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Nursing Home Negligence and Abuse

• Nursing Home Neglect - Bed Sores Are Preventable

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Nursing Home Neglect - Bed Sores Are Preventable

Placing a loved one into the care of others is one of the most diffcult decisions for a spouse or child to make. You want nothing but the best for your parent or spouse but you have realized that you just can't provide the care that your loved one needs any longer. You have researched the different nursing homes on Staten Island but not everyone has a bed available. You move your parent or spouse into one of the nursing home's that has a room available and make them one as comfortable as you can. Since you cant be at the nursing home 24 hours a day, you rely on the staff to be professional, compassionate and attentive to your loved one.

Unfortunately, because of low pay and short staffing, your family member don't always receive the care that they should. The first notice that you will usually receive is an unexplained weight loss by your loved one. If your family member takes a long time or needs help to eat, the staff may not be sufficient trained or available to meet their needs. Proper nutrition can be easily restored by discussing the problem with an administrator, who will usually make arrangements for your loved one to receive nutritional supplements to restore lost weight.

What is most troubling is the discovery of a bedsore or sores, formally known as a pressure or decubitus ulcer. These ulcers or sores form from consistent pressure on the skin by underlying bone or cartilage. The sores are very common on the back, elbow, knees and ankles. A bed sore begins as a red spot on the skin that does not dissapear when the pressure is relieved. Consensus has shown that most bedsores are preventable, given proper care and treatment. Bedsores start at Stage 1 and at their most severe will reach Stage IV. A Stage IV ulcer extends down into the underlying muscle or even the bone, sometimes as deep as your fist. Left untreated, a Stage IV ulcer may take upwards of one year to clear up, if ever. Bedsores may lead to infection and require hospialization for intravenous antibiotics and in some cases, debridement. Debridement is the surgical removal of the dead skin around the wound. Since the ulcer is an ideal area for bacterial growth, any treatment must include the surgical removal of the surrounding necrotic tissue.

Adequate staffing in the nursing home is the best way to stop the formation of bed sores. Although not all bedsores are preventable, if your loved one has developed a decubitus ulcer, bring it to the attention of nursing home staff immediately and ensure that proper protocols have been put in place to promote healing of the bedsores. Once you have ensured that your family member is receiving proper medical treatment, please call Frank J. Dito, Jr. at (718) 979-4300 or email at fdito@dddilaw.com to discuss possible legal action against the nursing home.



                          

IMPORTANT DISCLAIMER: The information contained on this website is provided for general educational purposes only, should not be relied on as legal advice and does not serve to create an attorney client relationship. In utilizing this website you acknowledge that there is no attorney client relationship between you and Frank J. Dito, Esq. and that the information contained on this site does not and cannot serve as a replacement for the competent legal advice of a licensed attorney in your state. The content of this website is subject to the Copyright of its author, Frank J. Dito, Esq.