Knowing About Abuse in Nursing Homes

In some instances, violation of a resident's rights will be inadvertent or relatively minor, so that some clemency may be shown to the offending party. Unfortunately, this is a best-case scenario when it comes to these matters.

Employment in a skilled nursing facility implies that one will be respectful of the population he or she serves and be sympathetic to their situations and needs, but the sad reality is some people will use the residents as a means to their own end or an outlet for their own unresolved issues. As such, nursing home abuse is a serious concern for older adults within these places, their families and the administration/ownership.

Imaginably, abuse in nursing homes, as a violation of Elder Law, is also something prohibited by state and federal regulations. Some notes on what may constitute nursing home abuse:

Some forms of abuse in nursing homes may be more familiar to the reader because they are generalizable to all walks of life, not just care in these facilities. Certainly, there is precedence for physical abuse in nursing homes. One reason for this is the need to balance patients' wishes with the goal of efficient operation of a facility.

For example, whether thinking rationally or not, some residents may refuse to comply with their treatment as specified, but this does not give staff members authority to use excessive force and/or violence to make residents bend to their will.

Along similar lines, emotional abuse is another form of nursing home abuse to be guarded against, as some staff members, if not using physical pressure to get their way, will use intimidation and verbal threats to compel residents to a desired course of action. In addition, sexual abuse of geriatric residents, while not as common, is nonetheless a serious issue, and one that must immediately be addressed by supervisors upon an allegation.

Other manifestations of abuse in nursing homes may not be as familiar or apparent to the average person (or even facility employees, for that matter), but all the same are very real and carry just as much weight as the aforementioned instances of nursing home abuse.

One notable kind of abuse in nursing homes that is doubly problematic because it involves a violation of a resident's trust is general exploitation at the individual's expense. In some cases, this may be simple theft of a resident's money and possessions, but in others, a staff member may use coercion to try to divest people of their belongings and property.

Even if it is known by a different name, neglect of a patient's well-being, too, is a variant of nursing home abuse. Some duties within a nursing home may not be all that appealing to workers to have to satisfy, such as helping residents go to the bathroom, but just the same, they must be done. Allowing residents to sit in soiled garments/undergarments or to remain in beds so that they may develop sores are clear signs of abuse in nursing homes.

Expectantly, abandoning residents without necessary food, water or other amenities is likewise a kind of neglect/abuse. Quality care must never be sacrificed for convenience.