Nursing Home Law Blog : Nursing Home Lawyer & Attorney : Stark & Stark Law Firm : Elder Care, Senior Care

A recent study of nursing home risk factors conducted by the American College of Preventive Medicine shows that washing hands with soap and water is far more effective in preventing norovirus - a virus common in nursing homes characterized by vomiting and diarrhea - than using alcohol based solutions found in dispensers throughout most nursing homes and hospitals. 

However, what was also interesting in this study was the identification of another risk factor - low and part-time staffing.  The study found that other risk factors with high risk ratios were the use of part-time staff when the proportion of staff-to-patients was less than 1:2, and when the total staff-to-patient ratio was less than the industry median.

You can find how nursing homes are rated in regards to staffing on the Medicare’s Nursing Home Compare website. Nursing Home Compare rates staffing, like other measures, on a one to five star scale.

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People with a loved one in a nursing home often become drug experts.  Drugs such as Risperdal, Ativan, and Zyprexa are frequently used in nursing homes, and not always for the right reasons. 

Even though it is not allowed under Federal law or the New Jersey Responsibilities of Nursing Homes Statute, N.J.S.A. 30:13-3(f), nursing homes may use psychotropic drugs as “chemical restraints” simply to save time, make residents compliant, and for convenience of the staff.  This can be especially true in understaffed facilities. 

There are numerous risks involved with this practice, including drug dependency and side effects, not to mention the immorality of the practice. 

However, it does not have to be this way.  There are nursing homes where the owners and administrators have been moving to reduce the use of drugs in their facilities.  Here is a New York Times article discussing this problem and some alternative therapies getting excellent results - such as exercise, activities, music, massage, and aromatherapy.

One nursing home, “eliminated anything considered potentially restraining, from deep-seated wheelchairs that hinder standing up to bedrails (some beds are lowered and protected by mats). It drastically reduced the need for antipsychotics and medications considered primarily for ‘staff convenience,’ focusing on relieving pain.”  You can find an enlightening and inspiring discussion about this home online here. 

This same nursing home, which looks “outdated” and “institutional,” is actually a top rated five-star facility.  This facility reported that fewer medications and restrictions, along with alternative therapies and caring staff in adequate numbers produced great outcomes with residents suffering from Alzheimer’s and dementia. 

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Although a bit off-topic compared to what we normally discuss in this blog, I have become increasingly concerned about the profit-driven risks posed to the elderly by what have become known as "toner" shoes.  Multiple major sneaker companies have begun marketing  "toner" sneakers that provide little or no support  to the foot or legs - with the spurious claim that that same lack of support somehow replaces the need for exercise.  In other words, they claim that by wearing shoes that require the use of extraordinary effort simply to stand up or walk, consumers will be toned.
 
Most studies suggest that this is simply not the case.  More importantly, though, unsuspecting consumers are getting badly injured.  Some have suffered broken bones, while others have fallen and suffered significant brain injuries.  The cause for these injuries is two-fold:
 
In the first instance, the shoes simply do not provide the support that people need to get around.  Thus, they fall...often with major injuries.  This risk is most pronounced in the old and the frail.  Sadly, these are the folks to whom large corporations directly market their claims.
 
The second category involves repetitive stress injuries.  People wearing these shoes can place an unnatural burden on their bones when their gait is altered.  Over time, simply wearing the shoes has been alleged to have caused multiple fractures in the consumer - even those who are young.  Obviously, the risk is greater for older people with more brittle bones.
 
Here's an article by a very concerned physician, outlining the problem.
 
In the end, this is all about big business.  It is the fastest growing segment of the shoe industry - well in excess of a billion dollars a year.  Some have noted that with that kind of money involved, the injuries suffered along the way may very well simply be considered a cost of doing business - reminiscent of Ford's decision to save money on the Ford Pinto and the multiple lives lost because of that decision.

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The New York Times recently reported that Congressman Gingrey has had three claims filed against him, the most recent of which involved a payment of $500,000 to avoid allowing a jury of his peers to otherwise render a decision on his conduct. I took the time to read the entirety of the appellate division decision from Georgia, which found that the case had sufficient merit to warrant jury consideration.
 
Two aspects of that case were both disturbing and, perhaps, telling as to what motivated this Congressman to sponsor an anti-consumer/anti Constitution bill, such as HR 5:
 

1. Congressman Gingrey has recently characterized the case as a "distraction.” That distraction involved a dead baby and a partially paralyzed mother left in his wake.
2. There appear to be allegations in the case that the congressman, then a practicing physician, made false entries into an official medical record. Specifically, although there were medical entries on two specific days that Gingrey had seen and assessed this poor woman, her husband testified that he was with his wife all day and that Gingrey never saw or examined his wife. 

Here is a link to an article that analyzes the case. The article also contains its own link to the original New York Times piece.  Each day, more and more news outlets seem to be weighing in on this story. We will post other articles as they appear.

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In recent months the idea of tort reform has become a hot topic discussed by seemingly everyone from political pundits to business executives to injured men and women fighting for their rights. I found an interesting post online yesterday which discusses the need for a better understanding of tort reform – one that helps the Americans receive the legislative assistance they deserve, not one that takes it away from them.

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