Staff sexual abuse of nursing home residents

Cases of staff sexual abuse of nursing home patients are uncommon, but when they occur lives are destroyed, facilities’ reputations are tarnished and costly lawsuits are brought, according to Nursing Homes magazine.

Preventing sexual abuse starts with criminal background checks of prospective employees. Once a prospective hire passes the background check, a thorough interview should follow, in which the candidate is asked to respond to different scenarios to gauge how he or she would handle stressful situations. Once they’ve been hired, new employees should be taught how to handle abuse and report it anonymously.

The federal government requires nursing homes to report all allegations of abuse to state survey agencies. Beyond the notifications, nursing homes should:

* safeguard the resident and provide the medical and psychological care needed
* separate the alleged perpetrator from residents during the investigation
* immediately notify the family in a face-to-face meeting
* notify police
* consider bringing in outside counsel to help conduct the investigation

Diabetes prevention

Although most nursing facility patients who suffer from diabetes are diagnosed before they enter the facilities, the risk of diabetes increases with age, so long term care practitioners must look at practical methods of screening patients and implementing treatment that will prevent new cases.

A comprehensive program for diabetes prevention, prepared by Provider magazine, includes: * screening patients for hyperglycemia, which signals a pre-diabetes condition, during annual physical exam
* evaluating high risk patients via lab tests for levels of blood glucose, glycated hemoglobin, fructosamine and insulin
* assessing general nutrition, with prevention-oriented diets for high risk patients
* implementing weight loss program for overweight patients
* encouraging patients to maintain a healthy weight and diet
* promoting regular exercise programs

Diabetes prevention programs promote the health of your patients and save money by limiting patient hospital visits.