Placing a loved one in a nursing home is a difficult decision and requires us to place a significant amount of trust in nursing home administration and staff. While these facilities are supposed to provide care and support for our loved ones in our absence, this trust is often broken, often causing serious injury to the most vulnerable members of our society. As family members and loved ones of nursing home residents, we are often the first line of defense to protect them from abuse. According to the National Center on Elder Abuse, the elderly may be reluctant to report abuse themselves because of fear of retaliation, may not have the cognitive or physical ability to report at all, or do not want to get the abuser into trouble. For this reason, it is critical for those of us with loved ones in nursing homes to familiarize ourselves with the signs of nursing home abuse so that we can take action if an elder cannot. It is important to keep in mind that while abuse can be physical, it can also be psychological or financial, so simply keeping an eye out for bruises and black eyes (which, of course, should still be alarming) is simply not enough. Here are some more common signs of nursing home abuse:
- Malnourishment
- Bruises
- Overmedication
- Unnecessary use of restraints
- A change in an elder’s financial situation
- Anxiety
- Depression
- Withdrawal from social settings
- A new “friend”
- Unsanitary living conditions