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County hears call to recruit and support nursing-home volunteer ombudsmen amid federal training rules
Summary
Presenters from the Piedmont Triad Regional Council told commissioners the county’s long‑term care community advisory committees are severely understaffed after federal rules increased volunteer training requirements; commissioners asked staff to explore recruitment, mileage reimbursement and federal engagement.
Commissioners heard from Piedmont Triad Regional Council representatives about a statewide shortfall of trained volunteers who serve on county-appointed community advisory committees that visit nursing homes and adult care homes.
Kim Johnson of the Piedmont Triad Regional Council told the Board that a 2017 federal change raised the pre-appointment training requirement for committee volunteers to 36 hours (including classroom, facility visitation and independent study) and 18 hours of ongoing annual training. The increased time commitment, along with COVID-era declines in volunteerism, has left Davidson County far below the statutory committee sizes the state expects.
Johnson said current coverage in Davidson County is two volunteers on the adult care home committee and two on the nursing home committee; committees are supposed to have more members (the presenters said bylaws call for 8–10). Volunteers visit facilities on an unannounced basis to do “friendly visits,” talk with residents about care and food, and report concerns to the ombudsmen program; they are not regulatory inspectors.
Commissioners asked about recruitment and incentives. Johnson said the PTRC has received applications and has been referring them for vetting but that some applicants withdraw after learning the time commitment. She said some counties reimburse volunteer mileage and that mileage has been an effective recruitment incentive. Board members suggested the county consider some reimbursement, asked staff to produce counts of facilities and committee vacancies, and discussed outreach through county social channels and regional advocacy.
Commissioner comments emphasized the difficulty of recruiting volunteers for a 36‑hour pre‑appointment training requirement and asked PTRC to send the relevant federal regulation and the current state statute citation so county delegates can be asked to review the mandate. The presenters said the state ombudsman program provides the classroom portion online via Microsoft Teams and that the initial training also includes in‑facility visit components.
Following discussion, a commissioner moved that county staff (county manager/county staff referenced in the meeting) investigate options with state and federal partners and report back on whether the county can provide mileage or other incentives and on contacting state federal delegations about the training requirement; the motion was seconded and approved. Commissioners directed staff to return with the statute/regulatory citations, an inventory of affected facilities and a cost estimate for possible mileage reimbursement or stipend options.
Why it matters: Advisory committee volunteers are the “eyes and ears” in long‑term care facilities; the county’s ability to recruit and sustain volunteers shapes resident advocacy and can trigger follow‑up to regulatory agencies when problems emerge.
