The Guardian Blog : Arizona Nursing Home Lawyer & Attorney : Solomon & Relihan Law Firm : AZ Assisted Living Neglect & Abuse : The Guardian Blog

Falls are often seen as a dangerous threat to thin elderly individuals because their frail bones are more prone to fractures. Although obese people have one advantage over the thin, obesity comes with it’s own dangerous health risks. They struggle with balance and they are less able to react quickly in order to prevent a fall. Obese elderly were 12 to 50 percent more likely to suffer a fall than their normal-weight peers. The study was based on 10,755 Americans age 65 and up who were surveyed every two years. Researches also factored in various health conditions that linked to both obesity and the risk of falling, like arthritis, pain in the legs, diabetes and stroke. The amount of falling for the obese elderly can be prevented in numerous ways besides actually losing weight. Experts recommend moderate exercise like walking and tai chi to improve balance and coordination. They also recommend for elderly folk to try to get rid of fall hazards in their home like loose rugs or items that can cause someone to fall over.

It is important to reduce the fall hazards in any home especially if you are caring for an elderly individual. Falls can not only cause fractures but many other serious injuries and can result in your loved one being subject to best rest for an extended period of time.
 

Neida Niles was a resident of the Prairie Village HealthCare Center in Jacksonville, IL when she fell during a routine dialysis treatment in April 2007. The suit alleges that the nursing home did not properly assess her fall risk and take proper precautions to prevent her from falling. 

In addition to her fall, Niles developed bed sores and a skin condition when she was bed ridden following the fall. Bed sores, also known as pressure sores or pressure ulcers, occur when a person lies on one part of their body for a long period of time. Nursing homes are supposed to regularly turn bed ridden residents to prevent them from occurring. The development of bed sores is usually a sign that residents are not being turned properly.

Falls and bed sores are both problems that frequently occur because of inadequate staffing levels and improper training of staff. Prairie Village HealthCare has a history of both problems and the suit claims that this was a contributing factor in Niles' death. According to a Medicare report, which gave the facility the lowest possible rating, an average nursing home resident receives 42 minutes of registered nurse care per day, but residents at Prairie Village only received 14.

For more information on nursing home abuse and neglect, please visit the Nursing Home Advocates.

Topics Discussed in this Post:

Falls in Nursing Homes

Bed Sores/Pressure Ulcers

Improperly Trained Staff in Nursing Homes

The case stems from an incident last summer in which 87-year-old Donald Oliver fell to the ground and broke his hip.  The resident died three weeks later from his injuries. The coroner's office ruled the death a homicide. Witnesses at the home claim Weatherly pushed a door open in Oliver's direction and then punched Oliver when he was on the ground. Though she originally plead guilty, Weatherly is now claiming that she and Oliver both pulled on opposite sides of the door at the same time, causing the door to swing open and knock Oliver to the ground.

This case illustrates an important issue for residents of nursing homes and assisted living facilities and their families: the difference between abuse and neglect. Abuse is willful actions on the part of staff members or administrators to cause harm to their residents. This is what Weatherly is being charged with, as the prosecutors and witnesses claim that Weatherly intentionally knocked Oliver to the ground and punched him. Neglect occurs when staff members and administrators are careless or do not follow proper regulations, leading to harm to their residents. In admitting she was careless, this is what Weatherly is claiming she committed.

Both abuse and neglect are serious problems that need to be combatted vigorously by nursing home and assisted living residents and their families. For example, in this case, though Weatherly is being punished for her actions, state regulators and the victim's family should take a close look at the conditions in the facility that allowed this to occur. Assisted living facilities are often more loosely regulated than nursing homes, so residents and their families need to pay even more attention to the conditions in the facility.

For more information on abuse and neglect in nursing homes and assisted living facilities, visit the Nursing Home Advocates.

Issues Discussed in this Post:

Assisted Living Centers

Nursing Home Falls

Broken Hips/Fractures

Nursing Home Deaths

Abuse and Neglect

Assisted Living Center vs. Nursing Home Regulations

According to the Sacramento Bee, 79-year-old Frances Tanner died in early 2006, seven months after moving into Colonial Healthcare, a nursing operated by Horizon West Healthcare, which operates 33 nursing homes, mostly in Northern California.

According to Tanner's daughter, Tanner was bedridden after a fall caused by a hip fracture that had gone undiagnosed.  While confined to her bed, she died of a bed sore.  The Tanner case was the fourth in recent years in which Colonial had been cited in the death of a resident.

Tanner's family was earlier awarded $1.1 million for their pain and suffering.  The $28 million punitive damage verdict is intended primariy to punish Horizon West for their negligence and remove the financial incentive to provide substandard care. 

As in many cases, Tanner's death was caused by a variety of factors resulting from abuse.  Solomon and Relihan's Nursing Home Advocates website offers informational pages on all of these symptoms of abuse:

• Falls
• Broken Hips/Fractures
• Bed Sores
• Wrongful Death

You should also visit Nursing Home Advocates to learn how to detect abuse and neglect and stop it before it's too late.