Nursing Home Fraud Neglect & Abuse Much Too Common

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By Evelyn Pringle (about the author) Page 3 of 7 page(s)

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On the top of the list of problems with policing nursing homes, critics say, is that surprise inspections are in reality seldom random and their level of predictability allows nursing homes to conceal the evidence of abuse and neglect.

This lack of surprise is very common in Mississippi, according to Mr Thomas, who says nursing home employees have told him that they always know when an inspector is coming and they are instructed to clean up the facility in time for the inspection.

"In Mississippi," he says, "inspectors visit at around the same time every year and if there has been no inspection for 12 months, then the inspectors can be expected to arrive soon."

According to elderly advocate, Suzie Bergland, of Moline IL, "The main problem with helping people who have problems at nursing homes, is that the industry corruption seems to be well ingrained."

"The nursing homes even seem to have purposely seen to it that people at the oversight agencies, are people who are loyal to the nursing home industry," she says, "like former nursing home Administrators."

All critics agree that the number one problem in nursing homes that leads to all others, is understaffing, and try as they might, regulators can not get the for-profit agencies to comply with mandatory staffing requirements. Instead they go to great lengths to con the inspectors when it comes to staffing.

For instance, according to Attorney Thomas, "When an inspection is due, Beverly facilities increase staffing to make sure they comply with state staffing minimums."

They also keep two separate work schedules he says. One to show inspectors with names of people who do not work at the home, and the true schedule that shows understaffing is rampant.

Attorney Thomas points the finger of blame for the gross abuse and neglect of the elderly in nursing homes due to understaffing, directly at the top management officials. "I believe that most nursing home employees are doing the best that they can," he states, "but have been put into a position to fail by the corporations running the homes."

Nursing assistants, he says, are the least trained, lowest paid, and most over worked employees in nursing homes. Their job description requires them to feed and bathe residents, assist them in and out of bed, help continent residents to the bathroom, clean and change the diapers of incontinent residents, reposition those who are at risk of developing bed sores, perform range of motion exercises on residents to prevent painful contractures of the hands and feet, help residents in walking, and provide other personal assistance to the residents in regard to their everyday living.

A major problem as far as believing complaints made directly by residents, Mr Thomas says, is that they are sick to begin with, making it difficult for family members to identify what problems are caused by the progression of their underlying conditions and what problems are caused by inadequate care.

"And of course," he notes, "in lawsuits the nursing homes blame everything on the underlying medical conditions and, without saying it, ask juries to buy into the notion that sick people do not deserve good care from companies that are getting paid to care for them."

Mr Thomas says unnecessary prescription drug use is also very common with residents in Beverly facilities. "Psychotropic drugs sedate residents and make them sleep more," he notes.

According to Mr Thomas, "caregivers in understaffed nursing homes need as many residents as possible to be asleep because there is not sufficient staff to adequately care for all the residents when they are awake."

"The downside for residents," he points out, "is that it damages their health because they are less likely to get out of bed, ambulate and otherwise move around, which is vital to staying healthy."

According to the lawsuits filed by Attorney Thomas, reimbursement for this inadequate care comes through several sources including private pay, Medicare, and Medicaid. In many instances, the complaint alleges, "residents' entire social security checks are signed over to Beverly to pay for the residents' stay."

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