| This site provides comprehensive information on many aspects of
nursing homes: nursing
home abuse information and legislation, resident
rights, preventative
steps to nursing home abuse, appropriate links, and much more.
In addition, we provide legal
rights and resources for those who have experienced nursing
home abuse and received mistreatment while residing in a nursing
home.
Nursing home abuse can exact a heavy toll on its victims and their families and loved ones. And, unfortunately, the sad truth is that the incidence of nursing home abuse has been rising steadily during the past 15 years. Our site provides victims and their families with the information and resources they need to help protect against abuse, neglect, and mistreatment at the hands of nursing homes and their staff. Let the experience, knowledge, and expertise of our legal team bring you the justice that you deserve.
|
|
|
NURSING HOME INFORMATION In the next 30 years, over 65 million American will be 65 years of age or older. With advances in science and medicine and changes in lifestyle, the life expectancy rate for Americans has sky rocketed, and will almost certainly continue to do so. Combine these facts with a recent study stating that 40% of senior citizens will reside in a nursing home at some point in their lives, and the reality is clear: nursing homes will serve as homes for large populations of older Americans. With this development, the frequency of abuse in nursing homes will almost certainly increase. Over 2 million Americans currently live in nursing homes and more than 15,000 nursing homes exist in this country. As the number of older Americans who reside in these nursing homes rises, the incidence of abuse in nursing homes has risen. Both the state and federal governments have responded to inadequate facilities and/or poor treatment by enacted certain laws and provisions to better safeguard nursing home residents. Perhaps the most important legislative action was the Omnibus Budget Reconciliation Act (OBRA) amendments of 1987. OBRA mandates that nursing homes conduct individual assessments for residents, reduces the uses of physical and medicinal restraints, creates individualized care plans, and provides the appropriate training for staff to deal with special need residents. One of the overriding stipulations of the law is that residents should not be subject to mistreatment, abuse, and inadequate facilities. » A Legal Perspective As previously mentioned, nursing homes are federally regulated by the OBRA laws of 1987. Each separate facility is licensed in the state where they operate. Facilities that receive federal funds through Medicare and Medicaid must comply with OBRA. However, federal law does not give nursing home residents a right of action to enforce compliance with federal regulations. Rather, OBRA is not intended to limit other state and federal laws or regulations. In the past, it has been very difficult for victims of abuse in nursing homes (the plaintiff) to collect legal and monetary remedy for these actions. The principal reasons for this has been the fact that these cases have been tried as negligent cases or as medical malpractice cases. The verdicts, when they are for the victims, have typically been less than acceptable because of how tough it is to prove damages. (Damages are based on life expectancy, lost wages, and lowered quality of life.) Unfortunately, these factors are much lower for elderly individuals than for others. For example, a 35 year man who makes $200,000 per year and maintains a very active, exuberant lifestyle would be eligible for much greater damages in a negligence case. However, this courtroom trend has been changing in favor of those who bring these suits to court (plaintiffs). Much of this is directly the result of state and federal legislation previously mentioned that now makes proving damages in nursing home cases much easier. As well, many attorneys for victims of nursing homes have become more effective in presenting their cases as corruption, neglect, and abuse inside of nursing homes. The result has been more appropriate justice for victims of nursing mistreatment or abuse. PROVING ABUSE IN NURSING HOMES Gathering as much information in a timely matter is the best way to insure that the facts of any activity of abuse in nursing homes will be established. Residents should always have a personal chart that records anything that occurs to them. Nursing homes that receive federal funds are required to provide these records within 2 days. However, this leaves open the door for alterations to be made to the chart. Staff members who fear reprisal or a possible lawsuit may make changes to the chart to escape blame. Getting a copy of the chart immediately reduces the chances of any mysterious changes occurring. Often times, there is a witness or witnesses to the mistreatment or abuse in nursing homes. This is especially true if the abuse is ongoing. Witnesses may actually want to come forward because of the guilt they feel over seeing someone treated this way. Witnesses can be family members, other residents in the nursing home, or other staff members. These individuals should immediately be asked to record in writing what they saw in as much detail as possible. The victim of the alleged abuse in nursing homes should also record in writing exactly what happened. Time can muddy the recollection of individuals. This is especially true with elderly individuals. Visual evidence is very compelling in cases involving abuse in nursing home. Photos of the injuries should be taken, as well as photos of where the incident occurred. The photos should be taken before the injury is allowed to heal in order to document the full extent of the abuse or mistreatment. Former staff members may be able to provide valuable information on how residents were treated or mistreated, on what goes on behind closed doors, and they may have stories of abuse or mistreatment that they can relate. This is often a powerful way to establish a pattern of abuse and neglect that has occurred at a particular nursing home. COMMON INADEQUACIES & ABUSE IN NURSING HOMES All too often, nursing homes try to keep costs down by keeping the number of staff members down. Improperly staffed facilities can take away needed attention and services that are guaranteed under OBRA. The results for the residents can be extremely serious. Some of the more common occurrences of abuse in nursing homes include:
Other inadequacies include:
|
|
IN
THE NEWS To check the performance rating of a nursing home click here |
