Physical and Occupational Therapy Staffing Patterns in Nursing Homes and Their Association with Long-stay Resident Outcomes and Quality of Care.

The purpose of this study is to examine Physical Therapy (PT) and Occupational Therapy (OT) staffing patterns in nursing homes and understand their relationship with quality performance. Bivariate analyses between PT/OT staffing and facility characteristics were performed to understand staffing patterns and random effects regressions were run to explore the link between therapy staff and quality. Findings suggest PT/OT staff have a positive influence on resident outcomes and therapy staffing patterns significantly differ across provider attributes, including size, profit status, and occupancy rate, among others. The findings can be used to inform policymakers about potential unintended consequences resulting from changes to Medicare reimbursement policies.