Adapting to Changing Needs: When a Residential Care Facility is Inadequate

Your mom and dad are getting older, and can no longer live on their own.  They can still walk, talk, and are mentally and emotionally stable, but they need assistance with daily activities that most people take for granted – eating, dressing, bathing, brushing their teeth, or need help with housekeeping.  Where do they go?

Residential care facilities, also known as assisted living facilities, are meant for older individuals who do not yet need 24 hour nursing home care but can no longer live independently.  Residents who live in residential care facilities are not allowed to live on their own but do not require constant nursing care and supervision. Nationwide, roughly 800,000 individuals (mostly elders) reside in licensed facilities, including residential care facilities.  Residential care facilities provide residents with shelter, meals, supervision of medication, and assistance in daily activities.

There are five causes for eviction in residential care facilities.  One of them is if after a formal assessment, the facility determines that it can no longer meet the resident’s changing care needs.  Often times, a resident will first be appropriately admitted to a residential care facility.  As time goes on, his or her condition may progress and worsen.  Although once minimally self-sufficient, the person may now require 24 hour care provided by a nursing home facility.  Because residential care facilities are considered non-medical facilities and are not required to have nurses, certified nursing assistants or doctors on staff, an elder who becomes increasingly frail or now suffers from an illness or disability would be better served in a nursing home facility.  In fact, if a residential care facility for the elderly (RCFE) retains a resident for whom they cannot meet his or her needs, it is dangerous and can have deadly consequences.  For example, a RCFE is not adequately staffed with nursing personnel to care for residents with Stage 3 or Stage 4 pressure sores because pressure sores that are not adequately treated by the appropriate nursing personnel can become infected, leading to systemic infection or death.  Likewise, dehydration is a serious concern in the elderly (especially those suffering from dementia or Alzheimer’s disease) and can lead to death.  RCFE personnel are not sufficiently trained to identify signs and symptoms of dehydration, which can be fatal.

If someone you love is not receiving adequate care in his or her residential care facility, contact York Law Firm immediately.  We have helped clients obtain the compensation they deserve for this horrendous error.  For example, we achieved a confidential settlement against a nursing home for an 84 year old female client who suffered severe dehydration, leading to critical hypernatremia, a stage 4 pressure sore and sepsis, all of which led to her premature death.

York Law Corporation
Sacramento, California
www.yorklawcorp.com
Call today: (800) 939-1832
Local: (916) 643-2200

Elder Care Facilities – Which One is Right for You?

Does your loved one need more care and supervision than you can provide at home?  Are you at a loss about what type of facility or home is appropriate for your Mom or Dad?  This blog is dedicated to describing the different types of homes and facilities that are available for your loved one.  The bottom line is that the type of home or facility that is appropriate for your loved one depends upon the level of care and supervision he needs based upon his medical condition and the degree of independence or dependence your family member has in their daily life activities (toileting, bathing, meal preparation, social activities).

There are several different types of elder care facilities.  They include:

Adult day care. Adult day care includes programs, services and facilities designed to assist elders who are either mentally or physically impaired.  Adult day care gives daily caregivers relief from their duties.  Respite workers take care of the elder for specified amounts of time, a concept similar to baby-sitting (except, in this case, adult sitting).  Adult day care is an option for adults who already have a primary in-home caregiver and who do not want or need to live in a residential institution.

In-home nurses. In-home nurses provide assistance for elders who are minimally self-sufficient and only need help in daily activities.  In-home nurses go to the home of the elder to assist him or her on a daily basis, but only for several hour increments.

Residential care facilities. Residential care facilities are also known as “assisted living facilities.”  They are housing options for elders who are in between stages.  They do not yet need 24 hour nursing home care but can no longer live independently.  Residents who live in residential care facilities are no longer safe to live on their own but do not require care and supervision.  Board and care homes, also known as personal care homes, residential care facilities, assisted living and domiciliary care, provides rooms, meals, laundry and housekeeping in exchange for rent.

Nursing homes. Nursing homes are the final option.  Nursing homes are also referred to as skilled nursing facilities.  Nursing homes are appropriate for individuals who can no longer take care of themselves, need assistance with activities of daily living and require 24 hour nursing care.  Nursing home employees care for residents on a daily basis, helping them with tasks such as going to the bathroom, eating, and bathing, as well as providing nursing care.  Many nursing homes provide physical therapy and rehabilitation for individuals recovering from surgery.

Any time you leave your loved one in the hands of someone else, you risk the chance that he or she will be abused or neglected.  Unfortunately, elder abuse and neglect can happen in all of the above settings.  The best way to avoid exposing your loved one to abuse and neglect is to carefully choose the correct program, nurse, or facility that you trust.  And visit your loved one frequently.  Be involved in their care plan.

If someone you love has fallen victim to abuse or neglect in a nursing home or assisted living facility, we’re here to help.  The experienced attorneys at York Law Firm have handled numerous cases of elder abuse and neglect over the years and can help you obtain justice.

York Law Corporation
Sacramento, California
www.yorklawcorp.com
Call today: (800) 939-1832
Local: (916) 643-2200

When the Numbers Just Don’t Add Up

Elders residing in nursing care and residential care facilities often do not receive the care you would expect.  Many residents are abused or neglected.  They contract illnesses, suffer from untreated wounds that become infections, and in severe cases, they may die.

One of the main causes of nursing home abuse and neglect is a direct result of a nursing home’s deliberate choice to understaff its facilities.  Most nursing homes are profit driven.  This means that they will cut corners in order to insure that they are profitable.  One of their methods is to only employ the minimum amount of people necessary for the nursing home to function, even if the level of functioning is subpar at best.

What is the result?  Patients pay for services they aren’t receiving, employees are paid (usually not very much) but have too many patients to handle, and who’s left to benefit?  The nursing home facility at both the monetary and physical expense of its elderly patients.

California has strict nursing home staffing requirements.  The law requires that nursing homes administer a minimum of 3 hours and 12 minutes of direct care for each patient.  Failure to provide the minimum care required results in nursing home patients who are neglected – they may be left in soiled linens for hours or even days at a time, or they are not repositioned.  The body cannot withstand sustained pressure for long periods of time, since circulation to parts of the body will be cut off.  This increases the risk of developing painful bed sores, a fate that no one should have to endure and can easily be avoided.

If you suspect that your loved one is receiving inadequate care due to elder care understaffing, here’s a few things you can do.

• Report the understaffing to your local ombudsman.  Ombudsmen serve as advocates for nursing home residents.  Contact the California Department of Aging for the name and number of the long term care ombudsman program nearest you.
• Also, you can contact your county Adult Protective Services (APS).  APS is responsible for investigating complaints of abuse, exploitation and neglect of adults who are elderly or disabled.  A list of Adult Protective Services’ contact information organized by California county is provided here.
• Contact the Department of Public Health and file a complaint with the Licensing Division at 1-800-236-9747.

Of course, York Law Firm can help you obtain the compensation you deserve.  We know both the Federal and California laws pertaining to nursing home abuse and neglect and will apply them strategically to bolster your claim.

York Law Corporation
Sacramento, California
www.yorklawcorp.com
Call today: (800) 939-1832
Local: (916) 643-2200

Nursing Home Chain Pays Big for Understaffing their Facilities

What would motivate a jury to award $640 million in damages against one nursing home chain?  If the violation of law is so egregious, then the verdict serves as a reminder to all other nursing homes to abide by the law or suffer severe financial consequences.

This was the case in Humboldt County.  An Orange County-based nursing home firm was ordered to pay $640 million in a class action lawsuit for understaffing their 22 California nursing homes.  California requires nursing homes administer a minimum of 3 hours and 12 minutes of direct care for each patient, something that the nursing home chain simply could not achieve with the amount of employees then employed.

This jury award signifies one of the most substantial (if not the most substantial) jury awards in a nursing home case.  The amount was calculated to reimburse each patient on each day that the chain of nursing homes did not provide the minimum staffing requirements.

Patient care suffered as a direct result of the nursing home chain’s decision to understaff their facilities.  They were forced to wait longer for care, such as changing of soiled linens and clothes or being repositioned.  If older people cannot change themselves, then they are forced to sit or lay in their own urine until a caregiver arrives.  While the elderly wait in the urine, their skin is being weakened by the moisture, making them more susceptible to bed sores.  Unfortunately, bed sores are the underlying cause of death for several thousands Americans each year.

York Law Firm takes their role seriously as an officer of the court.  We feel it is our duty to help enforce nursing home standards and regulations.  The only way to prevent nursing homes from continuing to abuse and neglect its patients is to make examples of the ones that do commit violations.  We are proud to have achieved the first nursing home neglect case that went to trial in Sacramento County for a $3 million jury verdict.

York Law Corporation
Sacramento, California
www.yorklawcorp.com
Call today: (800) 939-1832
Local: (916) 643-2200

$29 Million Verdict Serves as a Public Reminder – Nursing Home Abuse and Neglect is Against the Law!

Unfortunately, elders in nursing homes often experience some form of neglect or abuse.  While national statistics on elder abuse are currently not recorded, in 2004, the National Center on Elder Abuse (NCEA) estimated a 19.7 percent increase in the total reports of elder abuse and neglect and a 15.6 percent increase in substantiated cases since the last survey was conducted four years prior. They also found that 1 to 2 million elders have been “injured, exploited, or otherwise mistreated.”

Nursing home abuse is morally reprehensible and against the law.  However, it is still a prevalent problem.  What would motivate nursing home facilities to break the law?  Profit.  Nursing homes run like a business – they will act in a way which maximizes profits at the expense of their patients’ health and safety.

To achieve higher profits, they will often hire people who are unfit for their positions, inadequately train them, or fail to run background checks on them (thereby exposing patients to potentially dangerous individuals).  In addition, nursing homes will hire only the bare minimum necessary for the nursing home to function, resulting in nursing home employees caring for more patients and having more responsibility than they can handle.

The result can be devastating.  Elders in nursing home facilities require 24 hour care and often suffer from an illness or disability.  Many require numerous daily medications just to function at a minimal level.  Forgetting to administer proper medication or over-medicating a patient can result in severe illness or even death.  Abuse – physical, sexual, verbal, etc. – can also permanently affect a patient’s health and compromises his or her safety.

What makes matters worse is that many patients are unable to report instances of abuse or neglect.  Nursing home patients are often unable to effectively communicate.  Those who do report abuse may not be believed, or don’t report it for fear of retaliation.

So what can you do if your elderly loved one has been abused or neglected in a nursing home facility?  Find an experienced elder abuse attorney to handle your case.  Lawsuits against nursing home facilities are numerous and often involve multi-million dollar settlements and verdicts.

Sacramento County recently upheld a $29 million verdict ($1.1 million for pain and suffering and a whopping $28 million for punitive damages) for the death of a 79 year old female nursing home patient, Frances Tanner.  She was originally admitted into the Rocklin nursing home with mild dementia and died just 7 months after admittance from an infected bed sore. The patient’s death was deemed a direct result of the nursing home’s illegal understaffing of its facility, resulting in patient neglect and Tanner’s untimely and tragic death.  The $29 million verdict is believed to be the largest ever for an elder abuse case in Sacramento County.

York Law Firm specializes in nursing home abuse cases and we have obtained our clients millions for their wrongful treatment.  What makes us so successful is our desire to fight injustice and protect the rights of the “little guy.”  We will fight against the system responsible for injuring your loved one.

York Law Corporation
Sacramento, California
www.yorklawcorp.com
Call today: (800) 939-1832
Local: (916) 643-2200