Common Nursing Home Injuries
According to nursinghomeabuseguide.org, more than 3.2 million adults reside in a nursing home in the United States. With that many people, of course there are bound to be injuries that occur. Some nursing home injuries are nothing more than an accident, but there are times when negligence, abuse, or misconduct on the part of the nursing home is at fault.
Bed Sores
Bed sores are probably the most common injury seen in nursing home residents. These sores are the result of a person being in the same position for a lengthy period of time. Bed sores are commonly seen on a person's tailbone, hips, heels, and ankles. These sores are usually seen in patients who are bedridden and cannot move on their own. Bed sores are usually the result of the nursing home staff being negligent in their duties.
Slips and Falls
The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention states that approximately 1800 nursing home residents die each year due to a slip or fall and that between 10% and 20% of slips and falls in nursing homes result in serious injuries. Sometimes, these injuries are the result of the patient experiencing muscle weakness or an imbalance issue. However, sometimes these injuries are due to poor conditions in the nursing home like poor lighting or wet floors. They can also be caused by the person's wheelchair not being properly fitted or their bed not being adjusted to the right height for them.
Medication Errors
Most nursing home residents require several different medications on a daily basis. If you have several hundred residents in one nursing home, that is a lot of medications. This is normally the reason for medication errors, which include giving someone the wrong dosage or even the wrong medication. Other medication errors including the staff not considering the patient and the medication's side effects or not considering whether or not multiple medications will cause an adverse reaction when taken together.
Malnutrition
Individuals who are in a nursing home are not just provided with medical care, but their grooming and nutrition needs are to be met as well. If someone is not getting the adequate nutrients that they need, malnutrition will soon set in. Sometimes, malnutrition can be the result of the patient experiencing a decrease in their appetite or things like chewing and swallowing have become difficult.
For more information, contact Gelman Gelman Wiskow & McCarthy LLC or a similar firm.