Prevention of Nursing Home Abuse Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2500 words

Prevention of Nursing Home Abuse - Essay Example They are also not in a position to communicate the abuse and thus suffer in silence (IQ Nursing Homes.com, 2008). According to the reports from the U.S. General Accounting Office, 43% of elderly population will live in a nursing home during a lifetime and of these atleast 3 million will be subjected to abuse and atleast 300,000 will die following abuse and neglect at nursing homes (cited in Roberts, 2004). Abuse and negligence leads to violation of human rights of the elderly people who deserve to be respected and have the right to live with dignity and comfort. Infact, the very purpose of admitting then to nursing homes is to make them feel comfortable and get assistance round the clock. Exploitation of their physical and mental vulnerability by means of abuse and neglect needs to be condemned and prevented. Many organizations, groups, laws and reports have devised methods of prevention of abuse and neglect in nursing homes. This article explores some of the measures which help prev ent abuse and neglect. Abuse in the elderly can be physical, sexual, emotional or even wrongful death. Financial exploitation and abuse can also occur. Most of the times, abuse occurs by the staff of the nursing home. However, abuse can occur from other residents of the nursing home too. This article mainly concentrates on abuse from the staff. Abuse of the residents can lead to many consequences which vary in intensity ranging from mild discomfort to serious consequences like dehydration, starvation, serious injuries, bedsores and even death. The most common forms of abuse are neglect and caretaking mistreatment (Griffore et al, 2009). In majority of cases, abuse is not obvious and may be missed easily if a family member or a loved person is not watching intentionally.