America’s oldest generation deserves skilled, compassionate care and comfort when they live out their remaining years in a nursing home. Sadly, chronic understaffing, high employee turnover rates, and resulting overworked, overwhelmed caregivers result in an average of Five million nursing home abuse cases reported each year. Worse, this number is largely believed to be under-reported.
Whether you are looking for a safe, comfortable nursing home with high-quality care for yourself or a loved one, or you suspect nursing home abuse has occurred to a loved one in the care of a Kentucky nursing home, a local ombudsman is the one to turn to for valuable aid and access to key resources.
What Types of Abuse Occur in Nursing Homes?
It’s difficult to imagine that a vulnerable elderly person could become the target of abuse, but nursing home abuse and neglect is a growing problem due to an expanding elderly population and lack of qualified caregivers. Common types of abuse cases uncovered by ombudsman and family members in nursing homes include the following:
- Neglect: when caregivers give inadequate care to a resident and neglect their basic need for adequate nutrition, hydration, hygiene, social stimulation, and medical care
- Physical abuse: kicking, hitting, pinching, shoving, or unnecessary use of physical or chemical restraints against a resident
- Emotional abuse: bullying, berating, shouting, name-calling, or intentionally isolating a resident
- Financial abuse: unlawfully accessing a resident’s financial accounts to steal funds
- Sexual abuse: molesting, sexually assaulting, or raping a nursing home resident
A nursing home abuse victim or their family members may reach out to an ombudsman if any form of abuse occurs in a nursing home or long-term care facility.
What Is an Ombudsman?
A long-term care ombudsman serves as a liaison between a community and the nursing homes within the community. They are public officials who provide important oversight for nursing homes, protect the rights of Kentucky nursing home residents, and hold nursing home administrators and staff responsible for any abuse that occurs in a long-term care or nursing home facility. Those seeking a nursing home for themselves during pre-planning or for an elderly family member may visit their local ombudsman to research facilities in their area and review any histories of complaints.
What Does a Nursing Home Ombudsman Do?
Ombudsmen for long-term care facilities in Kentucky have a unique role in protecting the elderly and ensuring accountability for negligence or abuse in local nursing homes within a community. An ombudsman’s responsibilities include the following:
- Protecting the rights of nursing home residents
- Identifying problems in local nursing homes and navigating the best way to resolve them
- Visiting nursing homes and speaking to willing residents about their quality of care
- Providing services to residents such as transportation to medical appointments or access to legal services
- Staying up-to-date on laws and statutes, and government actions that impact nursing homes and ensuring the implementation of laws
- Providing educational materials to nursing home staff members, caregivers, and residents
- Investigating allegations of abuse or neglect and reporting abuse cases to the proper authorities
- Providing information on local nursing homes to the community
- Developing resident and family councils in nursing homes and long-term care facilities
- Recommend changes in procedures within nursing homes to ensure high-quality care
An ombudsman is an important resource for a community and an important first contact for those who suspect a loved one is the victim of nursing home abuse or neglect, but they do not provide legal counsel. Instead, they maintain an objective and impartial resource when resolving problems between nursing home administrators, residents, and families. For legal advice and pursuing claims, consulting with a qualified Louisville nursing home abuse attorney is essential.