Dakota Alpha
1303 27th Street Nw, Mandan ND 58554 · (701) 663-0376 · 98% estimated occupancy 1Updated: Aug 1, 2020 · By Nick Lata
With an address in Mandan, North Dakota, Dakota Alpha is one of a mere three facilities in this area. This nursing home received a concerning overall grade of D in our grading scheme. Mandan received a city grade of B+, so there are other options in the city worth considering. We wouldn't blame you if you're ready to stop reading and find another nursing home. However, if you want to learn more about this facility's category grades, inspection grades are discussed in the next paragraph.
Additional Details:
Accepts Medicare 1 :
Accepts Medicaid 1 : 20 Beds
CCRC :
Non profit - Corporation
Resident Council:
Family Council:
Medical Staff Hours Per Patient (2019)
Facility Inspections
Although we were not high on this nursing home overall, we gave it a B- for our inspections rating. This score is more respectable than this facility's overall grade. Inspection grades take several factors into consideration, including deficiencies and federal fines. You can find more information about each of these factors by obtaining copies of nursing homes' inspection reports. This nursing home was assessed 3 deficiencies on its inspection report, but fortunately none were considered to be severe. This means that CMS didn't consider any of the deficiencies an imminent risk to patient safety or health. Lastly, this nursing home was cited by CMS for possible abuse or neglect. This is generally a really bad sign. We would never recommend this facility.
Nurse Quality
One of the other reasons we graded this facility so highly is that it earned a very impressive nursing grade. In that area, we gave this facility an B-. Our nursing rating focuses on the nursing home's level of nurse staffing. We look at both the levels of licensure of those nurses and the amount of time spent with patients. This place offers an impressive 4.5 hours of nursing care per resident each day, of which more than an hour of those were provided by registered nurses. Registered nurses are highly trained nurses. Lastly, our nursing grades also factor in quality-based assessments, such as preventing major falls. This place performed admirably in this metric.
Short-term Care Quality
The third category we assessed was short-term care. In that area, we gave this facility a decent grade of B-. In crafting our short-term care ratings, we look at the nursing home's skilled nursing services, including those performed by registered nurses, occupational therapists, physical therapists and other types of therapists. Our goal is to devise a scale for sizing up the rehabilitation services of different nursing homes. This nursing home provides more services with registered nurses and physical therapists than most facilities we looked at. Lastly, we looked at the number of patients who returned home from this facility. We found that 0 percent of this facility's residents were able to return home. This figure was actually below the national average.
Long-term Care Quality
The last area we looked at was long-term care. We awarded it a B- in that category. This is a fair grade in this category. For long-term care residents, the primary objective is to keep patients as healthy and safe as possible. This is different than skilled nursing or short-term care where the goal is to rehabilitate residents. Once we assessed the volume of care provided by aids and other staff, we turned to the nursing home's vaccination data. This facility vaccinated 100 percent of its residents against pneumonia, which is higher than the average nursing home. Finally, this nursing home was also able to limit hospitalizations. In fact, it had only 0 hospitalizations per 1,000 long-term resident days, which is a remarkably low number.
Overall Rating Over Time
Compared to national and state averages across all facilities.
Dakota Alpha Quality Metrics
Minimizes Pressure Ulcers
This is an indication of the percentage of long-term care residents who developed new or worsened pressure ulcers . We use this statistic in calculating our nursing grades.
Percent of Patients with Pressure Ulcers
Lower is Better
Minimizes Serious Falls
This tells you the percentage of patients who suffered from a major fall. Falls resulting in major injuries are routinely associated with lower levels of patient supervision. More supervision limits the number of major falls sustained by residents in a nursing home.
Percent of Patients with Serious Falls
Lower is Better
Minimizes Urinary Tract Infections
This indicates the percentage of residents who suffered from a urinary tract infection. Urinary tract infections are often caused by lower quality nursing care. More frequent bathing can minimize the percentage of residents in a nursing home who suffer from UTI's. Note that this metric is affected by by the fact that facilities have incongruent reporting standards for infections.
Percent of Patients with UTIs
Lower is Better
Appropriately Uses Anti-Psychotic Medication
This tells you the percentage of patients who were prescribed antipsychotic medications. While antipsychotic drugs may be vital to many patients, it is important to ensure these medications are being used only where medically required. In some cases, high levels of antipsychotic drug use may indicate that a facility is using these drugs to subdue residents.
Percent of Patients
Lower is Better
Appropriately Uses Anti-Anxiety Medication
This metric is a measure of the percentage of long-term residents taking antianxiety medications.
Percent of Patients
Lower is Better
Managing Depression Among Residents
This datapoint is a measure of the percentage of long-term patients who are exhibiting signs of depression. Many in the industry argue that this is a measure of quality of care.
Percent of Patients
Lower is Better
Appropriate Vaccine Usage
This is a measure of the percentage of long-term stay patients who were given the flu and pneumonia vaccines. Respiratory viruses can be deadly for nursing home residents, making these vaccines vital to patient care.
Percent of Patients
Higher is Better
Residents Maintain Autonomy
This metric measures the percentage of long-term care patients that required additional assistance with activities of daily living over time. Activities of daily living include activities such as dressing and continence. Some experts would argue that this is a reliable measure of a resident's well-being.
Percentage of Patients
Lower is Better
Ability to Keep Residents Mobile
This tells you the percent of residents who retained mobility levels over time. Preserving mobility is usually a good sign for residents' well-being.
Percentage of Residents
Higher is Better
Short-term Care: Rehospitalizations
This metric is a measure of the number of rehospitalizations per 1,000 days of short-term patient care. Keeping residents out of the hospital during rehabilitation is critical to restoring the physical abilities of patients.
Percentage of Residents Rehospitalized
Lower is Better