As our parents grow older, we would like to provide them with the best quality of care as possible and ensure all their needs are met. For many, this means placing them in a nursing home with the facilities required to cater to their illnesses and injuries. This may be a difficult decision to make, but at the end of the day if the nursing home can adequately take care of an elderly person, then the decision is often the correct one.
When placing a loved one in a nursing home, people often visit the nursing home many times and speak with all the relevant people there. After all, the nursing home is supposed to live up to a certain standard of care. However, a shocking study about a nursing home in Louisiana reveals the abuse elderly are suffering in a specific location.
According to the investigation, the nursing home being looked into has a surprising history of abuse and neglect. Though some people report that spills are not cleared up and water not being refilled, others have gone as far as to say that abusive language is used against the residents. One report claimed that a resident was left unattended during dinner time in the darkness and the patient ate an entire napkin as a result. There are also claims that insects and bugs plague the nursing home, that there is mold in the dining room, medical records are being mismanaged and are missing and medications are being wrongly administered or withheld. Family members who have complained about the nursing home abuse are either dismissed or prohibited from regularly visiting their loved ones. According to administrators, they have corrected the problems in the last month and inspectors will be studying the place closely as it is up for recertification.
Nursing home abuse can be of many types, including emotional and physical. Regardless of what form it takes, it can be devastating for the people going through it and their loved ones as well. Victims withdraw into themselves and are no longer confident or happy with their lives. If a loved one is a victim of abuse, it may be possible to pursue a claim against the medical officials who are supposed to be taking care of them.
