Nursing Home Abuse More Common than Statistics Indicate
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Some people think nursing home abuse is a “once-in-a-blue-moon” event. Unfortunately, it’s much more common occurrence than one would expect. The official data indicates between one to two million citizens over the age of 65 have been injured, exploited, or mistreated by someone they rely on to take care of them, according to National Research Council Panel to Review Risk and Prevalence of Elder Abuse and Neglect.
These numbers don’t fully reflect the actual number of nursing home abuse and elder abuse cases since there is no uniform reporting system and no comprehensive national data. The definition of nursing home abuse is another grey area since it’s challenging to categorize what would be construed as abuse, according to the National Center on Elder Abuse.
Here’s a shocking video, and clear example, of elder abuse…
As a personal injury attorney with over 20 years of experience representing clients who’ve been the victims of nursing home abuse, I understand this area of law. For example, in 2004, the Adult Protective Services Act was enacted which expands the number of “mandatory reporters” (i.e. people who are legally obligated to report abuse if they suspect such abuse is occurring). All individuals licensed, certified, or registered by health regulatory boards, excluding the Board of Veterinary Medicine, are “mandated reporters.” This includes dentists, pharmacists, emergency service personnel, and guardians.
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