Some nursing home residents have difficulty communicating their needs to staff members due to medical conditions that affect their ability to speak clearly or hear adequately.  New staff members who have not been trained to communicate with residents that have these problems may become frustrated when they don’t understand what a resident needs.  In a facility where these staff members are unsupervised and do not have any senior employees to consult with, this frustration may mount and cause new employees to treat residents harshly or abuse them verbally.  If communication training is provided, employees can be shown alternate methods for communicating with someone who has speech or hearing problems.  Knowing how to communicate properly with residents will take some of the frustration out of their jobs and help new employees care for their residents as best as possible.  Nursing homes can provide specific training in preventing abuse to all employees.  This can include how to prevent abuse from occurring on the part of each employee and how to prevent and report abuse if it is witnessed on the part of colleagues.  Teaching employees how to handle stressful situations will play a big role in helping them to learn how to reduce their frustration and anger in a positive way instead of a way that may result in nursing home abuse or neglect.  Nursing homes should also instruct employees on what to do if they see a coworker abusing a resident in any way.  There should be an anonymous tip line or other anonymous reporting system in place so employees do not have to fear retaliation.  The nursing home should pledge to investigate each report thoroughly and determine if abuse has occurred.  If you feel that a staff member abused your loved one due to a communication issue, contact a San Bernardino nursing home abuse lawyer to find out what you can do to take action.

If you have questions or comments and have concerns about the care a loved on is receiving at a California nursing home facility please feel free to contact Nursing Home Neglect Attorney Michael Young for a FREE NURSING HOME ABUSE CONSULTATION on your nursing home abuse matter. The California Nursing Home Abuse Law Offices of Young and Wallin has offices throughout southern California to serve you including an elder abuse law office in Orange County, Riverside and San Bernardino County. Mr. Young handles nursing home neglect cases throughout the state of California on a case by case basis.

Posted by Michael Young at 7:23 AM | Permalink | Comments (0)

Nursing home employees who have a high number of residents with serious medical issues should know how to care for these residents in a medical emergency.  This often means knowing specific procedures that should be used in the event of an emergency.  Unfortunately, new employees may not have the experience needed to deal with these serious situations and may not know how to handle performing these medical procedures.  If a lack of supervision exists, new employees may not feel that they can ask for help in learning the procedures.  When this happens, any emergency becomes life-threatening since a new employee may freeze up and not be able to perform the procedure.  By the time someone who is qualified to help arrives, it may be too late for intervention and the resident may suffer serious complications or even die as a result of delayed treatment.  If nursing homes take it upon themselves to make sure all of their employees are properly trained in performing emergency medical procedures, they can reduce this risk of neglect.  If you feel your loved one suffered serious consequences due to an untrained employee failing to perform a needed procedure, contact a San Diego nursing home abuse attorney to find out what you can do to hold the facility responsible for the consequences.

Posted by Michael Young at 7:12 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)

When residents spend all of their time alone in their rooms, there is no opportunity for them to develop better social lives.  Socialization and activities are very important in the lives of nursing home residents because they prevent isolation and they can also help prevent depression and other problems associated with a lack of participation in social activities.  If you visit a nursing home where there are no planned activities and you see residents just sitting in front of a television or lining the hallways in wheelchairs, the facility is probably not a good choice for your loved one.  If you visit a facility and there is a schedule of events and you see residents participating in activities with each other and nursing home employees, there is a good chance that the staff members really do care about meeting the total care needs of all of the residents.  This won’t guarantee that abuse or neglect won’t occur, but it can reduce the chances.  If you go to a facility and you see staff members responding to the needs of residents quickly, interacting with them, trying to provide a cheerful environment for them, and doing whatever they can to make sure residents are comfortable, you’ll be more comfortable knowing that the facility may be a better place for your loved one.  While your visit can be a good test for how the facility is run before you pick a nursing home, abuse can still occur once you have placed your family member in a home.  Stay involved with their care and make regular visits to check on their progress and condition.  If abuse does occur, contact a San Bernardino nursing home abuse attorney for help in resolving the situation and preventing further abuse.