Posted on January 11, 2023 in Nursing Home Abuse

In 2015, the Illinois legislature passed a law allowing family members to place cameras in the rooms of their loved ones who reside in nursing homes. This law is commonly referred to as the “Granny Cam” law, and it offers families peace of mind knowing that they can monitor their loved one’s daily activities and ensure that they are receiving quality care. Before you install a granny cam, however, there are several things you should know about how this law works.

Who Can Place a Camera?

Under the Granny Cam law, only certain family members—including the resident’s legal guardian or power of attorney, spouse, adult child, sibling, grandchild, or parent—are allowed to place a camera in a nursing home resident’s room. The family member must also provide notice to the facility before installing a camera and obtain permission from any other roommates residing in the same room. Under the law, a roommate who does not wish for a monitoring device to be installed in their room is to be moved by the facility to another room.

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 Posted on January 05, 2023 in Nursing Home Abuse

As a family member of a nursing home resident, it is important for you to be aware of the potential choking hazards that exist in these facilities. Nursing home residents are at an increased risk of choking due to age-related issues such as cognitive impairment, dysphagia (difficulty swallowing), and muscle weakness. In addition, nursing homes often serve food items that can increase the risk of choking if not properly monitored. To help protect your loved one from harm, it is essential to understand common causes of choking, as well as prevention methods for reducing risks.

Common Causes of Choking in Nursing Homes

While any food item can pose a choking hazard for elderly individuals, there are some foods that are more likely than others. These include nuts and seeds, hard candy, gum, popcorn, raw vegetables (such as carrots and celery sticks), grapes and cherry tomatoes, raisins and other dried fruits, peanut butter and other sticky substances, and meats that have not been cut into small pieces. It is also important to remember that liquids can also be a choking hazard, as many elderly people cannot swallow thick liquids such as milkshakes or smoothies without assistance.

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 Posted on December 19, 2022 in Nursing Home Abuse

State and federal laws are designed to protect nursing home residents and assisted living residents from abuse. Unfortunately, protecting residents is easier said than done. Nursing home residents may not be able to say they are abused because they have dementia or are afraid to speak up. Loved ones need to be their advocates. 

Nursing home abuse can take many forms, from emotional to physical. If your loved one is spending their last years at a nursing home, they deserve dignity and quality care. More than 1.4 million people are living in nursing homes. This blog will cover how to recognize the signs of physical abuse in a nursing home resident.

Noticing Nursing Home Abuse

Abuse is prevalent in nursing homes because many older people are vulnerable to abuse due to health issues, including conditions causing cognitive impairment. Detecting nursing home abuse may not be easy, but your loved ones are counting on you to be vigilant. Here are some signs that may indicate abuse:

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 Posted on December 06, 2022 in Bed Sores

A new study by the University of Chicago found that the number of bedsores at nursing homes continues to be underreported in the United States. When a nursing home resident develops bedsores it is usually due to substandard care and inadequate staffing levels. Unfortunately, nursing homes have failed to replace staff that quit after the pandemic and 82 percent of facilities in the nation did not meet minimum staffing requirements by the federal government before the pandemic. This is alarming especially if a family member is the one with these painful and life-threatening injuries. 

Why do Bedsores Form?

Bedsores or pressure ulcers develop when the blood supply to the skin is cut off for more than two to three hours. As the skin dies, bedsores begin to form and the skin turns red. It is a clear sign that something is not right.

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 Posted on November 30, 2022 in Nursing Home Abuse

Fox News Channel reported last month that the buildings department in Chicago fined the owner of a senior housing facility $1,500 following the deaths of three residents during a brief May heat wave. The buildings department found 11 code violations. The story is alarming to many people who have loved ones living in nursing homes in the Chicago area.

Everybody wants to assume the nursing home they are leaving their loved one at will be committed to providing the best possible care, but the unfortunate truth remains that too many nursing homes cut back on their services as soon as guests leave and nursing home abuse occurs in too many instances. 

Nursing Home Examination Checklist

When you are in the process of examining nursing homes for your loved one, begin by ensuring a nursing home is Medicaid certified, meaning they have passed an inspection by a state government agency. Also ensure a nursing home offers specialized services, such as special care units for residents with dementia.

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 Posted on November 14, 2022 in Nursing Home Abuse

There was a disturbing series of new stories published recently, with WTTW-TV reporting on October 12 that one Chicago hospital has seen at least seven resident deaths and at least 72 citations since January 1, 2017, more than any other Illinois hospital monitored by the federal Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services. The Chicago Sun-Times reported on October 17 that an 87-year-old woman was found beaten to death Saturday in a senior home on the South Side.

People are always shocked to learn they are dealing with nursing home abuse, but abuse can be a much more complicated area to handle in wrongful death cases. It is important for families who have questions about the death of one of their loved ones in a nursing home to immediately contact a skilled Chicago nursing home abuse attorney.

How Nursing Home Wrongful Death Claims Work

When you believe that a nursing home was responsible for your loved one’s death, you will need to keep in mind what you are going to have to prove. Namely, you will have to prove that a nursing home had a legal obligation to ensure the safety of the deceased, the nursing home did not take the necessary safety precautions to safeguard the deceased, and the failure was the actual and legal cause of the wrongful death.

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 Posted on November 07, 2022 in Nursing Home Abuse

Sexual abuse of a nursing home resident can be incredibly difficult for family members to identify and address to satisfaction. Anybody who is dealing with a nursing home abuse case in which they believe their loved one was sexually abused should immediately contact a Chicago nursing home abuse attorney.

Certain sexual abuse cases could result in both civil and criminal liability issues for nursing homes and their employees. People should familiarize themselves with some of the more common signs of sexual abuse so they can know how to spot when their loved one may be in danger. 

How Common Sexual Abuse Really Is 

CNN reported in 2017 that over 16,000 sexual abuse complaints were reported since 2000 in nursing homes and assisted living facilities. It also reported that 226 nursing homes were cited for failure to protect residents from substantiated sexual abuse between 2010 and 2015, and approximately 60 percent led to fines of over $9 million.

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 Posted on November 01, 2022 in Nursing Home Abuse

The National Ombudsman Resource Center reports that the Long-Term Care (LTC) Ombudsman Program is authorized under the Older Americans Act and is administered at the state level, meaning every state has an Office of the State Long-Term Care Ombudsman. The program provides residents of nursing homes and long-term care facilities with access to advocacy for ensuring they receive the quality of care and quality of life they need and legally deserve.

When a family has concerns about potential nursing home abuse or neglect involving their loved one, it can cause many people to begin asking questions for which there are not always easy answers. It is important to understand exactly which kinds of services the Long-Term Care Ombudsman Program may offer.

Provisions of the Long-Term Care Ombudsman Program 

The 2nd Quarterly Report from the Illinois Department of Public Health (IDPH) included more than 100 licensees in Chicago. The IDPH initiated actions against these facilities for being in violation of the Nursing Home Care Act.

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 Posted on October 31, 2022 in Nursing Home Abuse

 Breathing tubes are very serious medical apparatuses that are used when a patient can no longer breathe on his or her own. Unfortunately, in nursing homes and assisted living facilities, residents requiring breathing tubes are among the most vulnerable. If there is an error with the insertion of a breathing tube, a patient is injured while being intubated by a breathing tube, or the tube somehow becomes dislodged, the patient may suffer from severe brain damage from lack of oxygen or another life-threatening injury. In some cases, a breathing tube error may even result in a wrongful death from oxygen deprivation.

Breathing tube injuries at nursing homes may be caused by nursing home abuse and neglect. If you have a loved one who suffered from a breathing tube injury, consider consulting with an experienced attorney who can protect your rights and explain your legal options. 

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 Posted on October 21, 2022 in Nursing Home Abuse

Older adults are amongst the most vulnerable of our society's population. In many instances, a person of advanced age may be unable to care for themselves properly. In some cases, they may need lots of assistance or just a little help here or there. At the very least, when you place your loved one in a nursing home facility, you expect their needs to be acknowledged and met by the healthcare professionals working there.

Any family's worst nightmare is for their loved one to suffer a life-threatening injury while living in a nursing home facility. Unfortunately, when an injury of this type occurs,it sometimes results from some form of nursing home abuse and neglect. If your loved one has suffered a life-threatening injury while at a nursing home, consider contacting an attorney with experience working in cases where elder abuse may occur. 

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