Medical malpractice and nursing home negligence are quite prevalent in today’s nursing homes and elder care facilities. Many times these facilities are getting much of their funding from Medicaid and to maximize profitability they will cut the costs of care by simply offering less of it. They may cut costs on meals, on the quality of staff and on recreational activities. In many cases, they will even neglect a serious health issue like bed sores, dehydration, contractures or malnutrition. This kind of nursing home negligence is medical malpractice, whether it is a doctor, nurse, a therapist or a hospital.
The problems in nursing homes are not limited to neglect or cost cutting. In some cases, the facilities are in poor condition as well which can lead to a dangerous environment and injuries resulting from falls or the inability to get around easily. Elderly people who are experiencing problems may be restrained or even disciplined with physical, mental or verbal abuse. Nursing home abuse, although tragic, is all too prevalent. Clearly, most of the issues listed here are beyond the scope of any medical treatment. In some cases, a nursing home may also be guilty of fraud. If they are marketing and showing one level of care and providing another for the funding they are receiving, they maybe guilty of criminal activity.
AARP.com lists an excellent nursing home bill of rights which sites that rather than falling prey to nursing home negligence and nursing home abuse elder care facilities should be, at least, maintaining basic human dignity and rights. Individuals in nursing home care should have sufficient qualified caregivers and a clean and healthy environment. They should have sufficient privacy, freedom with visitors and friends, freedom to come and go and choices in food and clothing, control of money and the right to choose a medical practitioner and to control their medical care and courses of treatment. If these basic rights are not being met, the facility and the behavior should not be tolerated.
In many cases, these elderly people do not have an advocate to ensure that the minimums of care, dictated by the federal government to any Medicaid subsidized facility, are being fulfilled. There is no one to ensure that these people, at their most vulnerable, are being treated with the care and respect that they deserve. Although the Health Care Finance Administration is supposed to consistently gauge the level of care at these facilities realistically, there are too many facilities with which to keep up. With over 90% of nursing facilities dependent on Medicaid, it’s no wonder it’s difficult to maintain a high standard of care.
If your elderly loved one has been mistreated, injured or has died because of nursing home medical malpractice, nursing home negligence or nursing home abuse you do have options to seek redress. You should contact a qualified nursing home negligence lawyer or nursing home abuse attorney to advise you about your case and to ensure that your loved one is getting the care they deserve. They can also make sure that the nursing home won’t be able to mistreat anyone again. By contacting a reputable nursing home abuse attorney you will have a much better chance at success in your litigation and they will be able to advice you if your case is worth pursuing.