Arkansas Nursing Home Cited for Abuse and Neglect

Earlier this month in Arkansas, a local nursing home and care facility was cited for abuse and neglect of patients by the Department of Health and Human Services. According to a report by one local news source, the nursing home was cited for several failures, including:

  • Failure to provide proper supervision during patient transfers, resulting in a high instance of patient injuries. In one instance, a patient fell off a mechanical lift and hit her head on the ground.
  • Inadequate nurse training regarding the equipment that is used to move patients to and from their beds. Employees reported not being instructed at all on how to use this equipment that is crucial to their job.

The Department of Health and Human Services interviewed several employees about the level of training they received to use the mechanical lifts used to move residents. Not one employee told the Department that he or she had been adequately trained to use the lifts. In fact, the only employees who reported receiving any training told the Department that they only received the training after the woman fell off the lift.

When supervisors were asked how long it had been since they trained employees on how to use the lift, they were evasive at first, but they eventually answered that it had “been a long time, about a year” since any training was given.

The Importance of Nursing Home Training Programs

Nursing homes, like hospitals, are charged with the care of their residents. It is extremely important, therefore, that everyone on a nursing home’s staff knows exactly what is expected of them and how to perform all aspects of their job. This requires the proper training and continuing education throughout an employee’s tenure.

Failing to train a nursing home employee can result in a situation like the one described above, where a resident suffers a serious preventable injury. In such a case, it may not only be the nursing home employee’s fault, but also the fault of the nursing home that failed to adequately instruct the employee on how to handle the situation.

Reports like the one issued by the Health and Human Services Department are helpful to nursing home accident victims in showing a past pattern or practice of negligence and abuse.

Is Your Loved One Being Abused or Neglected?

If you have a loved one in a nursing home and you believe that he or she is being neglected or abused, you should do everything in your power to ensure that he or she is removed from that facility. After you have ensured his or her safety, contact a dedicated Maryland personal injury attorney to discuss the possibility of filing a negligence suit against the home for the injuries your loved one sustained as a result of the inadequate care. All too often, nursing homes get away with neglecting or abusing their patients because no one reports the abuse. If you hear of abuse or neglect, report it. Click here, or call 410-654-3600 to schedule a free consultation with a Maryland nursing home negligence attorney today.

See More Blog Posts:

New York Nursing Home Questioned After Another Patient Death, Maryland Nursing Home Lawyer Blog, published August 18, 2014.

Staffing Shortage May Have Been Responsible for Boy’s Death at Maryland Group Home, Maryland Nursing Home Lawyer Blog, published July 28, 2014.

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