Rise in Patient-on-Patient Assaults in Nursing Homes

Recently, there have been alarming reports of nursing home assaults committed by criminal offenders and mentally ill residents in nursing homes. A non-profit nursing home resident's advocacy group located in Oklahoma, called A Perfect Cause, discovered that 1,600 registered sex offenders were residing in nursing homes. Additionally, the group found that there were more than 60 rapes, murders, and assaults committed by criminal offenders in nursing homes.

A Perfect Cause found that over the years nursing homes have become places where those with mental illnesses, drug addictions, and criminal offenders reside. For example, according to numbers provided by the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services, about 125,000 young and middle-aged adults with serious mental illnesses were living in U.S. nursing homes in 2008.

There has been a rise of patient-on-patient assaults in nursing homes. Specifically, according to the federal Administration on Aging, in 2000 the number of patient-on-patient assaults was 5,000, and rose to 5,515 in 2003. Furthermore, in 2003 the number of patient-on-patient sexual assaults increased by 51 percent to 1,302. Due to this increase in violence, families of patients who have been assaulted have initiated civil lawsuits.

Some experts believe the rise is attributed to improper supervision of elderly patients and patients with mental illnesses at nursing homes. Another reason for the rise is the intermixing of young, mentally ill patients with elderly, defenseless patients.

According to the Associated Press, more mentally ill patients are placed in nursing homes because of the closure of some state mental health institutions, and the availability of beds at nursing homes.

Violent Assaults at Nursing Facilities
The Associated Press described several incidents of assault occurring at nursing home facilities. One incident involved a 77-year-old man who died at a nursing home in South Toledo, Ohio, about 10 days after his roommate, who was 62-years-old, beat him with a bathroom towel bar. The roommate was later found to be incompetent to stand trial.

In 2003, a 23-year-old Connecticut woman, residing at a Hartford nursing home, was arrested for starting a fire that killed 16 patients at the nursing home. The woman had multiple sclerosis, and suffered from dementia and depression. She was later placed in a mental institution after she was found that she lacked the mental capacity to stand trial.


Nursing Home Bill of Rights
The Nursing Home Bill of Rights (NHPBR), which is a federal law regulating the kind of care nursing home patients should receive from nursing homes that receive Medicare or Medicaid, mandates that before a mentally ill patient can be placed in a nursing facility, he or she must be screened by a state mental health authority. The state mental health authority must evaluate the patient and determine if the patient needs the level of care that a nursing home provides.

After this determination is made, a decision must be made as to whether the patient needs specialized care, such as certain therapies and activities for the patient. If specialized care is required, then a team consisting of a doctor and mental health professionals must develop a plan of care.

To protect the health and safety of the other nursing home residents, nursing home administrators must follow the NHPBR regulations and implement them accordingly. If you suspect that your loved one has been injured because of the actions of another patient, and the nursing facility is not providing adequate care or supervision, contact me today for a consultation.