Pressure Sores Are A Problem Facing All Nursing Home Patients .... Yet, They Remain Generally Preventable
It appears even in idyllic Idaho, pressure sores are a tremendous problem facing nursing home patients. As attorney John Kormanik discusses in his recent Nursing Home Abuse Advocate Blog entry, Idaho Facilities Cited For Failing To Prevent Pressure Sores, a staggering 40.5% of Idaho Nursing Homes were cited for violations relating to improper patient care. As John points out, pressure sores or decubitus ulcers / pressure ulcers / pressure sores can be prevented with relatively simple techniques such as turning patients on a regular basis to reduce the formation of pressure on the body. David Terry and I will address...
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Nursing Home Injury Laws Establishes Itself As A Trusted Resource For Families Seeking Information Regarding Their Legal Rights
Since its inception, Nursing Home Injury Laws has become a trusted resource for caregivers and families seeking reliable information in a time of need. Nursing home injury laws provides a comprehensive compilation of state-by-state nursing home contacts, a glossary for common legal terms, resources and legal information should the need arise. In addition to important links to important developments within each state, Nursing Home Injury Laws provides has important information on the following commonly encountered nursing home injuries: Bed sores / decubitus ulcers / pressure ulcers / pressure sores Falls Medication errors Neglect Sexual abuse Wandering Wrongful death Physical abuse Nursing...
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Can a nursing home tie my dad to a wheelchair if he has had episodes of wandering around the facility?
"Can a nursing home tie my dad to a wheelchair if he has had episodes of wandering around the facility?" -Sam, Memphis, TN After a recent post about a nurse tying a resident to a wheelchair with a bed sheet, I received several emails from concerned people regarding the use of restraints in nursing homes with their loved ones. Restraints among nursing home residents are only permitted when a physician orders them to protect the resident and with the approval of the resident or his representative. Federal law prohibits nursing homes from using restraints for the convenience of the...
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Nursing Home Spotlight: Elmwood Care, Elmwood Park, IL
Elmwood Care is a large 245 bed nursing home located in Elmwood Park, IL, a suburb of Chicago. According to the government’s Medicare website, the facility received only one out of five stars, which is a much below average rating. The facility received only one out of five stars for health inspections, which is a much below average rating. In the past year, the nursing home had 48 health deficiencies, which is an alarmingly high number of deficiencies. This is 40 more deficiencies than the average number of health deficiencies in Illinois and in the United States. This is also...
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Now that we score nursing homes, is it time to do the same with hospitals?
I recently received an email from the National Decubitus Foundation mentioning how only a handful of states currently require hospitals to report the incidence of 'never events' to authorities that occur at their facilities. Consequently, the patient / consumer is left in the dark when it comes to 'good' vs. 'bad' hospitals. 'Never events' are preventable medical errors that the government (Medicare) has deemed so unnecessary that hospitals can not bill Medicare for medical treatment related to a patients subsequent care. Here is an excerpt of the email: Hospitals Resist Reporting Several States Trying to Enforce Disclosure Laws Only a...
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Nursing Home Spotlight: Pershing Convalescent Home- Berwyn, IL
Pershing Convalescent Home is a small 51 bed nursing home located in Berwyn, IL, a suburb of Chicago. This nursing home facility received only one out of five stars, which is a much below average rating, according to the government’s Medicare website. The facility’s health inspections rated a mere one out of five stars, which is a much below average rating. In the past year, the nursing home had 14 health deficiencies, which is 6 more than the average number of health deficiencies in Illinois and in the United States. However, this is an improvement compared to the 30 health...
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Bed Sore Problems Compounded: Amyloidosis
One of the nursing home negligence cases my office is currently investigating involves the death of a man related to complications related to amyloidosis. Turns out, the man was suffering from an advanced bed sore on his coccyx (also called pressure ulcers, pressure sores or decubitus ulcers) that had progressed so far that the bone in the area had become infected (osteomyelitis). Elderly nursing home residents, especially those suffering from other diseases such as bed sores, have a higher risk of developing amyloidosis, a disease which can damage various tissues and organs. This can cause dangerous complications in residents...
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Incontinence Amongst The Nursing Home Population
My office was recently retained by the family of a woman who developed pressure sores on her buttocks and vagina in a Chicago nursing home. When asked, the family was unsure if their loved one was technically 'incontinent'. After reviewing the woman's chart, it was obvious that the woman was incontinent and the nursing home failed to provide properly adequate cleaning and timely changes for this elderly nursing home resident. By some accounts, more that 50% of the people living in nursing homes or assisted living facilities may have some type of bladder or bowl control problems. Although widely used,...
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Whole Foods, Wound Care & 'Fast Food Nation'
This is not a word association game. This summarizes my day yesterday. A world of extremes. I began my day yesterday going to Whole Foods to pick up a sandwich to propel me on trip to see a client (I hate eating fast food--long before I saw the above movie). The store had just opened and as I walked to the back of the store where they keep the prepared sandwiches, I was blown away quantity and quality of the meat, chicken and fish behind the glass cases. The different products were looking fresh and inviting as they sat lined...
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Hip Fractures And Some Unsettling Statistics
Hip fractures are a frequent result of falls in nursing homes. In fact, an elderly person living in a nursing home is more likely to sustain a hip fracture while at the facility than they would living independently. Most hip fractures require surgery. The type of surgery required depends on where the break is and how bad it is. Your doctor may put metal screws, a metal plate, or a rod in your hip to fix the break. Or you may need to have all or part of your hip replaced. The outcome for nursing home residents who sustain a...
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