Nursing Home Falls Statistics
According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), millions of people aged 65 and above experience falls every year. This translates to more than one out of four in this age group. These falls are often preventable. In nursing homes and assisted living facilities, these potentially injurious incidents could indicate neglect by staff whose job is to care for and assist the elderly.
Nursing Home Falls Prevention
With proper training, monitoring, and supervision of residents by staff, falls and the injuries they inflict on vulnerable individuals could be reduced or potentially eliminated.
Are nursing homes liable for falls?
If you believe your loved one has suffered a fall due to the neglect of the nursing home or assisted living staff, you can discuss your suspicions and concerns with Montgomery falls lawyer J.P. Sawyer. When you entrust the health and safety of your loved one to one of these facilities, you expect that trust to be honored.
Unfortunately, neglect and abuse in such facilities are known healthcare issues in the U.S. Our firm takes these cases very seriously and, where mistreatment or negligence causes harm to vulnerable residents, we take aggressive legal action to hold offenders accountable.
Has your loved one suffered a fall in a nursing home or assisted living facility? Book a free consultation with Montgomery attorney J.P. Sawyer by calling (334) 539-0604 or contacting us online.
Where do most falls occur in nursing homes?
According to the CDC, broken bones or other injuries are the result of one out of every five falls in the U.S. These lead to 3 million older individuals requiring treatment in emergency rooms. The elderly is more susceptible to falls due to their advancing physical weakness, loss of balance, and use of medications that can cause dizziness, drowsiness, and other problems. Aside from physical weakness, medications, and balance issues, falls in nursing homes often occur when a resident is being transferred from a bed to a wheelchair, walker, or toilet.
Assisting these individuals out of bed without proper strength, training, or experience a staff person can lead to accidents. Other causes of falls in these facilities can be slippery floors, loose rugs, uneven floors, raised thresholds, and electrical cords or wires.
Nursing Home Fall Injuries
Difficulties with walking and balance are a known risk for the elderly as evidenced by medical organizations and healthcare agencies, such as Medicare. When these individuals do fall, it can lead to serious injuries, especially when they are on blood thinners that can cause excessive bleeding.
Hip fractures are a common result of falls that require surgery, hospitalization, and long recovery times for the elderly. At least 300,000 older people require hospitalization for hip fractures of which over 95 percent are caused by falls. Additionally, traumatic brain injuries are mostly caused by falls.
After such falls, an older person’s overall physical strength is often greatly diminished. In the worst cases, they may never fully recover from fractures or head injuries incurred by falls. They may suffer a loss of mobility and independence as well as chronic pain, deteriorated cognitive abilities, depression, and more.