Is This a Sign of Nursing Home Neglect?

When Washington residents leave a loved one in the care of a nursing home, you expect staff to meet their needs. You expect staff to treat them with kindness and compassion. What you do not expect is for staff to abuse or neglect the residents they look after. Unfortunately, this is a reality in the nursing home industry. Today we will look at some red flags you should keep an eye out for. 

Changes in the residents 

U.S. News looks at potential signs of bad care in a nursing facility. These signs are sometimes hard to pick up on at first glance. This is what allows bad nursing homes and abusive caretakers to continue at the job for so long. For example, many changes may occur in the residents. They may look like they are losing weight. They may develop more bedsores or other injuries. Their personality may go through changes. Agitation and depression are common in victims of abuse or neglect. 

Abusers take advantage of the fact that residents often cannot speak up. They target elderly individuals. This is because reports of abuse are easy to overlook due to mental health. They often talk away the issues these residents bring up, blaming health conditions. 

Suspicious staff behavior 

You should also pay attention to the way the staff behaves. Are they disorganized, frantic or inadequate? Is the nursing home understaffed more often than not? Is it a “revolving door” of employees, where people quit with a high frequency?  Does the staff answer your questions in a clear and straightforward way? Or do they deflect questions and leave them unanswered? Disorder and secrecy among staff is another huge red flag and you should be on the lookout for it.