Nursing home abuse is a sad reality faced by many who depend on the assistance and care of others to meet their daily needs. In fact, the National Council on Aging has found that roughly 60 percent of abused seniors suffer at the hands of their caretakers.
This staggering statistic points to the fact that many cases of home elder abuse may stem from the caretaker’s inability to handle the necessary duties. So when we look at nursing home abuse prevention, we must consider heavily the caretakers who administer the daily care of this vulnerable population.
Nursing Home Risk Factors
When it comes to detecting and preventing elder abuse, we need to be aware of risk factors that commonly lead to greater occurrences of abuse. Nursing homes, unfortunately, present unique risk factors to the adults in their care.
If the following risk factors are present in a nursing home, their residents may be more likely to suffer from abuse:
- Careless hiring practices, such as not doing thorough background checks
- High staff turnover rates
- Little administrative oversight
- Stressful working conditions
- Staff who act coldly or negatively toward residents
Family members looking for a nursing home to care for their loved ones should consider the red flags above as a step toward elder abuse prevention.
How to Help Prevent Nursing Home Abuse
If you have a loved one in a nursing home, you may feel concerned for their well-being. While your concern is valid, we want to reassure you that not every elder in a nursing home is being abused. Most nursing homes are wonderfully safe and caring environments for loved ones to be.
You can take precautions, however, to stay actively involved in preventing your loved one from experiencing abuse, including:
- Being aware of the different types and signs of elder abuse
- Calling their loved one regularly
- Immediately bringing concerns about an elder’s care to staff or other authorities
- Thoroughly researching a potential nursing home and checking for red flags
- Visiting regularly
Loved ones should also look for nursing homes with traits and policies that tend to reduce the risk of elder abuse, including:
- Creating solid patient care policies and procedures
- Fostering frequent visits from volunteers and social workers
- Installing quality monitoring systems
- Regularly training employees on elder abuse and neglect issues
Nursing Home Abuse Lawyer
When your aging loved ones live in a nursing home, it can become easy to feel helpless in monitoring and ensuring their quality of care. But with a few easy precautions and being aware of the risk factors, you can take an active role in helping prevent abuse and encourage quality care.
If you believe your loved one is being subject to abuse or any kind of unsafe care practices, you have a right to act immediately. By contacting a nursing home abuse lawyer in Hamilton Ohio you are not only looking out for the best interest of your loved one but any other elders who may be subject to the same treatment.
We know it can be hard to put your trust and the care of your loved one in the hands of other caretakers. The Richards Firm is passionate about keeping these vulnerable populations safe by providing legal services to those who may suffer. Let’s all work together to prevent nursing home abuse by holding everyone accountable.