AREAS OF PRACTICE
Automobile Collisions
Trucking Collisions
Motorcycle Collisions
Nursing Home Abuse & Neglect
Wrongful Death
Legal Malpractice
Dog Attacks
Slip & Fall Incidents
Defective & Recalled Drugs & Pharmaceuticals
Personal Injury Cases
Consumer Protection Law
Home & Condominium Construction Defects
Aircraft Accidents
Pedestrian & Bicycle Accidents
Defective Products, including Defective Medical Devices
Unfair Debt Collection
Steve Watrel, P.A.
6129 Atlantic Blvd.
Jacksonville, FL 32211
Local Phone: (904) 723-0030
Toll Free: (800) 792-8735
Trucking Collisions
Motorcycle Collisions
Nursing Home Abuse & Neglect
Wrongful Death
Legal Malpractice
Dog Attacks
Slip & Fall Incidents
Defective & Recalled Drugs & Pharmaceuticals
Personal Injury Cases
Consumer Protection Law
Home & Condominium Construction Defects
Aircraft Accidents
Pedestrian & Bicycle Accidents
Defective Products, including Defective Medical Devices
Unfair Debt Collection
Steve Watrel, P.A.
6129 Atlantic Blvd.
Jacksonville, FL 32211
Local Phone: (904) 723-0030
Toll Free: (800) 792-8735
Nursing Home Abuse & Neglect
Here is a list of the most common problems and the areas where nursing home abuse and neglect are most likely to occur.
1. Pressure Sores
Anyone whose mobility is hampered or who is confined to a bed or wheelchair is at risk of developing pressures sores (bedsores). Nursing staff is responsible for regularly adjusting the position of immobile residents to encourage adequate circulation.
A family member should regularly check the pressure points on the buttocks, legs, elbows and heels for evidence of pressure sores. Pressure sores start out as reddened area that do not blanch when pressed. If not attended to properly, the pressure can cause underlying tissue to break down and become infected. If left unattended they can be life threatening.
2. Falls
If your loved one has a balance problem or has difficulty waking, make sure the nursing home staff has a written plan in place to provide assistance while walking.
Don't allow the facility to ignore your loved one's desire to walk simply because assistance is necessary.
3. Dehydration
Lack of fluids can cause confusion which may be misdiagnosed as dementia. Lack of fluids can also cause other conditions such as urinary tract infections, kidney failure, and skin breakdown.
Make sure adequate beverages are available and your loved one drinks plenty of fluids.
4. Malnutrition
Watch for weight loss. If a loved one needs help eating, make sure he is being fed and is allowed plenty of time to eat (an hour or more for some).
If your loved one is fed at bedside and is left unattended, make sure he has eaten the food before the kitchen help takes the tray away.
Watch how the nursing assistants feed your loved one. If the assistants are rushed, they may not permit your loved one enough time to chew and swallow. This can lead to choking, aspiration of food and pneumonia.
5. Poor Infection Control
Infection control is poor in many nursing homes and nurses are often reluctant to call doctors until symptoms become serious. If your loved one experiences any sign of infection (fever, a burning sensation during urination, dark, cloudy or foul smelling urine or a lack of energy), it is important to insist on a doctor's diagnosis before a problem becomes life threatening.
6. Failure to Toilet
If your loved one needs assistance with using the toilet, a facility with insufficient staffing will be motivated to use diapers because it is perceived as being less work. Don't permit this to occur because it will be more difficult for your loved one to self-regulate their bowel and bladder function. Insist that your loved one be taken to the toilet regularly.
Incontinence can lead to urinary tract and other infections. Make sure to ask your loved ones whether their requests for toilet assistance are being ignored or if they are experiencing any of the symptoms of urinary tract infection such as burning urination, dark, cloudy or foul smelling urine.
7. Unnecessary Use of Restraints
There are two kinds of restraints: physical and chemical. Physical restraints prevent a person from moving by tying them to a fixed object. Chemical restraints are drugs intended to control a person's behavior.
The use of restraints must be medically necessary and ordered by a physician. The use of a restraint for staff convenience is against the law.
8. Medication Errors
Write down all the medications your loved one is supposed to get and make sure they get all of them.
Once medication is ordered, call or visit to insure that they are, in fact, administered as soon as they are prescribed.
Discuss your loved ones' medications with the attending physician to learn whether they interact negatively with one another. Can the medication your loved one is taking cause confusion, depression or a loss of appetite?
9. Inadequate Staffing and Training
Nursing assistants provide most of the hands-on caregiving in nursing homes. Find out how many nursing assistants there are on each shift and compare that to the number of residents they are responsible for.
If the ratio is more than 9 residents per assistant, make sure you visit to see if the resident's needs are being met. Even if the ratio is less than 9 residents per assistant, check to see if the assistants can handle the workload, especially if there are many high maintenance residents at the facility.
Nursing assistants have been responsible for a great deal of the abuse and neglect in nursing homes (much of which is the result of inadequate screening, training and staffing).
If you have been abused in a nursing home, or know someone who has been abused in a nursing home, please call Steve Watrel, P.A. at (904) 723-0030, or (800) SWATREL (792-8735), or submit an online request. The initial consultation is free of charge and there is no obligation.
Here is a list of the most common problems and the areas where nursing home abuse and neglect are most likely to occur.
1. Pressure Sores
Anyone whose mobility is hampered or who is confined to a bed or wheelchair is at risk of developing pressures sores (bedsores). Nursing staff is responsible for regularly adjusting the position of immobile residents to encourage adequate circulation.
A family member should regularly check the pressure points on the buttocks, legs, elbows and heels for evidence of pressure sores. Pressure sores start out as reddened area that do not blanch when pressed. If not attended to properly, the pressure can cause underlying tissue to break down and become infected. If left unattended they can be life threatening.
2. Falls
If your loved one has a balance problem or has difficulty waking, make sure the nursing home staff has a written plan in place to provide assistance while walking.
Don't allow the facility to ignore your loved one's desire to walk simply because assistance is necessary.
3. Dehydration
Lack of fluids can cause confusion which may be misdiagnosed as dementia. Lack of fluids can also cause other conditions such as urinary tract infections, kidney failure, and skin breakdown.
Make sure adequate beverages are available and your loved one drinks plenty of fluids.
4. Malnutrition
Watch for weight loss. If a loved one needs help eating, make sure he is being fed and is allowed plenty of time to eat (an hour or more for some).
If your loved one is fed at bedside and is left unattended, make sure he has eaten the food before the kitchen help takes the tray away.
Watch how the nursing assistants feed your loved one. If the assistants are rushed, they may not permit your loved one enough time to chew and swallow. This can lead to choking, aspiration of food and pneumonia.
5. Poor Infection Control
Infection control is poor in many nursing homes and nurses are often reluctant to call doctors until symptoms become serious. If your loved one experiences any sign of infection (fever, a burning sensation during urination, dark, cloudy or foul smelling urine or a lack of energy), it is important to insist on a doctor's diagnosis before a problem becomes life threatening.
6. Failure to Toilet
If your loved one needs assistance with using the toilet, a facility with insufficient staffing will be motivated to use diapers because it is perceived as being less work. Don't permit this to occur because it will be more difficult for your loved one to self-regulate their bowel and bladder function. Insist that your loved one be taken to the toilet regularly.
Incontinence can lead to urinary tract and other infections. Make sure to ask your loved ones whether their requests for toilet assistance are being ignored or if they are experiencing any of the symptoms of urinary tract infection such as burning urination, dark, cloudy or foul smelling urine.
7. Unnecessary Use of Restraints
There are two kinds of restraints: physical and chemical. Physical restraints prevent a person from moving by tying them to a fixed object. Chemical restraints are drugs intended to control a person's behavior.
The use of restraints must be medically necessary and ordered by a physician. The use of a restraint for staff convenience is against the law.
8. Medication Errors
Write down all the medications your loved one is supposed to get and make sure they get all of them.
Once medication is ordered, call or visit to insure that they are, in fact, administered as soon as they are prescribed.
Discuss your loved ones' medications with the attending physician to learn whether they interact negatively with one another. Can the medication your loved one is taking cause confusion, depression or a loss of appetite?
9. Inadequate Staffing and Training
Nursing assistants provide most of the hands-on caregiving in nursing homes. Find out how many nursing assistants there are on each shift and compare that to the number of residents they are responsible for.
If the ratio is more than 9 residents per assistant, make sure you visit to see if the resident's needs are being met. Even if the ratio is less than 9 residents per assistant, check to see if the assistants can handle the workload, especially if there are many high maintenance residents at the facility.
Nursing assistants have been responsible for a great deal of the abuse and neglect in nursing homes (much of which is the result of inadequate screening, training and staffing).
If you have been abused in a nursing home, or know someone who has been abused in a nursing home, please call Steve Watrel, P.A. at (904) 723-0030, or (800) SWATREL (792-8735), or submit an online request. The initial consultation is free of charge and there is no obligation.
