California Injury Blog

As if the rise in nursing home abuse wasn’t enough, now senior-care placement companies, which “help” seniors find retirement homes, are fueled by commission-only sales which funnel elderly citizens into facilities that pay the highest price in finders’ fees. Usually these placement companies never screen the nursing homes for past violations, even if they include medical malpractice, neglect, physical abuse, and sanitation and food safety concerns.

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The California Department of Public Health has fined a care facility for nursing home neglect. According to an Associated Press news report, a 78-year-old man died at the Orchard-Post Acute Care facility in Whittier after staff members incorrectly inserted a gastrostomy tube into him. The tube apparently did not go all the way to his stomach, stopping instead at the peritoneal cavity. This mistake led to food and medication failing to enter his stomach. He suffered inflammation, respiratory failure and septic shock. He passed away six days after the procedure. The care facility has been fined $75,000 by the California Department of Public Health for the fatal incident.

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Nursing home abuse is more common than people would like to believe. Unfortunately, it is often difficult to identify and prove, especially in cases where no relatives reside near the facility housing their loved one. The leading resource to obtain information in reference to nursing home abuse and neglect is nursinghomeabusecenter.org, and concerned parties should visit their site. This comprehensive website is an excellent resource and guide to utilize when searching for information and advice aimed at protecting residents of nursing homes.

Forms of Nursing Home Abuse

Nursing home abuse is typically categorized by physical, emotional, or financial harm that is placed upon residents of these facilities. Further discussions on each of these forms of abuse are available at nursinghomeabusecenter.org, which provides a plethora of useful information about this subject, and a brief discussion of these is provided here.

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As the date mandating the implementation of nursing home star ratings approaches, victims of nursing home neglect and abuse are coming forward more frequently. Those who were afraid to tell of their horrific experiences are now feeling that their voice will be heard, and are attempting to hold their wrong-doers responsible for the pain and suffering they have caused. Instead of the respect and care that American seniors have earned through lifetimes of service they face abuse, neglect, and fraud at the very hands of those tasked with keeping them safe.

Many citizens are shocked by the allegations that arise when seniors reveal instances of elder abuse, but if you are familiar with California nursing homes you know that these problems have existed and transpired for several decades. The nursing home star ratings will help many families choose a nursing home that is fit for their loved ones, but this should be the first of several steps to help protect America's elderly before it's too late.

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California's nursing home rating system is going public this new year, giving seniors something to cheer about. California being infamous for their disturbingly high instances of senior abuse has made it clear that not only do they require a rating system, but each nursing home's rating must be displayed so that anyone walking through the front door can see it. Although 187 homes achieved the top 5 star rating, 195 received the lowest. Many nursing home officials are upset with the new rating system, which is a small price to pay to answer the public outcry that has arisen over the years.

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A sigh of relief is heard across California as nursing homes are now required to participate in a public nursing home rating system. According to the Los Angeles Times, nursing homes throughout California have begun to post federal star ratings giving prospective seniors and their families a fighting chance at comfortable and safe care. Few can argue that these ratings are not useful, but some are arguing that they are unfair.

Senior Abuse Becomes a Sore Subject

Victims of senior abuse can vouch that this subject is very personal, but nursing home owners and operators have wasted no time to complain about their own injustices in regards to the new rating system. Nursing home officials complain that the scoring system does not accurately reflect a facility's quality.

"It should just be a straight rating in a free-market system where you get stars based on performance," said Mary Jann, director of regulatory affairs for the Sacramento-based California Assn. of Health Facilities, which represents about 800 skilled nursing facilities statewide.

This stance towards the new rating system is pretty ironic. Their stance leads to some obvious questions; shouldn't we be incorporating state public health complaints and citations? If a facility is constantly alleged to be participating in nursing home abuse, the general public has a right to know.

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According to a recent report from the American Association for Justice entitled, "Standing Up for Seniors: How the Civil Justice System Protects Elderly Americans," nursing home abuse and neglect is increasingly becoming a reality for many of our nation's seniors in nursing homes. There are laws meant to protect senior citizens and regulators assigned to ensure that these laws are being followed, so what is behind this increase in the numbers of seniors experiencing elder abuse or neglect?

Continue reading "Why The System is Failing Nursing Home Residents " »

Did you realize that preventable medical errors are number six on the top ten major causes of death for people in America. According to a recent report by the American Association for Justice's recent report entitled "Standing Up for Seniors: How the Civil Justice System Protects Elderly Americans," hundreds of thousands of Americans, including the elderly living in nursing homes, are killed or seriously injured by preventable medical errors every year.

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Do you have a loved one in a nursing home? If so, do you know who is taking care of your beloved grandparent, parent, aunt, uncle, or friend? Unfortunately, it is entirely possible that the person watching your loved one may have a criminal record. According to a recent report from the American Association for Justice, entitled "Standing Up for Seniors: How the Civil Justice System Protects Elderly Americans," many nursing homes fail to properly check the criminal records of its staff, or they run checks and ignore the results. This negligent hiring of employees with criminal records has devastating consequences often leading to nursing home abuse for seniors.

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People invest in life, long-term care, and other types of insurance thinking it will protect them when they need it. The last thing they expect is that they will need protection from the insurance companies themselves. In the recent American Association for Justice's report entitled "Standing Up for Seniors: How the Civil Justice System Protects Elderly Americans," it appears that people, especially senior citizens in nursing homes, are often the victims of senior fraud perpetrated by large insurance companies.

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What if a mechanism put on the side of your loved one's sick bed, presumably to protect them, ends up seriously injuring or killing them? Unfortunately, this is what happened to 63-year old Alzheimer patient, Billie Trew due to nursing home neglect. She was strangled to death by the restraints on her bed while sleeping. Her family brought the nursing home and the bed manufacturer to court, and discovered that at least 20 other patients had died and over 60 had been injured by similar bed rails!

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What do you expect when you put a loved one in a nursing home? Do you expect loving, respectful care or do you expect that your loved one will suffer from elder neglect in the forms of malnutrition, dehydration, pressure sores from being left in bed, or worse? According to a recent report from the American Association for Justice, entitled "Standing Up for Seniors: How the Civil Justice System Protects Elderly Americans," it's the latter that is far too often the case for our nation's seniors in nursing homes.

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Rudy was born and raised on a farm in South Dakota. For over 80 years, Rudy lived and worked on that farm. He got married and raised three children there. His children eventually grew up and moved away. After 63 years of marriage, Rudy's wife Lucille passed away. Rudy lived alone on the farm for a while, but his doctor eventually told him that he should move into a nursing home.

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Do you ever read all the fine print in the long consumer contracts you receive? If so, you've probably noticed a "mandatory arbitration" clause buried deep inside the contract. Most consumer contracts now have them -- even contacts for nursing homes. By entering in a nursing facility, seniors or their families often have to agree that even if the nursing home harms, neglects, or abuses the senior in its care, the senior has no right to go to court to protest. It means the senior has no right to a judge, a jury, or a right of appeal. Also, the arbitrators do not have to follow the law, and there is no public review of the arbitrator's decisions to make sure that he got it right. Additionally, forced arbitrations are often more expensive than taking a case to court.

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If you put your beloved parent, grandparent, aunt, or uncle into a nursing home, how would you feel if you found out that the nurses and doctors at the home tied them up to a bed or wheel chair? How outraged would you be if you knew that the people you're paying to look after the well-being of your loved one were physically restraining them just so they would be "less of a bother?" According to a recent report from the American Association for Justice entitled, "Standing Up for Seniors: How the Civil Justice System Protects Elderly Americans," it turns out that what is happening in nursing homes with increasing frequency is not that far off. Instead of using ropes and chains though, nursing homes are using chemical restraints on seniors -- psychotropic drugs that sedate or control behaviors.

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In the not too distant past, most nursing homes in this country were family-run affairs. The people running the nursing home lived and worked in the community, and the homes were places where seniors and their families could count on compassionate care. Nursing home neglect and abuse were unthinkable. According to a recent report by the American Association for Justice entitled, "Standing Up for Seniors: How the Civil Justice System Protects Elderly Americans," this situation is changing drastically and senior abuse is on the rise. One of the main reasons is that an ever increasing number of America's nursing homes are being run by corporations who are often more interested in profits than people. The result is that the corporations cut staffs, services, and standards of care to save some money.

Continue reading "Report Reveals Serious Issues Affecting Seniors Today" »

California personal injury lawyers, BISNAR | CHASE, have recently announced their wrongful death and elder abuse lawsuit against a nursing home facility in San Bernardino, California. The suit addresses the death of a 52-year-old schizophrenic man, Lance Macpherson, who committed suicide while under suicide watch in the care of the Del Rosa Villa nursing home. BISNAR | CHASE is calling this case a "moral and legal outrage."

In June of 2009, Lance entered the Del Rosa Villa nursing home to heal from the physical and psychological traumas of a previous incident where he had attempted suicide by throwing himself in front of a moving car. According to psychiatric evaluations, Lance was still very much at risk of harming himself when he checked-in to the nursing home. Lance's family and doctors were hopeful that under close supervision by skilled nursing staff, he would make a recovery.

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Financial crimes against the elderly generally fall under two categories: fraud committed by strangers, and financial exploitation by relatives and caregivers. This blog will concentrate on financial elder abuse by relatives and caregivers.

Unlike strangers, relatives and caregivers often have a position of trust and an ongoing relationship with the elderly. Financial exploitation can be as follows:

1. borrowing money and not paying it back;
2. denying services or medical care to conserve funds;
3. giving away or selling the elder's possessions without permission;
4. signing or cashing pension or social security checks without permission;
5. misusing ATM or credit cards, or using them without permission;
6. giving away the elder's money to family or friends;

The financial abuser will use deceit, intimidation, emotional abuse, or promises of care.

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The nursing home abuse problem also plagues veterans and their families. This segment of society fought for their country and now nursing homes are areas of abuse for them.

The name for Veterans Administration (VA) homes is "VA Community Living Centers" and seeks to provide compassionate care to veterans who meet the following criteria: veterans with chronic stable conditions such as dementia, those requiring rehabilitation or short term specialized services such as respite or intravenous therapy, or those who need comfort and care at the end of life.

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When you leave your loved one in a nursing home, you expect them to be treated with the best of care. With the number of elder abuse cases that happen yearly, it is frightening to imagine that your elderly parent could be facing elder abuse. The results of elder neglect or abuse can be devastating to the victims and their family.

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