Patient Abuse in Nursing Facilities

Patient abuse in nursing facilities is becoming more prominent. Abuse is not only physical, but emotional, sexual, neglect and financial exploitations. The elderly are the most vulnerable and least likely to complain, so unfortunately they are the targets. Most families research in depth about the nursing facility that they will place their loved one, in hopes that abuse doesn’t occur. Although the research is done, families should still look for signs and symptoms of abuse since they are leaving their loved one in stranger’s hands. According to (Center), A recent investigation concluded that employment checks do not always provide adequate protection against elder mistreatment. For instance, the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services prohibit nursing homes from hiring persons with a prior history of committing abuse in a nursing home setting, but those who have been convicted of other forms of abuse like child abuse may still be hired. Some states require a criminal background check, while others do not. Even so, these checks usually do not uncover convictions in another state. Furthermore, in some states, non-caregiving staff such as maintenance workers and others without a direct patient care role do not undergo criminal checks even though they may have direct access to patients and patient areas. Understaffing is a common cause of nursing home abuse. When staff members become overworked, they may begin to lose their patience with the nursing home residents. In addition, understaffing leaves many workers unsupervised or untrained, which can lead to nursing home abuse. Still, physical abuse in nursing homes is illegal, and the owners of the assisted living facility can be held liable if a resident is subject to nursing home abuse or neglect. Sometimes, it is difficult to identify nursing home residents who have been physically abused. Very often, members of the nursing home staff will state that the resident 's injuries were the result of a fall

Cited: Center, Nursing Home Abuse. Nursing Home Abuse Center. 2012. . Emotional Abuse in Nursing Homes. 2002. . Financial Exploitation of Nursing Home Residents. 2013. . Goldberg, Persky & White, P.C. Nursing Home Abuse. 2004. . Morgan, Morgan &. Physical Abuse in Nursing Homes. 2013. . Nursing Home Abuse. 2013. .