Carroll County commissioners weigh Griffin Home staffing, agency costs and dining policies

At its Sept. 8 meeting, the Carroll County Commission heard extended public comment and an operations report on the county-run Griffin Home long-term care facility that focused on agency staffing costs, facility census and dining-room payment policy.

The discussion began during public comment when Fred Kane of Wolf Burrow said the county's use of outside staffing agencies has grown sharply. "We're spending $232,000 a month. At that rate, we're gonna be at 2,800,000," Kane said, adding that the county previously spent "15,000 a year" on the same category.

County leadership and the facility administrator responded that agency usage fluctuates with vacancies and seasonal staffing needs. The administrator said the home has added a second agency contract to augment the primary vendor and described recent staffing trends: "We were keeping a couple of the rooms over there empty because we have a resident that was was tough to put someone next to... I think it was a wise decision." The administrator said year-to-date vacancies have peaked at 34 and terminations were 16, and that hiring progress had put the facility in a stronger position.

The administrator also reviewed census and payer mix for July and early September: "We averaged 99.3 with a good quality mix. Medicaid around 51, private's around 44. Today, we're at a 102, with 3 Medicare, 2 managed, 49 Medicaid, and 48 private." The administrator said the facility expects to be full by the weekend and is projecting to finish the year under budget in some lines, adding that they were preparing for an upcoming survey.

Commissioners and the administrator discussed dining-room practices. A member of the public had asked why the facility does not accept cash in the dining room. The administrator said the policy was adopted by the commission before the current administration and that the stated reasons included reconciling cash deposits and reducing handling during COVID. "It was a... commission policy, I believe, to get away from cash to go with credit because the cash never really tied out as well as it should have and also during COVID instead of handling money back and forth," the administrator said. The administrator said she would consult with the food-service manager and the business office about whether the county can safely reinstate a cash option and about establishing procedures to track visitor meals.

Commissioners also discussed the program that provides free meals for family members visiting residents. The administrator said the policy will continue: "They're not free meals for visitors. They're free meals for our family members... It's a policy that I truly believe in." Commissioners asked whether the program should have tracking or reporting; the administrator said tracking could be implemented if the commission wants that level of accountability and noted the program is small "about 4 or 5 people a day" and is included in the budget.

Other operational notes raised in the report included the facility's new chef, the return of some seasonal staff to school, merchandise sales (a "Mountain View" store), and orientation for new hires. The administrator said the facility had contracted with an additional agency to help fill shifts and that year-to-date the facility expects to be roughly $150,000 under a particular budget benchmark if current trends continue.

Why it matters: The commission is responsible for the facility's budget and for setting county policy on operations such as payment methods and outside staffing contracts. Commissioners indicated they will follow up with staff on agency spending details, the cash-payment question and whether to implement a simple tracking system for visitor meals.

The meeting record shows commissioners asked the administrator to provide further detail on agency month-to-month costs and year-to-date figures; the administrator said she would follow up.

Ending note: Commissioners did not take a formal vote on the dining-room cash policy during the meeting; the administrator said she would speak with the food-service manager and report back at a future meeting.