Knowing what to look for to determine if a loved one is being neglected in a nursing home is a big step in preventing serious health and cognitive issues from escalating. Nursing home neglect can be found in any facility, and it is not just the smaller rural areas or the smaller facilities that have this problem.
Neglect in Facilities
Typically nursing home neglect is most common in facilities where the staff is overworked or stretched very thin on shifts. This means that patients who are non-verbal, difficult to work with, or that may have dementia, Alzheimer’s or other cognitive issues may not be given the service they should have to stay happy, healthy and engaged. Overworked staff simply skips their services, expecting that the client will not be able to share this information.
Keep in mind that nursing home neglect is not the same as abuse, but both can occur at the same time. While abuse is the intentional act of harming the patient, neglect is the lack of appropriate care or attention to the patient. When patients are not able to remember or to talk to loved ones about their lack of care, there will still be signs and symptoms to watch for.
What to Consider
Some of the most common signs of nursing home neglect include:
* Your loved one wearing the same clothing for multiple days in a row
* The smell or urine or fecal material in the room and stains or dampness on the bed or furniture that have been there for more than a reasonable amount of time
* Your loved one seems withdrawn, confused or unfamiliar with the facility that is not based on cognitive impairment, dementia or Alzheimer’s
* Your loved one is not routinely bathed, has not had assistance with personal hygiene and is not kept to reasonable standards
* Your loved one seems nervous, frightened or concerned when staff is in the room
* The presence of bedsores, cuts, lesions, skin conditions, rashes or marks on the body that are not medically to attended to and cannot be explained
One of the best things to do is to visit your loved one randomly throughout the day. This ensures you will see the level of care not based on when staff knows visitors will be arriving.
If you suspect nursing home neglect but there are no injuries or emergency medical issues involved, talk to the facilities manager immediately. State your concerns, and be sure to document everything in writing as well as with pictures whenever possible.
Get any resolutions or suggested improvements in writing, and continue to check on the care of your loved one. If it does not improve immediately get a nursing home neglect attorney to review your information and work on your behalf to address the neglect issue for your loved one.
At The Law Offices of Julian Lewis Sanders & Associates, LLC we have extensive experience in providing legal support and advocacy for nursing home patients and their families in cases of nursing home neglect. To learn more go to website. You can also follow them on Twitter.
