Drug Crackdown Causes Unnecessary Suffering in Nursing Homes

04 Nov Drug Crackdown Causes Unnecessary Suffering in Nursing Homes

When a loved one moves into a nursing home, we usually feel some sadness over the loss of their former independent life, but feel that the new move will offer some much needed security and extra care. The elderly often need some form of assisted living at some point and nursing homes offer different levels of medical care to meet those needs. At least that is the concept, in theory.
The reality is that sometimes residents of extended care facilities are not receiving the help they so desperately need, in a timely manner. As reported in an article on long-term care site, Mcknights.com, a recent drug crackdown by the Drug Enforcement Administration is delaying required medication to residents of these kinds of facilities, resulting in a form of nursing home abuse.

The effort by the DEA is intended to lower or eliminate the incidence of drug stealing and drug abuse by staff members in nursing homes. Anyone who will get arrested for drug-related charges should consider hiring Drug Crimes Attorneys for their defense.

This directive forces staff who work in these facilities to contact a physician whenever a patient needs medication. The doctor must then write a prescription and fax it to a pharmacist before a nurse can administer the drug to the patient. Considering that many nursing home facilities do not have doctors regularly on site and many patients need treatment during non-business hours, this can lead to residents getting meds late and a great deal of unnecessary suffering.

For the most part, nursing home staff do their best to provide a caring and comfortable setting for their residents. Regrettably, there are times when circumstances arise that cause needless distress. If you have a loved one who has been the victim of nursing home abuse, we can offer a free assessment of your case. We deal with these kinds of cases and can advise you of your options.