Main Types of Nursing Home Abuse
Nursing home abuse is a category of elder abuse that occurs when the elderly are abused or neglected while institutionalized in a nursing home facility. The caregivers in a nursing home staff have the responsibility of providing quality care for their patients. When their services become negligent or abusive, nursing home abuse has occurred. The main categories of nursing home abuse are teh following: physical abuse, sexual abuse, psychological/emotional abuse, and neglect.
Physical Abuse
Physical Abuse can be defined as any action that causes or creates bodily injury, pain, or physical impairment. The three main types of physical abuse found in nursing homes are assault, battery, and inappropriate physical restraint.
Sexual Abuse
Sexual Abuse in a nursing home scenario is any form of unwanted or non-consensual sexual contact. Most patients who are placed in nursing homes are dependent upon their caregivers, and their aging mental and physical condition makes them vulnerable to this form of abuse.
Emotional or Psychological Abuse
These forms of abuse occur when a patient is the victim of someone who wishes to cause them psychological and/or mental torment or suffering.
Neglect
Neglect occurs when the nursing home fails to provide the quantity or quality of care agreed upon in the patient’s personalized care plan. Patients in a nursing home are often dependent upon their caregivers for their daily nourishment, mobility, and bathing. There are two main categories for neglect: passive neglect, which is unintentional, and active neglect, which is intentional. Serious health conditions can occur when any form of neglect is present.
These are the main types and categories of nursing home abuse. Nursing home negligence and abuse are widespread national problems. Insufficient staffing due to greedy administrators has made cases of negligence and abuse in nursing homes all too frequent.