What Are the Biggest Complaints in Nursing Homes?
Falls are the biggest complaint in nursing homes. About a third of nursing home residents fall each year, according to official statistics. Authorities estimate that the number is woefully underreported, and the actual figure may be closer to two-thirds. We go into detail about nursing home falls, and other common safety complaints in nursing homes, below.
Most elderly fall victims cannot live independently again. Because of their serious injuries, and also because many nursing homes sweep these incidents under the rug, a Carlsbad personal injury lawyer can obtain substantial compensation in these cases. This compensation usually includes money for economic losses, such as medical bills, and noneconomic losses, such as pain and suffering. Additional punitive damages are available as well, in some extreme situations.
Falls
Nursing homes are supposed to be places where older adults go to recover from serious illnesses or injuries. Unfortunately, during their stays at long-term care facilities, residents often sustain additional injuries, such as fall injuries.
Under California law, long-term care facilities have a duty of care to provide safe and secure premises. The extent of that responsibility varies according to several factors, such as:
- Victim’s status (invited guest, trespasser, etc.),
- Cost of preventing the injury hazard,
- Likelihood of serious injury,
- Owner’s control over the premises, and
- Owner’s knowledge of the hazard.
Common fall hazards in San Diego nursing homes include uneven walkways, wet spots on floors, and loose handrails.
Nursing home understaffing contributes to injury risk, such as fall injury risk. Construction area falls are a good example. Well-staffed facilities station employees near construction zones to prevent residents from eloping (aimlessly wandering) into a hazardous area. Poorly-staffed facilities don’t have such safeguards, even though the duty of care probably requires it.
Making matters worse, many residents cannot see construction signs or construction-related floor hazards, such as debris or holes.
Bedsores
Understaffing also contributes to pressure ulcers. Turning over in bed once every two or three hours effectively prevents these injuries. But many nursing home residents are too weak or medicated to turn themselves over. Instead, they depend on patient care technicians and other staff members. At understaffed facilities, these workers are often unavailable, especially on weekends and other low-census periods.
On a related note, many understaffed facilities ask PCTs to make rounds that nurses or doctors should make. PCTs often cannot spot early-stage bedsores and intervene to prevent these injuries from becoming life-threatening.
Staff-on-Resident Assaults
As mentioned, many nursing home residents are quite frail. Therefore, a slight push or shove from a staff member, such as a shove into a room, could cause a serious injury.
Once again, understaffing contributes to these injuries. Many nursing home employees make little money and work long hours. As a result, their patience is short. When these ticking time bombs go off, people, usually residents, get hurt.
Resident-on-Resident Assaults
Emotionally, many nursing home residents are like small children. Petty disputes over a preferred seat in a common area sometimes turn violent.
The aforementioned duty of care includes a duty to provide reasonable security. If nursing homes fail to protect residents against themselves, a Carlsbad personal injury lawyer can obtain compensation for resulting injuries.
Count on a Savvy San Diego County Lawyer
Injury victims are entitled to substantial compensation. For a confidential consultation with an experienced personal injury lawyer in Carlsbad, contact the Pursley Law Firm. We routinely handle these matters throughout the Golden State.
Source:
oig.hhs.gov/reports/all/2025/nursing-homes-failed-to-report-43-percent-of-falls-with-major-injury-and-hospitalization-among-their-medicare-enrolled-residents/
