Nursing Home Abuse

Helpful Tips from Tribal Consultants: Be proactive about possible Nursing Home Abuse!

Your loved one’s full medical record may not entirely reflect what has happened. (Case in point, many errors go unreported by health care workers) In addition, only medically related entries should be written within the record, not mere opinion or “the client is difficult.” Any hint of negative (non-medical) opinions can reduce the chances of a loved one being able to transfer or re-enter another facility (which most nursing homes and assisted living facilities are “for – profit,” privately owned and managed).

In fact, about 70% of all nursing homes and assisted living facilities are privately owned and under the “for – profit” economic model. However, “the Government Accountability Office studied changes in nursing homes that were acquired by PI (private investment) firms both before (in 2003) and after (in 2009) a transaction. It examined deficiencies cited on state surveys, nurse staffing levels and financial performance. The results are published in “Nursing Homes: Private Investment Homes Sometimes Differed from Others in Deficiencies, Staffing, and Financial Performance.”” Overall, the Report cited greater deficiencies were found in the private investor models than in the public ones!

Family members, with written authorization or in cases when a legal Representative or Guardian are involved should periodically ask for a copy and review the patient’s records for accuracy and completeness. See also the Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act (HIPAA) for a full list of rights and responsibilities.

Web based resources about medical errors and reporting: https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/books/NBK2652/