New York’s elderly population is amongst the most vulnerable. Quite often, these individuals require extensive medical care that their loved ones simply can’t provide. These families may feel fortunate that they can turn to nursing homes for help, and many of them choose to entrust these homes with the care of their elderly loved ones. This is a massive responsibility, of course, with a lot at stake, which is why the federal government and the state heavily regulate this industry to better ensure nursing home residents’ safety.
One of the biggest and most important categories of federal regulations pertaining to nursing homes is that which deals with quality of care. Under these regulations, nearly every aspect of a nursing home resident’s health is addressed. Therefore, nursing homes are required to provide care that seeks to prevent bedsores and, if bedsores are discovered, that adequately treats them. Also, a nursing home must implement practices that don’t limit mobility and seek to increase mobility in those who enter a facility with limitations.
But that’s not all that is regulated when it comes to quality of care. A nursing home must also utilize a resident’s comprehensive assessment to create an acceptable nutrition plan that avoids risk of malnutrition. Nursing home residents must also be properly hydrated, provided with appropriate pain management and receive trauma-informed care if needed. Dialysis, respiratory care and foot care is also addressed by these regulations.
Although when properly followed these regulations can help ensure nursing home resident safety, far too often these institutions fail to live up to applicable standards. When this happens, serious harm can befall unsuspecting residents, leading to a worsened medical condition, severe pain and suffering and emotional damage. Such incidences are wholly unacceptable, which is why those who have been harmed while in a nursing home should consider speaking with a legal professional to better determine if they are justified in pursuing a nursing home neglect lawsuit.