Administrator reports steady pharmacy oversight, says higher psychotropic use reflects more-challenging residents

Carmen, the administrator for the county'run nursing campus known in the meeting as "the neighbors," told the Dunn County standing committee on Aug. 21 that the facility's pharmacist delivers a quarterly, facility-by-facility report on psychotropic and other regulated medications and on the extent to which the facility follows pharmacy recommendations and gradual dose reduction (GDR) protocols.

"Everything looked pretty standard as what it has been," Carmen said, adding the campus serves "a more challenging population," which she said accounts for higher percentages of antipsychotic and antidepressant use than an average nursing home. She said the pharmacy recommendations are reviewed by physicians and followed when appropriate; the facility tracks the percent of recommendations implemented as part of state and federal quality measures.

The update also covered the quality-of-life committee, led by activities staffer Alyssa, that reports on programming such as adaptive fishing and interfacility outings. Supervisor Hagen praised recent photos from a fishing activity and said the activities staff were "rock stars," a point Carmen said she would pass along.

The administrator invited questions and noted the facility aims to balance clinical oversight with programs that support residents' daily life.