One of the hardest decisions children have to make is when or if to put their elderly parents into a nursing home. As their child, you want to ensure that your parents are receiving the same loving care you received while growing up. While some injuries are simply caused by the advanced age, sadly, nursing homes are riddled with stories of neglect or abuse that contributed to these injuries. If you have a parent who gets injured in a nursing home, what can you do about it?
Bruises and/or Broken Bones
Falls are the most common cause of injury in nursing homes. Because of their advanced age, those living in nursing homes are prone to falling. Unfortunately, a fall can lead to major bruising and even broken bones. Sometimes the reasoning behind this is simply the patient trying to get out of bed without assistance. However, sometimes, a wet floor or poor lighting can be the cause of the fall.
Inadequate Medication Dispensing
Nursing homes typically have a lot of patients. Each one of these patients usually have a required list of medication they need daily—sometimes multiple times a day. Unfortunately, it can be very easy for a nurse to give medication to the wrong patient or give a patient too much of a certain medication. This can lead to the patient not receiving the medication they need to keep their medical condition under control or having an adverse effect to the wrong drug.
Bedsores
Bedsores are usually a sign of neglect in nursing homes. Patients develop them when they lay in one position for too long. Patients who are unable to change positions on their own should have a nurse or caregiver come in at certain times of the day to help them change positions to keep this from happening.
What Can You Do?
While it can be hard to discern the difference between an accident and neglect, one thing to take into consideration is if the injury is a consistent problem at the facility or a rare occurrence. If it is a persistent problem, then visit often. Sometimes the patient may have been threatened into keeping quiet. This will usually lead to the patient acting withdrawn or depressed.
If the injuries continue and you believe that it is due to neglect, call the police and hire a lawyer like one from Chiacchia & Fleming LLP. Also, do not hesitate in having your loved one moved to another facility immediately.
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