News

Nursing Home Abuse and Neglect

• Jury Awards $29.1 Million in Nursing Home Death
  May 14, 2010

  A jury in Sacramento, California has found a nursing home liable for the death of a 79 year old patient.  The jury decided that the nursing home should pay $1.1 million in compensatory damages and $28 million in punitive damages.
  
  The jury determined that $28 million was an appropriate punishment after considering the financial status of the nursing home.  Punitive damages are damages designed to punish a defendant for egregious conduct and to deter others from engaging in similar egregious conduct. 
  
  In most states, including Virginia, the jury may consider the financial status of the defendant to determine the amount of damages necessary to punish the defendant.  The reason the defendant's financial status should be considered is that the jury needs to know how what it will take to have a meaningful effect on the defendant without bankrupting the company.  For example one million dollars may be excessive for a company that has assets of only $1 million.  Alternative, it would be a drop in the bucket to a billion dollar multi-national corporation.
  
  Unfortunately in Virginia punitive damages may not have the intended effect because we have a cap of $350,000.  - 1 - 10

• Virginia Nursing Home Reportedly Ignored Abuse
  Mar 30, 2010

  According to an article in the Bristol Herald Courier newspaper, the National Health Care - Bristol, Virginia nursing home has been charged with ignoring and discouraging reports of sexually abused patients.  The accusations in the article describe a a series of assaults by ex-nursing aide James Wright.  Mr. Wright is awaiting sentencing for aggravated sexual battery of four former NHC patients.  Each charge carries a maximum sentence of 20 years in prison.
  
  Nursing homes must be diligent in protecting their patients.  That includes conducting criminal background checks, verifying that new employees are not on the state police sexual predator lists, and investigating allegations of physical, sexual, and mental abuse of residents. Nursing home patients are especially vulnerable to abuse because many patients lack the physical and mental capacity to resist abuse.  Likewise many lack the capacity to report abuse and even when they report abuse, the allegations often are not taken seriously.
  
  If you have reason to suspect a loved one is being abused in a nursing home, you should take action.  Resources to protect the elderly include Adult Protective Services (APS), the local police department, your doctor, and the Virginia Department of Health Complaint Unit. - 2 - 10

• Virginia Ranks in Bottom 10 for Nursing Home Staffing
  Jan 29, 2009

  U.S. News and World Report just published its rankings of the worst states in the nation for nursing home staffing.  Virginia ranked No. 8 from the bottom.  The conclusion was based on data from Medicare.  Medicare recently ranked nursing homes on a scale from 1-5 stars.  Of Virginia's 263 nursing homes, more than one third of the nursing homes earned only 1 star. 
  
  The implications of Virginia's poor rankings are serious.  Over 1/3 of nursing homes in Virginia are not providing adequate staff to care for their patients.  With insufficient staff, patients are at risk for not being turned, fed, bathed or properly medicated.  Those patients are prone to develop pressure ulcers, malnutrition, infections, falls, and other injuries.
  
  The reasons why nursing homes in Virginia are understaffed is debatable.  In my opinion, the nursing home industry is placing profits over caring for patients.  As the most expensive part of operating a nursing home is staffing, the surest way to increase profits is to under-staff the facility.  Others argue there is a shortage of available nurses and nurses aides willing to work in nursing homes, but that also can be tied to profits.  If nursing homes would provide fair compensation more nurses would be willing to care for patients in nursing homes.
  
  The solution is two fold: (1) We should all contact our elected officials and let them know that nursing homes should be required to have minimal staffing levels sufficient to provide quality care. (2) We need to reverse the incentives to nursing homes by making it expensive to provide poor care.  This is accomplished by holding nursing homes accountable in a court of law for neglecting and abusing their patients.  Ultimately, if the cost of defending poor care exceeds the cost of providing good care, nursing homes will hire more nurses and improve the quality of care provided to their patients. 
  
  If you believe a loved one is a victim of nursing home abuse or neglect, please feel free to contact us by email or call us at (804) 288-1661 to discuss your legal rights. - 3 - 10

• Nursing Home Employee Sentenced for Sexually Assaulting an 85 Year Old Patient
  Jan 29, 2009

  An 85 year old nursing home patient certainly expected to be secure in her nursing home bedroom.  Undoubtedly her family never expected her to become a victim of one of the most violent and cruel crimes --- sexual assault --- while a patient at a nursing home.  Yet, this happens in nursing homes and assisted living facilities.  There have been prosecutions in Henrico County for raping nursing home patients. Nursing homes in Virginia are required to conduct criminal background checks of its employees. 
  
  According to the Virginia Supreme Court, a nursing home that fails to provide reasonable security for its patients may be held accountable in a court of law.  On our website, you can learn more about a nursing home's legal responsibility for protecting its patients.  If you or a loved one has been a victim of abuse, neglect, or malpractice at a nursing home or assisted living facility you are invited to contact us to discuss your legal rights.  We represent victims of nursing home abuse and neglect throughout Virginia.
  
  Please email us or call us at 804-288-1661.
  
  Sincerely yours,
  
  Josh Silverman

  - 4 - 10

• Nursing Home Rating System
  Jan 29, 2009

  Starting in December 2008, the Nursing Home Compare website operated by the Center for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) will give nursing homes a star rating, between 1-5 stars. 

  The Nursing Home Compare website already provides consumers with information about past complaint investigations, surveys, and penalties issued against individual nursing homes.  However, the current system can be confusing for patients and their families.  The star rating system should provide a simpler means to assess the quality of care provided in a nursing home.

  In addition to assisting nursing home patients and their families in choosing a nursing home, we hope the star rating system will lead nursing homes to improve the quality of care provided to patients.  Nursing homes know that consumers have choices and no one wants to put a family member in a one star nursing home. 

  Click here to go to the Nursing Home Compare website.

  - 5 - 10

• Nursing Home Patients Signing Away Their Right to Sue for Abuse and Neglect
  Jan 29, 2009

  Patients entering nursing homes typically must sign "admission agreements."  Deep inside these multiple page contracts are often hidden provisions that deny nursing home patients the right to sue for damages due to abuse and neglect.  Instead they are "agreeing" to waive their right to sue and to resolve their claim via arbitration.  In an arbitration, there is no jury and the case is decided by 1-3 persons who may be biased in favor of the nursing home industry.

  The attached article from Fox News describes both perspectives on compelling nursing home patients to give up their Constitutional right to sue.  Currently pending before Congress is a bill to make these mandatory arbitration agreements unenforceable.  At Williamson & Lavecchia, L.C. we support this legislation and believe deeply in every person's Constitutional right to have their claims vindicated in a court of law.

  - 6 - 10

• GAO Report Finds Nursing Home Inspectors Miss Serious Violations
  Jan 29, 2009

  Despite strict regulations of nursing homes, residents continue to suffer serious injuries and die due to abuse and neglect.  Congress is investigating the effectiveness of the nursing home regulations.  A report by the Government Accountability Office (GAO) has found that inspectors miss 15% of the most serious violations.  These are often life threatening violations like failing to provide adequate nutrition and hydration (food and water) to residents. 

  In addition to hunger and thirst that naturally comes from inadequate nutrition and hydration, patients are highly prone to deadly infections, pressure sores, falls, and other serious injuries.  There are over 16,000 nursing homes caring for 1.5 million Americans.  One-fifth of the nursing homes were cited for serious violations.  When you add in the number of violations that were missed, it becomes clear that we have a crisis in nursing home care. 

  Senators Charles Grassley and Herbert Kohl have introduced legislation to raise the fines against nursing homes.  Currently, nursing homes can not be fined more than $10,000 regardless of the seriousness of the injury to the patient.  The proposed legislation will raise the maximum fine to $25,000 for serious violations and $100,000 for the death of a patient. Equally important, the legislation will increase the transparency of owners of the nursing home.  Shockingly, inspectors struggle to identify the owners of a nursing home whose identities are often hidden behind several shell corporations.  This legislation is expected to be voted upon in June 2008.  Please return to our website for further updates.

  - 7 - 10

• New York Times Exposes Nursing Homes Placing Profit of Patient Care
  Jan 29, 2009

  On October 23, 2007, the New York Times published the results their in depth investigation into private equity groups that are purchasing nursing home chains. Many argue they have returned the industry to profitability but at the expense of patient care. These groups have set up elaborate corporate structures that enable the investors to receive a handsome return on their investments but leaving the nursing home underfunded and with limited resources to compensate victims of abuse and neglect. The systems is relatively simple. The nursing home is set up as one corporation with minimal insurance coverage. The nursing home pays large fees to landlords, management companies, and other corporations. These corporations are in the black while the nursing home appears insolvent and judgment proof. Yet, when you dig into the ownership of the landlords and management companies, you often find that they share the same investors. The ultimate result is that the victims of abuse and neglect struggle to be compensated for their injuries. There are strategies to hold all of these companies responsible. Lawyers call it "piercing the corporate veil." Please call us if you believe a loved one has been abused or neglected in a nursing home. - 8 - 10

• Nursing Home Abuse and Neglect Underreported
  Jan 29, 2009

  New studies have shown that nursing home abuse and neglect is grossly under-reported. In an Israeli study only 6% of nursing home patients said they would report being abused or neglected. However, when the researchers studied hospital records of patients admitted from nursing homes, they found 21% exhibited signs of abuse including burns, dehydration, malnutrition, unexplained bruises, and poor hygiene. In the United States, there are 2500 reported cases of nursing home residents being physically abused annually. That is certainly only a fraction of the number of unreported cases. New efforts are being made to identify victims of nursing home abuse and neglect. Hospital employees are being asked to look for signs of abuse and neglect much the way pediatricians screen for child abuse. You can also be on the lookout for signs that a loved one is being abused or neglected by being observant and listening. Warning signs include pressure sores, bruises, weight loss, poor hygiene, anger, and behavioral problems. If you believe a loved one has been abused or neglected at a nursing home take action. You are invited to contact us for a free evaluation of your legal rights. - 9 - 10

• New Orleans Euthanasia Cases Come to Light
  Jan 29, 2009

  Workers at a New Orleans Long Term Care Facility euthanized several patients during the aftermath of Hurricane Katrina. Get the entire story in our document library. - 10 - 10