elder abuse law | Dinizulu Law Group, Ltd

Why Do Nursing Homes Drug Dementia Patients Without Their Consent?

May 5, 2020/in Blog/by Yao Dinizulu

The Human Rights Watch estimates nearly 179,000 people in nursing homes are administered antipsychotic drugs every week without having a diagnosis for which the drug is approved. The use of antipsychotic drugs as chemical restraints has a long, disturbing history in nursing homes. Many times, staff members use antipsychotics to convenience or “discipline” a resident.

Manufacturers have faced many civil and criminal penalties in the last decade for the misbranding of the medication to promote the drug as appropriate to treat older people suffering from dementia. The Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has required manufacturers to place a “black box warning” on the packaging, advising against the medicine and the side effects it may have on an individual. Antipsychotics being administered to someone with dementia almost doubles the risk of death for them and have never been approved as safe or effective. Despite the warning, nursing homes still administer antipsychotic drugs, sometimes without informed consent first, which is a violation of federal regulation and a person’s human rights.

Antipsychotics are powerful drugs developed to treat schizophrenia; however, nursing home staff often administer them to those with dementia for the sedative effects. Government regulations prohibits the use of drugs as chemical restraints or without informed consent.

Antipsychotics are misused for a variety of reasons, including the misperception by nursing homes that medications may help those with dementia, lack of awareness of the danger of the drug, lack of training in dementia care, and possibly the most significant, to compensate for understaffing. Kaiser Health News found that nursing homes have been exaggerating levels of nursing and caretaking staff for years, according to The Washington Post.

In most cases, antipsychotic drugs are administered in a harmful way without the appropriate consent. Nursing home residents and family members have reported the resident was given the medication without their knowledge, awareness of risks or dangers, or any objections of their own. Staff members have admitted they we not aware of an informed-consent policy, rather they gave it to the resident out of their own convenience. Nursing staff, pharmacists, and medical directors commonly prescribed medication to residents without even seeing them.

Antipsychotic drugs are a favorite among psychotropic medications in nursing home facilities because dementia is associated with aggression, anxiety, agitation, delusions, disinhibition, irritability, and wandering. Federal regulations say residents have a right to be informed of their treatment, or their right to refuse treatment; however, nursing homes ignore these rules, partly because they are rarely held accountable.

An 81-year-old man in Texas spoke out about his experience being over medicated, saying, “too many times I’m given too many pills. I can’t even talk. I have a thick tongue when they do that. I ask them not to give me the antipsychotic drugs. When I say that, they threaten to remove me from the home. They get me so I can’t think.”

The Human Rights Watch found 97 percent of citations for violations at nursing homes were related to antipsychotic drugs from 2014 to 2017. In almost no cases, the government did not impose financial penalties, leading to the likelihood of it occurring again. Nursing homes are mostly a for-profit industry, controlling most aspects of their residents’ lives.

If you or a loved one is injured due to a medication error you believe was unnecessary or wrongfully given, reach out to one of our experienced nursing home abuse attorneys. We have helped thousands of wronged victims get the justice and compensation they deserve. With over 50 years of combined experience, our verdicts and settlements have helped clients have a peace of mind and security. Please call the Dinizulu Law Group at (312) 384-1920 to schedule a free consultation or visit our website for more information.

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Sedating Residents Suffering From Dementia is Nursing Home Abuse

February 4, 2019/in Blog, nursing home neglect/by Yao Dinizulu

A study by the Human Right Watch finds that 179,000 nursing home residents are being given antipsychotic drugs, even though these residents don’t have schizophrenia, bipolar disorder, or other serious mental illness these drugs are designed to treat.

What’s troubling is that these drugs are being given to residents with dementia. These antipsychotic medications come with a black box warning from the FDA, specifically stating these drugs shouldn’t be given to dementia patients. This black box warning is because antipsychotic drugs have been shown to increase the risk of death in patients with dementia.

Yet this is exactly the type of residents nursing homes are targeting with these medications. Almost 300,000 nursing home residents get these drugs. Rather than taking proper measures, such as investing in training programs, developing care plans that address behavior linked with dementia, or hiring staff qualified to work with dementia patients, many nursing homes are instead sedating patients to make them docile. In understaffed nursing homes, this practice is even more common.

Such nursing homes are essentially willing to play dice with their residents’ lives rather than providing quality care and hiring adequate staff. Undermining the entire service of their profession—which is to care for their residents—such nursing home are succumbing to awful practices to essentially control their residents.

If you or your loved one in a nursing home is injured due to a medication you believe was unnecessary or wrongfully given, know that there are options for you. Our Chicago nursing home abuse attorneys have helped over thousands of wronged victims get the justice they deserve. With over 50 years of combined experience, our verdicts and settlements have reached have helped many get peace of mind and arrive at a place of security. Call the Dinizulu Law Group, Ltd. at 1 (312) 384-1920 or 1 (800) 693-1LAW to schedule a free, initial consultation.

How to Find the Right Nursing Home for Your Loved One?

November 19, 2018/in Blog, nursing home neglect/by Yao Dinizulu

There are many factors to keep in mind when choosing the right nursing home for your loved one. Should you find one that’s located near your parent’s residence or near yours? Is my mom still independent or does she need nursing home care? As questions like these and many other come to mind a good place to start is by evaluating the quality of care in nursing homes you may be considering.

Many nursing homes participate in Medicaid and Medicare programs that are responsible for funding these nursing home care facilities in Chicago and nationwide.

Medicare has a 5-star rating system that evaluates nursing homes based on the quality of care they provide. Factors like inspection results and staffing levels and many others come into play to rank nursing homes accordingly. Anyone who is considering a nursing home for themselves or for a loved one should first look at how the nursing home in their chosen area ranks.

Problems such as understaffing can be revealed through these Medicare rankings. Know that understaffing is one of the major causes of nursing home neglect. Kaiser Health News recently reported 1400 nursing homes received lower rating due to shortages in staffing.

Gaps in understaffing have caused malnutrition or dehydration for elderly residents to the point where families have lost loved ones. Understaffing is also linked several other signs of neglect. Residents who have limited mobility are at a higher risk to develop bedsores and other infections that are likely to go untreated and turn into life-threatening conditions in understaffed facilities. Elderly residents are already at a higher risk to recover from common illnesses. Add a nursing home that doesn’t provide adequate care and serious harm can happen to a loved one.

While many caregivers mean well, they cannot realistically provide all the needed care for all residents if it’s their employer that’s cutting corners. Nursing homes make a deliberate choice to save expenses by not hiring the needed staff. When the staff-to-resident ratio is unbalanced, nursing home neglect in a Chicago facility or elsewhere becomes inevitable.

While we encourage everyone to stay informed about the nursing home facilities in Chicago or elsewhere where you and your loved one may get the best care, nursing home neglect can happen in any facility. If you or your loved one is hurt in a nursing home due to lacking care, know that there are options for you. Contact the Chicago nursing home neglect attorneys of Dinizulu Law Group, Ltd. With over 50 years of combined experience, we have helped thousands of injured victims get justice and full and fair compensation at the time when they needed it the most. Reach our nursing home neglect lawyers in Chicago at 1-312-384-1920 or 1-800-693-1LAW, or by email.

Quality Care Harder to Find for Residents with Mental Health Issues

October 5, 2018/in Blog, nursing home neglect/by Yao Dinizulu

Our elderly loved ones often need care in a nursing home if they face a mental condition like Alzheimer’s disease or other forms of dementia. This study performed by the University of Rochester School of Medicine and Dentistry in New York found that nursing homes with the highest Medicare rating are the ones least likely to admit patients with mental health conditions.

Even manageable conditions like depression and anxiety lower a resident’s chance of acceptance in the best facilities by 8%. With bipolar disorder, patients were 11% less likely to go to a five-star facility; the odds were 28% lower with schizophrenia, 27% lower with a substance abuse problem, and 32% lower with personality disorders.

Even after excluding dementia and Alzheimer’s disease, which are among the most common causes of nursing home admissions, people with other mental health conditions account for about 50% of all nursing home residents. Knowing these figures, we can only conclude that most five-star facilities are not accessible to the patients most in need.

As a result, what happens is patients with the most needs, such as those who need help with basic daily activities, such as bathing, dressing, and eating, end up in one-star facilities. These facilities receive low ratings due to violations in the quality of care. Meaning, these facilities are already not meeting their existing obligations to all their residents. Add a resident with many physical or mental needs to such a facility and the problem becomes worse.

When a resident with Alzheimer’s or another mental health condition has limited residency options and ends up in a one-star facility, that resident becomes more prone to nursing home neglect. One-star facilities have low ratings because they do not hire adequate staff, have poor training protocols, and may not even be well-versed in dealing with residents with mental health needs, even though many such residents are ending up in these facilities.

At the same time, we should all know that nursing home neglect can happen in any facility. The rate of nursing home neglect has been rising in Chicago and nationwide. Our Chicago nursing home neglect attorneys are here to help if you or your loved one has been harmed in a nursing home. With over 50 years of combined experience, we have recovered millions in verdicts and settlements. Our nursing home neglect lawyers are here for you. Call us at 1 (312) 384-1920 or 1(800) 693-1LAW, or reach us by email.

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What Measures Should Nursing Homes Take to Prevent Infections?

September 28, 2018/in Blog, nursing home neglect/by Yao Dinizulu

Because of the number of patients they house, large residential facilities such as nursing homes are more prone to infections and contagious diseases. But there are precautions and safety measures nursing homes are expected to know and follow that prevent the spread of disease, and can prevent an individual resident’s condition from turning into a large-scale outbreak.

Only four pathogens—influenza virus, norovirus, salmonella and S pyogenes—make up more than 50% of all infectious agents involved. These common viruses and bacteria are easy to tackle if a nursing home has a proper system of infection control and prevention. While many of us have caught and easily recovered from these illnesses, for the elderly they can cause serious health complications, and may even lead to death.

Influenza Virus
All seniors over 65 are recommended by the CDC to take a flu shot every year around fall. In a nursing home especially, the doctors, nurses, and staff must remain aware of this recommendation and communicate it on patient charts and medical records. Furthermore, all nursing home staff members need to understand the protocols of disease prevention and control. Basics such as changing gloves and washing hands, need to be known and fully followed by staff. Unfortunately, these factors get overlooked in understaffed nursing homes. Employees get overwhelmed by the number of residents they must care for, and they start bypassing even the most basics steps in infection control.

Norovirus
Caregivers, if infected, can easily spread norovirus to residents by having close contact, such as by caring for, or preparing food for them. These are the main duties of caregivers at a nursing home. The dietary department is responsible for preparing residents’ meals, and nurses and other caregivers interact with residents daily. Imagine how many residents could get sick from a sick staffer who prepares their food. Nursing homes should not only have policies that encourage their staff to stay home when they are sick, but also invest in educating all staffers regarding how they can prevent the spread of disease.

Salmonella
Knowledge of food preparation and safety must be known to nursing home staffers, especially those responsible for handling food. Uncooked or undercooked food are usually the cause of salmonella. Many other food-borne illnesses are also easily preventable when a nursing home properly implements food safety guidelines.

Streptococcus
Streptococcus, the bacteria that causes strep throat, can result in more serious conditions such as rheumatic fever, streptococcal toxic shock syndrome, and pneumonia. Streptococcus can spread through airborne droplets when someone with the infection coughs or sneezes. You can also pick up the bacteria from a doorknob or other surfaces and transfer them to your nose, mouth, or eyes. Therefore, because streptococcus is so contagious, it is important for nursing homes to have proper measures in place that can prevent an individual’s sickness from turning into an outbreak.

What You Can Do?
Know that there are options for you if you or your loved one has suffered injury at a nursing home due to an untreated bacterial/viral infection. Our Chicago nursing home neglect attorneys fight for you and hold these care facilities accountable for their wrongdoings. The Dinizulu Law Group, Ltd. has over 50 years of combined experience that we put to the test everyday fighting for you. Contact us for your free, initial consultation. We can be reached at 1 (312) 384-1920, 1 (800) 693-1LAW, or by email.