Bribing the Elderly: One of the Lowest Forms of Nursing Home Abuse

Many people have heard about the abuse and neglect that take place in nursing homes, but did you know that a common form of abuse is bribery?  That’s right; nursing home employees will actually play on the needs of the elderly to get what they want.  This twisted form of abuse is more common than many people think and causes a great deal of emotional and psychological damage to victims.  In nursing home bribery, the abusive staff member may use many things to bribe residents.  Basic necessities like food and water may be withheld so that employees can bribe residents by offering to give them food and water in exchange for information, money, or personal property.  Employees may also offer to break the rules or make special arrangements in exchange for something that they want for the resident being bribed.  Nursing home employees can use bribery to keep residents quiet about nursing home incidents or to get money, jewelry, access to a bank account, or the use of the resident’s former vehicle.  Residents often don’t report bribery because they fear getting hurt by the employee who bribed them, so this unfortunate practice continues without much notice from lawmakers and nursing home administrators.  The only way that nursing home bribery can be curbed is if family members stay involved in the care of their loved ones and watch for missing money and other personal property.  If this is noted, a discussion with the resident in question may yield claims of bribery.  If these claims are taken seriously, administrators can take positive steps to eliminate this travesty from the nursing home system.  If you feel your loved one has been a victim of bribery in a nursing home, contact a Riverside nursing home abuse lawyer to take action against the abuser.