Boston Injury Lawyer Blog
The Office of the Inspector General of the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services has issued a report finding that a third of nursing home patients released are harmed by the care that they receive at these professional facilities. Many of the incidents reportedly could have been prevented. NPR says that according to Ruth Ann Drill, a deputy regional inspector general, a lot of the failures that caused this harm involved the ordinary, daily care that nursing homes are supposed to provide residents.
In Massachusetts, our Boston nursing home neglect and abuse lawyers represent residents that were hurt or whose health suffered because they did not receive the proper care they were owed at a professional care facility. Please contact Altman & Altman, LLP today to find out if we can help you.
The report looked at the records of 362 Medicare beneficiaries who had been moved from hospitals to skilled nursing homes for additional care between 2011 and 2012. The patients stayed at these care facilities for no more than 35 days. Out of the patients reviewed, one in five of them suffered adverse events while staying at these nursing homes. These events typically were related to the failure to provide proper care, including incidents involving patient medication, ongoing care, and infections.
Another 11% of Medicare beneficiaries suffered temporary harm while at these facilities. 59% of these temporary harm and adverse events were likely preventable, with a lot of them a result of poor patient monitoring, substandard care, and delay or failure to provide this care. Over half the nursing home residents that experienced harm ended up going back to a hospital for treatment.
You should know that Boston nursing home negligence can be filed even if a professional care facility did not intend to cause your loved one harm. Inadequate supervision, improperly trained staff, medication mix-ups, wrong diagnosis, and inadequate security are just some of the reasons for why you and your family have reason to pursue a Massachusetts nursing home neglect case.
That said, we also do pursue damages on behalf of families whose elderly or sick loved one has suffered harm because of intentional acts of Boston nursing home abuse. Your initial case assessment with us is free.
A Third Of Nursing Home Patients Harmed By Their Treatment, NPR, March 5, 2014
Read the Report (PDF)
Office of the Inspector General of the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services
More Blog Posts:
Stoughton Nurse Charged with Elder Abuse, Boston Injury Lawyer Blog, February 28, 2014
Harsh Winters Up the Risks of Massachusetts Slip and Fall Accidents, Fractures, and Not Just For The Elderly, Boston Injury Lawyer Blog, February 18, 2014
Hospital Workers are Susceptible to Serious Massachusetts Work Injuries, Massachusetts Workers’ Compensation Lawyer Blog, January 30, 2014
