Preventing Nursing Home Abuse

One of the nation’s greatest challenges today is the extremely high incidence of nursing home abuse. It is an unfortunate but prevalent reality of our current care system. Although some nursing homes provide good care to the elders, others are subject to home abuse that range from serious physical injuries, emotional abuse, sexual exploitation and neglect. The issue of nursing home abuse can be prevented by addressing the reasons behind it.

Causes of Nursing Home Abuse
· Understaffed nursing homes - Inadequate staffing is a major cause of nursing home abuse.
· Underpaid employees
· Under qualified employees
· Overworked employees
· Caregiver Stress
· Caregiver Frustration

How to Prevent Nursing Home Abuse
According to the National Center on Elder Abuse, strategies should be used to prevent abuse in nursing homes:

· Improving work conditions in nursing homes- this can be achieved through adequate staffing, humane salaries, enhanced communication between direct care and administrative staff, allowing more time to nurture relationships between staff and residents, opportunities for upward mobility, and greater recognition, respect and understanding for the workers.

· Proper screening of prospective employees must be conducted when hiring employees. Check for criminal backgrounds, history of substance abuse and domestic violence, their feelings about caring for the elderly, reactions to abusive residents, work ethics, and their ability to manage anger and stress.

· Support training and education in interpersonal caregiver skills, managing difficult resident care situations, problem-solving, cultural issues that affect staff/ resident relationships, conflict resolution, stress reduction techniques, information about dementia, and witnessing and reporting abuse.

· Enforcing stricter mandatory reporting of abuse.

· Assure coordination between the law enforcement, regulatory, adult protection, and nursing home advocacy groups.

· Assure compliance with federal requirements concerning hiring of abusive nurses and nursing aides.

· Promoting a working environment conducive to good care.

· Improving support groups for nurses and nursing aides.

Nursing homes should implement these strategies in order to eliminate unnecessary death, injury, and illness that affect our elders and continue to plague our nation.

If you or someone you love is a victim of nursing home abuse, you must immediately report the incident to the authorities and you should seek the help of a qualified attorney with expertise in this area. This information is not intended to replace legal advice.

Click here to learn more about personal injury in nursing homes. Bloom Legal in Louisiana can help you defend and protect your loved ones.