Article Fingers Understaffing as Root of Nursing Home Neglect

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Thanks to Tampa nursing home abuse lawyer Bob Carroll for bringing to my attention an article in the Fort Wayne News-Sentinel which announces the results of a recent investigation into nursing home neglect. The National Citizens Coalition for Nursing Home Reform released a report Friday that concludes under staffing is the main reason neglect continues to be a problem.

The study, The Faces of Neglect: Behind the Closed Doors of Nursing Homes examines the experiences of 36 nursing home residents in 12 states. All but one of the book's studies resulted in the filing of lawsuits.

One sample story:

Katherine J. entered a nursing home with a small, red, blistered area on her buttocks. Within five days, an 11-inch by 13-inch pressure sore covering both buttocks developed. The doctor ordered a special mattress, and the woman was to have her food pureed to receive better nutrition to help heal her pressure sore. The orders were not followed. Despite documentation by nurses of the woman's severe pain, the only pain medication she was given was an occasional Tylenol. Eight days after being admitted, she was hospitalized with a high fever, fecal impaction, infected pressure sores and sepsis, which is an infection in the blood. The woman died two days later.