Friday, March 8, 2013

Isolation in Nursing Homes


One of the biggest appeals of nursing homes is that they are big, open communities where elderly people can receive care and assistance while living in community with others. Often, nursing home patients become close friends with their fellow residents.

Nursing home attendants are often responsible for trying to facilitate this community feel. They must communicate with their patients, making them feel at home, and organize community events for the patients to get to know one another and entertain themselves.

Unfortunately, this does not always happen. Some attendants in assisted living facilities are abusive and isolate their patients from other residents. Additionally, the nursing home staff members may also neglect an elderly patient, refusing to talk to him or her entirely.

This may occur out of frustration, laziness, or a general lack of interest in the job. Sadly, this neglect that is so easy for nursing home attendants to commit may have serious, and even deadly, consequences for the affected residents.

It can be difficult to tell when an individual has suffered emotional abuse, especially when that abuse is isolation. The individual will likely show no physical signs, and he or she may not seem much different personality-wise either.

Many elderly individuals will not report instances of emotional abuse to their families out of fear or due to an inability to speak or act. As such, families should be very attentive to the care that their loved ones receive. Families that suspect that isolation is occurring should do everything they can to fix the problem.

Often, families will have to resort to legal action. When this is the case, families are advised to seek legal counsel from an experienced personal injury lawyer, who can help families build and fight their cases.

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