nursing home inspection

Published on: July 8, 2023

Nursing Home Abuse Prevention Checklist for Families

This June, elder advocate organizations around the country are calling for a focus on the rights of seniors, and the prevention of abuse and neglect involving elderly persons, millions of who live in nursing homes.

On June 15, elder organizations across the world including the World Health Organization at the United Nations will mark World Elder Abuse Awareness Day to raise awareness about the risks of abuse, exploitation and neglect involving seniors. Events and commemorations are being planned for the special day across the world, including the United States where more than 50 million people above the age of 65 currently live. Out of these, close to 1.5 million people live in nursing homes, and a million more live in assisted living facilities.

For families, the decision to place a loved one in a nursing facility or an assisted living facility is never an easy one. It is, unfortunately, the only option available for many people who often find themselves worried and anxious about the safety and care of their loved ones in these facilities. The fact that so many nursing homes in the United States have questionable standards of care at best is definitely a concern for families looking for a facility.

Published on: February 8, 2023

Feds to Probe Abuse of Antipsychotics in Nursing Homes

by Robert N. Katz, Esq.

The federal administration has announced that it will soon launch an investigation of the wrongful use or overuse of antipsychotic drugs on patients in nursing homes.

The administration has long been investigating the misuse of antipsychotic sedatives, including those that are typically prescribed for nursing home patients who do not require these drugs at all. In too many cases, investigators have found nursing homes wrongly classifying certain patients as schizophrenic so that they may be prescribed antipsychotic sedative drugs. The administration has also found several nursing homes engaging in these practices and wants to understand whether these practices are widespread in the industry. The Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services believes that the problem is a prevalent one, and that its scope has not been fully investigated. Therefore, it has now announced that it will soon launch an investigation of such practices in the nursing home industry.

Schizophrenia is a psychotic disorder that is characterized by symptoms that include delusions, hallucinations and other symptoms. Antipsychotic drugs are often used to treat patients with schizophrenia. Side effects of these medications can include death. It is estimated that less than 1% of the American population suffers from schizophrenia. However, more than 99 nursing homes classify as many as 20% of their patients with schizophrenia. That is a disproportionately large percentage of nursing home residents who are being diagnosed with this condition, relative to the American population with schizophrenia. In other words, the math simply does not add up here.

Published on: September 6, 2021

Majority of Georgia Nursing Homes Uninspected for 16 months

by Robert N. Katz, Esq.

An overwhelming majority of Georgia nursing homes have not been inspected since 2020. According to a report by the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services Office of Inspector General, the state currently ranks at the bottom of the heap when it comes to conducting inspection surveys of nursing facilities.

Across the country, most states were unable to inspect nursing homes to ensure that these were in compliance with safety and hygiene protocols last year. Unfortunately, this has resulted in backlogs across the country. However, the situation is dire in Georgia. In our state, the backlog has meant that most nursing homes have not been subjected to inspections. In fact, nearly 93% nursing home facility have not been subjected to inspections in 16 months. Only one other state fares worse than Georgia in this regard.

Typically, nursing homes are subjected to inspections at least once every 15 months, and these inspections are conducted through survey teams that are sent into the nursing facilities. The Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services is asking states to resume the process of inspections and re-certifications of facilities without further delay.

Published on: September 1, 2020

Lower Ranked Nursing Homes have had More Covid-19 Deaths

by Robert N. Katz, Esq.

Nursing homes that have lower rankings by federal agencies have been much more likely to have resident deaths related to Covid-19.

According to the director of the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services, nursing homes ranked low by the agency’s nursing home ranking tool have seen higher numbers of Covid-19 deaths, compared to nursing homes that were ranked higher by the ranking tool.

This information provides valuable input for families who are looking for nursing homes for their loved ones in a post -pandemic world. By now, it’s clear that many nursing homes were ill-equipped to handle the patient care challenges resulting from the pandemic. Understaffing is a chronic problem in nursing homes across the country, and has already been blamed for the explosion of cases in nursing homes.

Published on: January 13, 2019

For-Profit Nursing Homes Reveal the Lowest Care Standards

by Robert N. Katz, Esq.

Throughout the nation, the population of those age 65 and older continues to rise. In fact, as the baby boomer generation continues to age, it is projected that the number of older people in the U.S. population will be greater than children in just a couple of decades. In Georgia, the population of those 65 and older is projected to constitute over 65% of the state’s population by 2030.

With the rise of the aging population, more and more of these individuals are now living in nursing homes. However, statistics show that many of these residents suffer from poor and neglectful care, and other abuse. Residents of for-profit nursing homes are more likely to be subjected to poorer care standards, compared to residents of non-profit facilities. A new report confirms that for-profit nursing home residents have increasing rates of suffering injuries resulting from neglect than those living in other residential arrangements.

The researchers found that seniors over the age of 60 who lived in private community residences were most likely to be well cared for. They found more signs of neglect among residents of for-profit nursing homes. Some of these cases included serious signs of neglect such as extreme dehydration and stage 3 and stage 4 bedsores. These residents were also more likely to suffer from the effects of mismanagement of their feeding and medication schedules. The neglect also involved malfunctioning or broken feeding tubes, broken catheters and overall mismanagement of chronic health conditions which are prevalent in the nursing home population. Numerous lawsuits are filed nationwide against nursing homes and assisted-living facilities for failure to provide adequate care and safety measures.