Staffing issues are often cited as the cause for nursing home neglect cases as facilities may cut back on personnel in order to increase their own profits. These nursing homes could end up liable in a lawsuit when family members sue for injuries that their loved ones suffer at the hands of negligent nursing facilities. Many injuries can be tied to low funding and the reluctance of the nursing home to spend what is necessary to care for its residents.
Nursing Homes Economize on Staffing to Save Money
Nursing homes are typically for-profit businesses with a bottom line. Oftentimes, they are owned by large companies that have shareholders to appease. Staffing is an expense for these facilities, and it is often one of the highest costs. Though a strain on the budget, staffing costs are necessary obligations in order to provide a respectable standard of care to residents. Otherwise, many crucial tasks may go unaddressed.
Staffing issues are the underlying catalyst to many common causes of lawsuits that nursing homes face. For example, infections are a leading cause of death in nursing homes. Many of these infections can directly be tied to a lack of nursing assistants to change residents and help them with their hygiene. Other residents may be injured by bedsores. A lack of staffing means that these patients are left in the same position for an extended period of time and do not have existing pressure ulcers cleaned and treated.
Underfunding Leads to Untrained Staff
The lack of spending also shows itself in untrained staff left to perform a job prematurely. It takes training to be able to perform day-to-day duties and provide adequate care in a nursing home. Without proper training, staff may not know their role and how to keep residents safe and healthy. They will also not know how to handle the stress of their job, and that pressure could keep them from devoting each resident the attention that they need.
Nursing Homes Are Legally Responsible When Residents Are Injured
The focus is heavily based on profit for nursing homes. Families often cannot get their loved ones the care that they need to survive, and they are forced to contact a nursing home negligence lawyer when their relative is injured at the hand of penny-pinching facilities.
