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Not-for-profit health care provides more care

A December 2010 Statistics Canada study on B.C.  long term care facilities confirms that not-for-profit care provides more care:
  • Total nursing hours per resident day have increased over the past decade (1996-2006) for all facility ownership groups in British Columbia.
  • The rate of increase in not-for-profit facilities owned by a health region was significantly greater compared with for-profit facilities.
  • Total nursing hours per resident day were also significantly lower in for-profit facilities, compared with not-for-profit facilities.
Total nursing and personal care time per day ranged from 2.13 hour per day in for-profit facilities to 3.30 hours per day in not-for-profit facilities operated by regional health authorities.

American studies have found that not-for-profit ownership of nursing homes is associated with higher staffing levels, lower staff turnover, and better outcomes on a range of measures, compared with for-profit ownership.

The study adds that regardless of facility ownership, total nursing hours per resident-day in this study were below current recommendations. The U.S.Centers for Medicare and Medicaid determined that 4.1 hours per resident day (combined 2.8 hours for non-licensed staff and 1.3 hours for licensed staff) was the threshold below which poorer outcomes such as weight loss and pressure ulcers were more likely to occur.


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