Federal inspectors found the facility failed to maintain adequate certified nursing aide staffing on night shifts for months. The facility's own assessment required 10 CNAs total for nighttime coverage, but staffing sheets from a 20-day period in September showed six shifts operated with fewer than the required number.
The first floor houses the facility's most vulnerable residents. Licensed Practical Nurse V8 told inspectors that approximately 20 residents there are completely dependent on staff for activities of daily living and require total care. Some need two-person assistance.
"We have a lot of residents who require a higher level of care on the first floor and they do not adequately staff this floor at night," V8 said. "These residents require more assistance than only two CNAs can provide, and it is not fair to these residents."
Multiple staff members described a pattern of chronic understaffing that has persisted for months. Certified Nursing Assistant V6, who typically works the first floor night shift, said they're scheduled to have three CNAs but "on multiple occasions we only work with two on the floor."
"I do not believe the residents receive adequate care," V6 told inspectors. "The first floor residents are high maintenance and require a higher level of care."
The staffing crisis stems from a combination of no-shows and management decisions that pull staff from the first floor to cover other areas. CNA V7 said staff "continue to schedule staff and they do not show up to their shift." When that happens, management provides no coverage for call-offs or pulls the third CNA from the first floor to work elsewhere.
"They provide us with no coverage when a CNA calls off or a CNA is pulled off the first floor to go to another floor causing the first floor to be short staffed," V7 said.
Licensed Practical Nurse V9 described the human cost of these staffing decisions. When management pulls their third CNA to another floor, "it is very difficult to provide adequate care to all the residents with only two CNAs at night."
"The night staffing issue has been a problem for months and it feels like at least 1-2 days a week we are short staffed," V9 said.
Even nursing staff working multiple shifts recognized the problem. Registered Nurse V5, who works both day and night shifts, told inspectors there are "times where they work on the first floor with only two CNAs."
"I feel as if that is not enough staff to adequately care for all the residents," V5 said. "Staff have expressed concern to management."
The facility's Director of Scheduling, V3, acknowledged the staffing challenges during the September inspection. V3 is responsible for both creating schedules and finding coverage when staff call off, but said efforts to reach replacement staff typically fail.
"I will reach out to staff but typically no one answers," V3 told inspectors.
V3 admitted that working with two CNAs per floor falls short of what residents need. "I do not feel as if the first floor can provide the same amount of care to the residents as they can if they had three CNAs."
The understaffing violation carries minimal harm potential but affects all 38 residents on the first floor. Federal regulations require nursing homes to provide sufficient staffing every day to meet residents' needs, with licensed nurses in charge of each shift.
For residents like R3, the staffing shortage translates into extended waits when they need help. The facility's own policies and assessments recognize the need for adequate overnight coverage, but inspection records show management consistently failed to ensure those standards were met.
The chronic nature of the problem, described by staff as lasting months with regular weekly shortfalls, suggests systemic failures in both scheduling and backup coverage systems that left the facility's most vulnerable residents without adequate care during overnight hours.
Full Inspection Report
The details above represent a summary of key findings. View the complete inspection report for Bria of Elmwood Park from 2025-11-18 including all violations, facility responses, and corrective action plans.