How to Prevent Abuse and Neglect in Nursing Homes: Prevention of Falls
By Ted Sherwood
It is frequently reported in the medical literature that falls are the number one cause of death in the elderly. Some studies indicate that the mortality rate for elderly who suffer a fracture is over seventy percent (70%). And yet, many falls in the nursing home environment are preventable. If your loved one has a history of falls, or has other risk factors which might predispose him or her to a life-threatening fall, you should take the following precautions:
- Make sure the nursing home is aware of any history of falls and/or fractures and any risk factors such as impaired vision, hypotension, instability, or muscle weakness. Other factors of importance would include whether the resident has memory impairment (affects his or her ability to retain instructions from the nursing staff) or is impulsive (will try to get up without waiting for assistance).
- The nursing staff’s plan for fall prevention is usually covered in the resident’s care plan. Review the steps the nursing staff plans to take to prevent your loved one from falling and consider alternatives.
- Insist that the nursing staff notify you of any falls, whether injury results or not.
- If a fall occurs, examine the reason it occurred and consider what additional steps should be taken, if any, to keep it from happening again.
PREVENTION THROUGH ACTION
If you believe that your loved one is not being adequately cared for, you must take action. You must let the nursing staff know that you will not be satisfied with substandard care. If you are not satisfied with the answers you get from the charge nurse, then you should take your complaints to the Director of Nursing. If you are not satisfied, you should put your complaints in writing to the Administrator and send a copy to the resident’s physician. If your physician fails to respond you should change physicians. And if you are still not satisfied, you should consider changing facilities.
There are times when the nursing home will simply ignore your concerns. Other sources of self-help include:
- Office of the State Ombudsman (405) 521-6734;
- Oklahoma State Department of Health (800) 234-7258;
- Department of Human Services, Nursing Home Investigation Unit (405) 521-2281;
- Office of State Attorney General, Medicaid Fraud Unit (405) 521-4274.
