Falls are a common and dangerous occurrence in nursing homes across Maryland. When a resident falls at a nursing home they are in danger of suffering broken bones, head trauma and even death. Broken bones are a greater threat to the health of a nursing home resident than they are in younger people. Broken bones can lead to loss of mobility which, in turn, can result in pneumonia, loss of appetite, bed sores, and infections. Falls can also result in serious head injuries and death.
Nursing homes are required to regularly assess each resident to determine whether they are at risk for falls. If so, the nursing home must take measures to prevent dangerous falls and to provide a safe environment.
There are several ways nursing homes can provide a safe environment for a resident, including:
- Having enough employees to provide proper supervision, monitoring and assisting to residents who are at risk for falling.
- Using safety devices to prevent falling.
- Using bed alarms and chair alarms to help warn employees that a resident is at risk for a fall.
- Regularly assessing the resident and updating the care plan specific to that individual to insure that all necessary steps are taken to prevent falls.
- Keeping the floors clean and free of clutter to prevent tripping hazards.
When a nursing home makes the choice to have an inadequate number of staff members on duty they are putting residents at risk for serious injury. When a nursing home chooses to provide training that lacks the necessary emphasis on preventing falls, they are jeopardizing the safety of residents. A nursing home that makes decisions in the best interest of the corporate balance sheet over the safety of the residents may be held liable for the injuries suffered by the resident.
Injuries directly related to nursing home falls:
Pneumonia
Studies have shown that 25% of elderly people who fall and break their hip will die within six months of the injury. Pneumonia is a common complication from hip fractures because the resident is no longer able to get any exercise. Exercise is one of the most effect means of preventing pneumonia in the elderly. When an elderly person is able to walk, they are getting exercise that causes them to expand their lungs to the fullest. After a fall that results in a hip fracture, elderly people tend to recover slower than those who are younger and are less able to get any exercise because of being bedbound. This lack of exercise has a direct connection to the lack of lung expansion which, in turn, has a direct connection to the development of pneumonia. Unfortunately, the pneumonia is often fatal.
Subdural Hematoma (Head Injury) or Broken Neck
When a nursing home resident falls they may hit their head on a table, chair or the floor. They rarely have the mental ability or physical strength to cushion a fall with their arms. As a result, nursing home falls often result in skull fractures, subdural hematomas, brain injuries or broken necks. Sadly, these injuries are often fatal. If the resident does survive the initial injury, they may suffer from long term brain trauma or paraplegia.
Bed Sores
If a nursing home resident is able to walk and move about on their own, they are substantially unlikely to develop a bed sore. However, when a resident falls and suffers an injury, they may lose their ability to walk and be mobile which often results in them being confined to a bed or a wheelchair. When the resident loses their mobility, they are at the mercy of the nursing home which often has too few poorly trained staff members responsible for meeting the resident’s activities of daily living. Because of the inadequate number of staff members, residents may be confined to their beds and wheelchairs for hours on end. When a resident remains in one place for too long the prolonged pressure may result in a bed sore (also known as a pressure sore). Left untreated, bed sores can create serious health problems for the resident including severe pain, infection, amputation and even death. For more information about bed sores refer to our bed sore page.
What can nursing homes do to prevent residents from falling?
Nursing homes can prevent many of the falls that happen in nursing homes. One of the most basic and most important approaches they can implement is supervision and monitoring. Unfortunately, while supervision is one of the easiest things for a nursing home to do, it is one of the least utilized because most nursing homes are severely understaffed. They simply do not have an acceptable number of employees on duty at any given time to adequately supervise and monitor all of their residents.
The pressure at the facility level to meet the shoestring budget typically prepared by the corporate home office is enormous. Unfortunately, it is the nursing home residents who end up paying the price of the nursing home profit strategy.
What should a nursing home do when a resident falls?
Residents who fall must be immediately evaluated by the nursing home staff to determine the extent of the resident’s injuries and why the resident fell. When a resident dies in a fall or suffers injuries in a fall, the resident’s physician and family members must be notified immediately. Unfortunately, what happens far too often is that nursing home employees will do a quick physical assessment of the resident and not call family members or medical personnel. It is not usual for a resident to suffer for several days with a broken bone or internal injury before being sent to a hospital.
What seems so obvious to most people is confusing to many nursing home employees. If a resident has suffers a serious injury in a fall, the resident should immediately be sent to a hospital. There are three main reasons why nursing homes fail to send injured residents for medical care:
- Lack of training. Whether it is due to bad management, high turnover or lack of funding, it is clear that nursing homes regularly fail to provide adequate training for their employees.
- Insufficient staffing levels to manage the extra work involved in getting a resident to the hospital.
- Cover up. Nursing homes know that they can receive a citation from the state and a monetary fine if a determination is made that their failure to follow the regulatory rules or their own policies result in an injury to a resident.
What should you do if your family member is a fall risk?
If you know that your loved one is a fall risk, there are several things you can do to improve the care they receive at the nursing home, including:
- Make sure the nursing home does a proper fall risk assessment.
- Visit the nursing home at different times. You do not want the nursing home to know your schedule. Don’t be predictable!
- Insist that the proper number of employees are available to transfer your family member to or from the bed or wheelchair.
- Insist that nursing home employees use all required precautions when assisting your family member with walking.
- Attend every care plan meeting and take notes on what nursing home officials say they are going to do to prevent your loved one from falling. Ask the nursing home officials to sign your notes and place them in your loved one’s chart. Be sure to keep a copy of the signed notes!
- If there is a fall, insist on knowing the details of how the fall occurred and what changes will be made to prevent future falls.
We can help if your family member has been injured in a fall at a nursing home
Our attorneys have been successful in resolving cases favorable to our clients and their families where nursing home residents have been severely injured or suffered death after suffering one or more falls at a nursing home even though the nursing home had promised to keep the family member safe. If a family member or loved one has been suffered injuries or death as a result of a fall at a Maryland nursing home, contact Nursing Home Justice Associates at 1-410-825-ABUSE (2287) to learn more about your legal rights.
Nursing Home Justice…..It’s What We Do.
Other Injuries Suffered By Nursing Home Residents:
Bed Sores, Pressure Sores, Decubitus Ulcer
Burns
Choking
Clogged Breathing Tubes
Falls
Malnutrition & Dehydration
Medication Errors
Physical Abuse
Restraints & Bedrails
Sepsis/Infection
Sexual Abuse
Wandering & Elopement