Chronic Hospital Stays
Nursing Home Abuse & Neglect
Many elderly and disabled people visit hospitals more frequently than others. However, if a nursing home resident is admitted to a Georgia hospital over and over again, it may be a sign of nursing home abuse and neglect.
In 2008, patients 65-years-old and older represented 40 percent of hospitalized adults and nearly half of all health care dollars spent on hospitalization, but comprised less than 13 percent of the population in the United States, according to an article called Hospital management of older adults by Melissa Mattison, MD.
People 85 years and older makeup only 1.8 percent of the total population but account for 8 percent of all hospital discharges. And hospitalizations and health care spending for older adults is expected to rise as the population continues to age.
What Georgia Doctors and Hospital Staff Should be Doing
To ensure a Georgia nursing home resident is discharged back to a safe and healthy environment, doctors, nurses, hospital social workers, and other hospital staff typically interview the patient and/or a family member to make sure the patient is not being abused and can manage when not at the hospital. Any red flags or concerns should be addressed at this time, especially if abuse or neglect is suspected.
Nursing Home Statistics
- 15,600 U.S. nursing homes (2014)
- 1.7 million licensed beds in the U.S. (2014)
- 24% of Americans die each year in a nursing home
- 90% of nursing homes are understaffed
- Nursing homes are notorious for forcing patients and their families to sign away their rights
- In 2008, approximately 269,000 complaints about elder mistreatment were registered and 78% of those related to nursing home care