsmen
program is a good source of information about care facilities. This program
resolves complaints on behalf of nursing home residents, make periodic
visits to facilities when there are problems and completes unscheduled
visits too. Another valuable source is the Missouri State Survey Report.
Missouri's State Health Department is responsible for carrying out and
enforcing federal regulations that apply to nursing homes. Nursing homes
must adhere to a long list of rules and regulations.