Elder abuse at the hands of nurse’s aid

By Carl Saiontz
Posted March 6, 2008

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In another disturbing display of elder abuse, a Michigan nurse’s aid has been arrested on charges of urinating in a female patient’s hair and pouring liquid soap on her husband’s head. The abuse occurred at the couple’s Muskegon, Michigan home, and the aid currently faces criminal charges which could result in up to 15 years in prison.

Degrading and demoralizing acts of elder abuse such as this are surprisingly common throughout the United States. While this case occurred during home nursing care, many similar incidents occur at nursing homes and long term care facilities, where under-supervised and over-worked employees end up taking their frustrations out on residents.

>>INFORMATION: Nursing Home Abuse and Assault

Unfortunately, cases of elder abuse which do not result in severe physical injury often go unreported by scared residents and undetected by concerned family members. Despite the lack of physical injury, mental abuse, degradation, verbal threats, forced isolation and other types of elder abuse can still have a devastating impact on the emotional state of the victim and their quality of life.

It is important for loved ones to watch for signs of elder abuse, including:

• Unusual bruises or cuts
• Changes in behavior of nursing home staff or nurse’s aids toward family members
• Unexplained changes in behavior of the elderly patient to certain caregivers
• Unexplained hair loss
• Suspicious injuries

Nursing homes and companies who employ home nurses are required to screen staff and employees’ backgrounds before allowing them to care for residents. They also have an obligation to closely watch for signs of abusive behavior, aggression towards residents and other indicators which may suggest a problem with the employee. United Health Partners, the company who employed the man charged with the Michigan elder abuse, claims that they had no prior complaints involving this employee and that a background check performed two years ago “came back clean.”

Although the facts of this case of elder abuse are still being investigated by local police, many cases of nursing home abuse or elder abuse by private nurses can be prevented if the employer takes appropriate steps to investigate, train and supervise their employees. Unfortunately, the large corporations which run many nursing homes and employ home health aids, often spend considerably more time and effort researching their potential employee’s workers’ compensation claim history, instead of their criminal background.

ELDER ABUSE LAWYERS

The lawyers at Saiontz & Kirk, P.A. investigate potential elder abuse lawsuits throughout the United States which are suffered at the hands of a nursing home employee or home health aid. The lawsuits not only pursue compensation for the injuries suffered, but also operate as an important safeguard in our society to ensure that employers follow the proper standards of care to reduce the risk that these types of incidents will occur in the future.

If you suspect that a family member or loved one has been the victim of elder abuse or neglect, request a free consultation and claim evaluation.