Assaults on Nursing Home Residents

I read an article in the Chicago Tribune about a deadly assault on a nursing home resident, resulting in death.  This is a shocking development but I am seeing more cases in my own law practice involving assaults on nursing home residents.  These are not cases of assault by the nursing home staff.  These are cases of assault by OTHER RESIDENTS.  Nursing home residents have a right to be safe in the nursing home.  If other residents have violent tendencies and/or medical or psychological problems that cause them to physically lash out at others, the nursing home has a responsibiltiy to protect the other residents from acts of violence.  Failure to do so may be the basis for a neglect or abuse claim against the nursing home. 

Bush Administration's Secret Rule Hurts Nursing Home Abuse Victims

The Bush Administration put a rule in place that designates state nursing home inspectors and Medicare and Medicaid contractors as "federal employees" according to an article in The Washington Post.  The public was not informed of this change and was not given any opportunity to comment or protest this change.  You may ask:  What's the big deal about that?  Here is the big deal:  this designation means that state nursing home inspectors do not have to provide evidence relating to nursing home inspections in civil litigation.  The information in those inspections can be crucial in holding nursing homes accountable for negligent or abusive injuries to patients.  The effect is already being felt in civil cases across the country.  Routine requests for information in negligence and abuse cases are now tied up in bureaucratic red tape, to the detriment of the victims.  I see victims of nursing home abuse and neglect every day in my law practice.  The information from state inspectors is vital to investigations of these claims and should be a matter of public record.  There is no justification for keeping it secret. 

Economic Stimulus for Processing Social Security Disability Claims

Is there finally some hope that the terrible backlog of Social Security disability cases will be dealt with?  According to a report on the stimulus package just passed by Congress $500 million is designated for "processing disability and retirement workloads".  I don't know how much relief this will bring to the hundreds of thousands of disabled people who are waiting for a decision on their disability claims.  I certainly hope that the processing of these claims becomes a top priority.  Every day in my law practice I deal with clients who are living in fear of losing their homes or being evicted because they cannot work and have no income.  And then I have to tell them that it may take 2 years for their disability case to be resolved because of the nationwide backlog of 700,000+ cases.  It is terribly frightening for my clients.  They deseve better.  Let's hope that help is on the way.

Assisted Living Facility Resident Attacked and Killed by Another Resident

It is a shocking headline - one elderly person attacks and kills another elderly person in a health care facility. How can this happen? Is it an isolated event? Recent news stories, and my own experience in my law practice, show that this is NOT an isolated event. It happened recently in Howard County, Maryland. A resident of an Assisted Living Facility, 87 year old Earl Wilder, who suffered from Alzheimer's and was a former boxer, attacked 91 year old James Brown, punching him in the face. Mr. Brown died several days later from his injuries. In my law practice, I represent a former nursing home resident who was viciously attacked by another patient. Fortunately, my client survived. Experts predict that these incidents will only continue to grow as baby boomers age. Nursing homes and assisted living facilities must take steps to protect their residents from these attacks. This will mean more staff and better staff training to recognize subtle signs of aggression and intervene before it is too late.