Thefts from Nursing Home Resident Financial Accounts
August 7, 2015
Illinois Nursing Homes Get Failing Grade
November 20, 2015
According to the Office of the Inspector General of the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, one-third of all nursing home residents are harmed during their stay in a skilled nursing facility. Nursing home injuries were broken down in the study into categories of “adverse events” and “temporary harm events.”
The recently-released study found that 22% of nursing home residents experienced adverse events during their stay. An additional 11% of nursing home residents experienced temporary harm events.
According to physician reviewers studying the incidence of these events, 59% of these injuries were “…clearly or likely preventable.” The physicians further found that many of these nursing home injuries were due to (1) substandard treatment, (2) inadequate resident monitoring, and (3) either a complete failure or delay of necessary care.
While the cost of human suffering directly attributable to these failures of care of nursing home residents is incalculable, the direct economic cost of this inadequate care was estimated by the Inspector General’s office to be $2.8 billion which was spent during fiscal year 2011 for hospital care due to these preventable injuries in skilled nursing facilities.
This figure, while staggering, does not tell the whole story, though, since it does not include the other medical costs, such as additional physician care and further skilled nursing care required to recover from the injuries sustained as a result of nursing home neglect.
If you or a family member have sustained a nursing home injury, contact the Law Office of Robert H. Gregory, PC. We are happy to answer any questions you may have, and can determine whether we can assist you in a claim against the nursing home.