Nursing Home Abuse and Substance Abuse
When you hear about nursing home abuse, you may think about an elderly patient being physically abused or neglected. While physical abuse and neglect are common in nursing homes, they are not the only forms of abuse. Nursing home abuse includes many forms of physical, emotional, and financial abuse. Furthermore, some nursing home patients are not elderly. A story reported by The Boston Globe early this month is an example of how nursing home abuse can take many forms.
Substance Abuse in Massachusetts Nursing Homes
A 43-year old man entered Braemoor Health Center last summer to learn how to walk again following the amputation of his lower leg due to massive infections. He was a recovering heroin addict. He
…show more content…
Unfortunately, this action by the state is too late for the man who died after being discharged from Braemoor. According to his family, they questioned the use of narcotics and asked for assistance when he was discharged. They were told to simply go to the emergency room.
Signs of Nursing Home Abuse
The decision to place a loved one in a nursing home is one of the most difficult decisions a family can face. The fear of nursing home abuse is real. One report revealed elderly abuse in one out of every three nursing homes. It is estimated that one in ten Americans over the age of 60 years has been the victim of some type of elder abuse. Because the risk of nursing home abuse is so great, it is important for families to know the signs of nursing home abuse.
Some of the signs of abuse you want to look for when visiting your loved one are:
• Dehydration
• Sudden and unexplained weight loss
• Bed sores
• Fractures and broken bones
• Fear of staff
• Mood
Cooper, C., Selwood, A., & Livingston, G. (2008). The prevalence of elder abuse and neglect: a systematic review. Age and ageing, 37(2), 151-160. Department of Heath (2000) No Secrets: Guidance On Developing and Implementation of Multi-Agency Policies and Procedures to Protect Vulnerable Adults from Abuse.
One particularly horrifying event that occurred was in August 1970 when residents in a nursing home in Baltimore died from salmonella food poisoning. The unconcern for the seriousness of this incident shown by writers of the Washington Post demonstrated a need for federal regulations for the standard of care given by nursing homes. Thus, in 1971 President Nixon and the Department of Health, Education, and Welfare (HEW) established the Office of Nursing Home Affairs (ONHA) to oversee any programs involving nursing homes. The Long-Term Care Ombudsman Program was one initiated by ONHA to “improve the quality of care in America’s nursing homes and to respond to complaints submitted… about abuse and neglect of nursing home residents” (Hunt & Nadell, 2007,
abuse: When the service user lives with the carer, it may increase the chances for abuse to occur as this situation may cause stress and resentment if the carer feels he/she cannot cope. Not properly trained staff who do not receive any supervision or support at work, as well as stressed staff who are going through personal problems, or who do not like working in the care sector, may increase the risk of an individual being abused. In addition, patients who are not mobile, are confused, suffer from dementia or are aggressive or challenging, may also present an increase for the risk of an individual being abused, since the carer
Long-term care facilities have become home to some individuals due to loss of capacity for independent living which normally caused by some illness that result in them not being able to care for themselves or to perform any daily living activities, such as cooking, eating, bathing, and toileting. Now as an administrator of a long-term care facility, I am responsible to make sure that everything runs smooth; in another word I play most important role in the facility. I am in charge of everything that goes on including patient admissions, facility policies, laws, finances, facility maintenance, residential care and staffing. A number of ethical issues can and will arise in a long-term care facility, such as providing patient care, dealing with
Physical abuse is exactly what anyone could imagine, it involves the physical act of beating, choking, or even sexually assaulting an elderly individual. This might occur in a situation where a caregiver becomes frustrated with an elderly individual for not performing a task the caregiver desires, or could simply be a case where someone takes advantage of an elderly person who may not be capable of retaliating. Psychological abuse is when threats, intimidation, and verbal aggression are used on an elderly person. Psychological abuse can be seen when a decision needs to be made by an elderly individual. One may threaten or intimidate an elder to persuade them to make a desired decision, and the elder would listen in fear or trust that the decision is of the best interest.
These horrible cases should indicate that elderly abuse is a devastating burden on the healthcare system, which should be focused at providing high quality care to each member of society, though especially to vulnerable populations like the
Living in a long-term care facility can be devastating. Residents may feel abandoned by family, sadness because their friends have passed, or a feeling of being stuck. Though there are regulations in place to keep a stand for quality of life, I think as administrator I would go above and beyond those regulations. In my opinion they need to be stricter, but since they are not, I would do my best to give our elders what they have earned and deserve. It is important to consider how a person would want the conditions of a facility that their grandmother, grandfather, mother, or father would be in when they could no long live at home.
The United States government is doing a surprisingly little amount for the million of elderly who are being abused everyday. An affective abuse policy increasing elderly protection services is immensely needed. The public should also be informed about elderly abuse, and the individuals who commit the crime of abusing the elderly should have stricter punishments. People in society can help towards pushing for a more goal driven elder justice policy. In the article, “The Elderly Must Be Protected From Abuse,” author Robert B. Blancato explains seven goals which should be addressed towards elderly justice.
Person centred care - this is when a care worker delivers health and social care to a service user and increases their decision making as well as personal development, this is to also make sure that the service user 's needs and wants are met to keep them satisfied with the setting, this could also mean personal matters and beliefs are taken in consideration as a christian individual may need to attend church on sundays, it can also be as simple as letting an individual do an activity by themselves such as eating or playing games such as chess. Safeguarding is an action an individual takes that promotes safe and protects those in danger, this could mean a risk assessment as hazards will need to be reported to prevent it from happening again.
However, the Department of Health and Human Services reported that a majority percentage of the use of restraints on patients happen in a nursing home. Although there has been a decrease in the daily physical restraints used in nursing homes, however, in most nursing homes, restraints are fairly common. The use of physical restraints in long term care facilities or nursing homes is not something that is new. As a matter of fact, restraints have been used on the elderly in nursing homes dating back to the 1980’s. Before the year of 1990, the U.S Food and Drug Administration estimated that about 40 percent of patients of patients in nursing homes were restrained.
The government protects older people and do not let abusers abuse them. They also take action to stop abuse at the senior center. Lower nutrition leads to many risk factors such as a heart disease, high
Elder abuse issue was first identified and described in the developed countries, and later in the developing countries, therefore, it can be considered as universal phenomenon. Elders are abused by their families (spouse and children), relatives, friends, healthcare personnel and care staffs in the healthcare settings such as long-term care facilities and assisted
Someone who is an abusive relationship may not be aware of their situation. A partner who is acting in an abusive manner can be engaging in various forms of domestic violence. Often, women fail to see all the signs that are being displayed. Many times they simply want the relationship to work or there is the convincing of the abuser that is hard to overcome. There are many signs of an abuse relationship for an individual to know.
Elder abuse can also occur in institutional settings, especially long-term care facilities. The different types of elder abuse Abuse of elders’ takes many different forms, involving intimidation or threats against the elderly, some involving neglect, and others involving financial trickery. The most common are defined below.
In addition, all the members in the group have experienced many forms of trauma, such as watching the physiological and psychological health of their parent declined. This in itself can cause trauma to not only the caregiver, but to everyone in the household including the person with Alzheimer. To illustrate, my 89-year-old aunt is aware that her memory is slowly disappearing “as she put it” and as a result she at times become very depressed. This is also true for some individuals with Alzheimer, who realize they cannot remember special moments with their wives, husbands, and children. Causing them to become depressed as well as exacerbating their illness.