What You Need to Know to Prevent Nursing Home Abuse

If you have tried to find a nursing facility for a sick or elderly loved one, then you know how bad conditions in these institutions can be. But it is possible to remedy the situation. Anyone who tries to find a good nursing facility today inevitably discovers what too many older Americans already know: most nursing homes offer minimal care at best, and some are guilty of shocking neglect of their patients. Good nursing homes do exist, but you are lucky if you find
?one. It is hard for an individual to determine the quality of care in a particular facility. There are few, if any, consumer reports or other guides available to evaluate nursing homes. Inadequacies are usually discovered only after your parent or elderly relative finds them through bitter experience.According to a 15 -state survey of nursing homes and their respective inspection reports, which was compiled two years ago by the Department Of Health and Human Serivces, some of the most frequent deficiencies include the following: inadequate fire safety, poor sanitation and housekeeping, dietary deficiencies, food poisoning, and inadequate nursing and medical records. Nursing homes, which care for more than two million Americans today, are also often the site for prescription drug experiments.In the wake of reports showing that many nursing homes repeatedly fail to comply with standards, often in critical areas, the government determined in 1971 that Federal funds would be withheld from substandard homes. Despite this ruling, however, firm enforcement has not materialized to this day. Only the most severe cases of blatant neglect are ever prosecuted, and these cases are typically pursued by the victim's family.What You Need to Know to Prevent Nursing Home Abuse

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