When your aging parents have mental and physical issues, it is often time to find the best assisted living home for them. There are hundreds of assisted living environments, but you should research carefully to find the best place. There are five red flags that you should look for while visiting nursing homes and researching the places online.
You can complete research on a computer to determine if an assisted living home has received complaints about elder abuse. These types of reports are often listed in newspapers or at your region’s licensing board. It is also possible to visit a local police station to order any reports concerning legal actions against a nursing home. Some larger cities have these types of reports listed at an online site, making it easier to order the documents.
It is also essential to determine if the assisted living home has any lawsuits concerning a wrongful death attorney . While the residents of a nursing home are often infirm, the management must make sure that the individuals receive proper daily care. If a resident of a nursing home dies because the person received the wrong medications or wasn’t transported to a hospital, then the person’s survivors can sue the assisted living home. There are many facilities that are amazing, but if one has a stain on their track record you should be able to ask what changes have been made in staff, reporting, and rules to prevent a negligent death from happening again. This can include being given the wrong medicine and medical negligence like ignoring symptoms and requests for medical support.
Your parents may need medications for various health issues, and if a nursing home has made numerous medication prescription errors, then it will have complaints about this issue. You can learn more about the complaints against a nursing home by checking your region’s licensing board for information. At an online website, the confirmed reports about medication problems with residents are often included as part of the assisted living home’s sanctions.
An assisted living home can also have complaints about negligent behavior that resulted in a health problem for a senior citizen. The failure to evacuate the residents of a nursing home during an emergency is often considered negligent. The assisted living home must have plans in place for emergency situations that include hurricanes, power outages and other problems that are dangerous.
There are strict requirements concerning having enough health care workers for a nursing home. This would include employing certified nursing assistants, registered nurses and physicians to care for the residents. The failure to have enough health care workers is dangerous when several of the residents require emergency assistance at the same time.
Parents Should Help with the Decision
Your parents should assist with the decision about moving into an assisted living home, and this will make the transition easier for them.
Odds are that you won’t find this for many of the facilities you are looking for, however, it is worth investigating before giving them power over your loved ones. If you do research for a new car, what TV or cellphone model you are going to buy next, you should probably give more attention when choosing where you are going to place your loving parents.
Meghan Belnap is a freelance writer who enjoys spending time with her family. She loves being in the outdoors and exploring new opportunities whenever they arise. Meghan finds happiness in researching new topics that help to expand her horizons. You can often find her buried in a good book or out looking for an adventure. You can connect with her on Facebook right here and Twitter right here.