Medication Issues
Most residents in skilled nursing facilities (SNFs) and other elder care facilities need to rely on medication in order to treat an illness or maintain their health. In some cases, elderly relatives are shifted to care facilities in the first place because they need extensive care, with periodic visits from doctors and a never-ending prescription to be followed. However, their mentally and physically frail condition requires a skilled caretaker to help take the medication and, if required, go in for appointments to have their medications adjusted by a doctor.
Nursing homes and any other care facilities are required to suitably order, store, administer, record, and monitor medications for each patient or resident. Despite the presence of strict laws and regulations, over-medication and unnecessary medication is common in elder abuse cases.
At Lanzone Morgan, we understand all the ins and outs of the laws governing the adequate administration of medicines in care facilities and SNFs. Our attorneys have years of dedicated experience regarding the handling of elder abuse cases in which medication errors lead to complexities and even death.
The diverse experience that the attorneys at Lanzone Morgan have picked up over the years allow us to aggressively advocate for each client and successfully obtain the best possible results.
California law requires each nursing home to ensure that every resident’s medicine routine is free from unnecessary medication.
The law describes unnecessary medication as:
If you feel that an elderly loved one is not being provided adequate care regarding their medication at a nursing home, you should look for the following signs:
If you notice any of these symptoms, or any other likely symptoms that point to over medication or the administration of unnecessary medications, you should get your loved one checked and consider reporting the nursing home to the local police department or the California Department of Licensing for SNFs.
A medication error is a dissimilarity between the facility’s actions and either physicians’ orders, acceptable medical standards, or manufacturer’s specifications. In case a medication error causes problems for the resident and leads to health complications, it is considered as abuse.
A study conducted in 2010 concluded that almost 40% of elderly residents were given anti-psychotic drugs around the United States, even though they were not diagnosed with psychosis. Still today, staff members of a large number of nursing homes are involved in intentional medication errors, which put the lives of many elderly residents at stake each year.
If you or an elderly person close to you is facing abuse due to medication errors, be sure to call us at (562) 512-5505 to speak with our Certified Senior Advisor about your case!
