Deaths occurring among elderly nursing home residents often escape scrutiny. Doctors may classify possibly suspicious deaths as the result of “natural” causes, and as a result cases of abuse and neglect are not investigated. Reporters for ProPublica, in cooperation with PBS’ “Frontline” and other news organizations, conducted a review of…
Allegations of neglect and abuse in three different Michigan nursing homes have led to fines, firings, and lawsuits. Investigations uncovered horrific conditions in all three, including patient abuse, lack of proper hygiene and sanitation, and possible whistle-blower retaliation. The Michigan Protection and Advocacy Service (MPAS) reviewed nursing homes in sixteen…
A Kansas nurse accused of tampering with nursing home medications pleaded guilty to one count of adulteration of a drug and one count of consumer product tampering in a Topeka federal court at the end of November. Melanie Morrison admitted to diluting morphine solutions at the nursing home in Salina…
A former nursing home aide in Ohio has pleaded guilty to seven criminal charges related to evidence that she abused a patient in her care. Another aide is scheduled to go to trial in January on one count of abusing the same patient. Evidence of abuse was captured on hidden…
Two workers at a Staten Island nursing home lost their licenses as a result of the beating of a developmentally disabled resident. They also pleaded guilty to violating state health laws, and neither will work in health care again. The home itself was reportedly not cited with any violations. The…
A recent review by the Washington Post of lawsuits against pharmaceutical companies shows that drug manufacturers pay billions in settlements and criminal penalties for irregular and illegal marketing of prescription medications. Doctors who participate in the marketing schemes, usually by accepting kickbacks for prescribing particular drugs, however, rarely if ever…
A study conducted by the Poughkeepsie Journal has found that the state of New York has only succeeded twice in twenty attempts since 2007 to fire employees at local state-run facilities that care for the developmentally disabled. The Journal reviewed 1,900 pages of documents relating to disciplinary proceedings for 98…
Two recent incidents involving assaults on Maryland nursing home residents have led to indictments for abuse and assault. The incidents occurred in different facilities in nearby towns, but both involve nursing home employees allegedly assaulting vulnerable residents. The cases demonstrate the importance of vigilantly protecting the rights of nursing home…
The use of surveillance cameras to monitor treatment of elderly patients by nursing home staff, sometimes known as “granny cams,” is becoming more and more common in Maryland and around the country. While granny cams raise some concerns about the privacy rights of the patients, they have proven to be…
Recently, our Baltimore nursing home abuse blog discussed the financial abuse of elders–a hugely under reported problem affecting around 3.5 million seniors around the country every year. In recent nursing home abuse lawsuit news, a 68-year-old retired preschool teacher has sued a Seal Beach nursing home for elder abuse, alleging…