Northampton County’s Gracedale Nursing Home — hit hard by retirements, resignations and terminations since the pandemic — has had to rely on outside medical staffing agencies to care for its hundreds of residents, at a steep cost.
In an effort to try to save millions of dollars, the country administration is taking greater control over the outside nurses. But that effort has failed to quell criticisms of Gracedale’s operations and oversight, and is fostering new concern among some over what it means to county-employed nurses.
In a memo sent last month to “All Agency Clinicians,” Gracedale Administrator Michelle Morton said the county is centralizing its nursing pool staff via a “priority resource pool.” The memo, which was reviewed by The Morning Call, says Gracedale administrators have notified agency nurses who have worked 500 hours or more that they must transition to using the pool to continue working there.
Gracedale has about 590 nursing staff workers, Morton told County Council in August; about 470 are employed by agencies, and the remaining 120 are county employees.
A recent independent audit presented to council showed Gracedale had expenditure and revenue shortfalls due in part to the use of agency nursing services. The nursing home needed a nearly $10 million transfer from the county’s general fund to pay for operations.
Northampton County Executive Lamont G. McClure and county spokesperson Jessica Berger did not respond to requests for comment.
But Council member John P. Goffredo, who has been among the most outspoken County Council members questioning Gracedale’s operations, said he was told some of the temporary nursing agencies “were taking advantage” of the county.
He said an official in Gracedale, whom Goffredo would not name, told him the county could see savings of $3.5 million annually and streamline hiring through the priority resource pool.
Gracedale has been using at least two large staffing agencies among 14 approved by the county — Amergis and GHR Healthcare — according Goffredo. Messages left with both agencies were not returned.
During a County Council meeting earlier this month, McClure said Gracedale administrators intend to use Tallavera Medical Staffing, and allow it to manage the other staffing agencies. No specifics of a deal were discussed.
A telephone message left at Tallavera’s headquarters in Rochester, New York, was not returned.
Goffredo told The Morning Call that nurses, particularly those employed by the county, are concerned about what the anticipated switch to Tallavera could mean for them.
Some county employees asked about signing up to work through Tallavera, because wages typically run higher, Goffredo said. One job website listed wages for certified nursing assistants at Gracedale through Tellavera at up to $26 per hour.
Many Gracedale workers are also worried about staffing and its impact on clients’ health care, Goffredo said, citing comments he has received since 2022, when he was sworn into council. Workers have declined to speak to the media over fears of losing their jobs, he said.
“We heavily rely on them right now,” said Goffredo, adding agency employees are also upset at what is going on. “Their agencies are telling them not to sign anything.”
Morton’s memo noted, “We have been made aware that some agency partners may be attempting to interfere with this transition by discouraging clinicians from joining the [priority resource pool]. These actions are deeply concerning.”
McClure, a Democrat, and Goffredo, a Republican, verbally sparred briefly during council’s meeting.
“What we’re trying to do is save millions of dollars,” McClure said, in answer to questions from Goffredo. “Do you want to save millions?”
“Yes,” Goffredo said, “just like I want to retain employees, but that didn’t work.”
He was referring to an issue over retention bonuses that the county did not pay to employees this year, despite a council vote in 2022 to give $5 million in bonuses for four years.
Goffredo expressed frustration about council members’ not being apprised of the expected staffing switch. McClure said either Morton or Susan Wandalowski, county human services director, previewed the plan at a previous council meeting.
Goffredo said centralizing the nursing staff could potentially be a good move for the county, but it’s impossible to know for certain because the administration is not providing details.
Democrat Ronald Heckman, council’s longest-serving member, agreed that the administration had not let members know about the changes involving medical staffing.
“We have to be very cooperative,” he said. “This is where council and the executive have to work together on this.”
Gracedale has been a political football for well over a decade and a half, culminating in a ballot referendum in May 2011 that kept the nursing home in county hands. While privatization efforts have been rejected in the past, Gracedale still faces challenges under county ownership such as attempting to modernize the facility and securing revenue to keep it operating without dipping into general funds, amid changing payments from insurance companies and the federal government.
Its operation during and after the pandemic has become a greater source of contention between McClure and County Council. Recent discussions, led by Morton, who became administrator in March, have included developing a strategic plan to improve the facility and its services rather than selling it.
While some on council have criticized the administration for not providing enough information, others have supported McClure, saying the administration should be left to make important decisions about the home.
Goffredo said county-employed nurses tell him they are looking for help.
“They want the place to succeed,” he said.
Contact Morning Call reporter Anthony Salamone at asalamone@mcall.com.
