Advocating for The Rights of Long-Term Care Residents

Kim Hegwood | February 19, 2025

How a grassroots Facebook group is advocating for nursing home residents:

“We are just families that want to get stuff done. That’s all we are.”— Mary Nichols

On this episode of Life Happens with Kim Hegwood, Kim is joined by guest Mary Nichols to discuss the
advocacy work being done for long-term care residents in Texas. Mary and a group of family members banded together out of necessity during the pandemic
and successfully campaigned for essential family caregivers to have access to facilities.

This episode is a must-listen for anyone navigating challenges in life and looking to help others.

Topics

1: Long-Term Care Facilities

The group organizes campaigns like “Isolation Kills” and “Essential
Caregivers” bill and successfully raise money in a short period of time.-
The group is made up of families with loved ones in long-term care who want to
make a meaningful impact.

Topic 2: Ombudsmen

Ombudsmen are important advocates for residents in facilities and
can identify solutions that facilities and visiting staff may not be able to
due to lack of patient knowledge and being short-staffed.During the pandemic,
when others were not allowed in facilities, Ombudsmen were still allowed,
making them crucial for resident care.

Topic 3: Essential Caregivers

Family members banded together out of necessity due to loved ones being isolated in
long-term care facilities during the pandemic.- Mary started an online petition
in June for essential family caregivers to be allowed in facilities.- The group
introduced the essential caregiver concept to the state of Texas, and it
turned out for the best despite not being planned.

Topic 4: Advocacy Work

Mary emphasizes that they are volunteers and family members, not lobbyists or
attorneys. The group’s strength lies in being constituents.- The group was
invited to participate in a review of Texas Administrative Code rules for
assisted living facilities as family stakeholders.

How to Contact Mary

www.TexasCaregiversforCompromise.com

info@texascaregiversforcompromise.com

 

Bio:

I spent most of my adult life working in municipal government for four different
cities in Texas and I founded Texas Caregivers for Compromise in July of 2020.
Not only were we successful in getting essential caregiver guidelines included
in our emergency visitation guidelines and a state statute adopted but we got
essential caregivers put in front of voters as enshrined in Texas
Constitution as well.

Our group has been recognized by Texas Health and Services Commission as long-term
care resident stakeholders and that has allowed me to represent residents in
several critical work groups including one that recently updated the Texas
Administrative Code as it applies to Assisted Living Facilities and a current
Infection Prevention and Control Building Design Task Force that is making
recommendations for existing and future facilities. Our leadership team
regularly works with other resident stakeholders to support and oppose bills
that affect resident rights, and we provide support to families unfamiliar with
visitation rights and help them contact their ombudsman.

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