ATTORNEY NEWSLETTER
Nursing homes and assisted living facilities, although established in order to care for elders and senior citizens, frequently find themselves facing multiple claims of elder abuse. Whether it is because they neglected the care of an elder or senior citizen or because they improperly administered medication, nursing homes and assisted living facilities have been prime culprits in contributing to widespread elder abuse.
Residents in nursing homes and assisted living facilities range from elders who need basic assistance with daily life to elders who require acute care. Medicare pays nursing homes and assisted living facilities more money to aid them in taking care of these acute care elders. However, despite the greater pay, nursing homes and assisted living facilities do not hire more staff to help take care of these acute care elders. As a result, understaffing leads to neglect, which is a form of elder abuse.
One study showed that nursing homes and assisted living facilities with more staff performed much better on 13 of 16 care processes than nursing homes and assisted living facilities with inadequate staff. Another study compared the top 10 for-profit nursing home chains in the US against government nursing home and assisted living facilities. The top 10 chains, despite being the largest for-profit nursing home chains, were understaffed as compared to the government facilities. Furthermore, they received 36% higher deficiencies and 41% higher serious deficiencies than the government facilities. In other words, understaffing is a serious cause for concern because understaffing results in elder abuse.
Carefully check out a nursing home or assisted living facility before placing your loved ones in a nursing home or assisted living facility. Actually visit the facilities and look through the rooms, the services, whether there is anyone there, whether you could easily find staff, or if the staff even knows how to take care of your loved ones. Help stop elder abuse and remain a constant in your loved ones’ lives.
The Evans Law Firm, Inc. handles all types of physical and elder abuse cases. The Evans Law Firm also handles personal injury cases, insurance/banking fraud, and consumer fraud class actions. If you or a loved one has been a victim of nursing home abuse and/or elder abuse, contact the Evans Law Firm for a free and confidential consultation by emailing info@evanslaw.com or by calling 415-441-8669.
