The Truth About Nursing Home Abuse

Nursing homes are being occupied in record numbers. Unfortunately, as nursing home residency increases, so do reports of widespread neglect and abuse.

The U.S. Administration on Aging estimates that over one million aging Americans are being exploited or abused. Further aggravating the problem is that many cases of neglect and abuse in nursing homes go unreported by staff. Lastly, several government studies suggest that about 90 percent of nursing homes are understaffed to begin with. The sad truth about nursing homes is that a large number of them focus more on profit than on providing quality resident care.

Lowry and Associates, a personal injury law firm based in Maine that provides legal services to victims of nursing home abuse, offer the following tips on what to look for when choosing a nursing home for a loved one:

Look for well-groomed residents who are actively engaged in scheduled activities.

Look for homes with pressure sore survey ratings at near zero.

Look for homes with physical restraint survey ratings at near zero. A high incidence of physical restraints may indicate a home that substitutes restraints for proper staffing levels.

Even if a home has appropriate staffing levels, take note of the quality of interaction between residents and the staff.

Gauge reactions to resident complaints. You can also get an idea of the relative number of complaints among nursing homes in an area by contacting Maine's long-term care ombudsman.

Consider a non-profit home since these generally have lower deficiency ratings and higher levels of staffing.