Abstract
The traditional nursing home model relies on a top-down structure where frontline staff have little self-sufficiency to perform work and residents are not treated as unique individuals. Person-centered care is meant to increase the privacy and independence of residents by improving the quality of treatment and creating a more homelike environment. Because person-centered care directly affects the way frontline staff work, all nursing home employees must be fully engaged in adapting to the new model. This study examined two New York City nursing homes with unionized workers to see if the union and the nursing homes could work together to effect change, and to determine the time and resources that would be required.