Courtesy of Carolyn L. Rosenblatt

By Carolyn L. Rosenblatt, RN, BSN, JD

Recently, there was a news report of another heartbreaking story of an elder who died of exposure after wandering outside a nursing home. She got lost and died in the cold. How does this happen? It’s not the first story I’ve read of such a tragic death. Aren’t the care facilities watching our elders?

The truth is, it’s hard to keep track of elders who get confused and wander. Care facilities that offer skilled nursing, as this facility did, are supposed to be able to monitor their residents and keep them safe at all times. Federal and state regulations mandate that safety precautions be taken to protect elders who are known to be confused and unable to protect themselves. What goes wrong?

I’ve read the citations from our state [California], hundreds of them, given to nursing care facilities that failed to keep their residents safe and something went terribly wrong. What goes wrong is that in every instance, the facility is violating its own policies and procedures by not paying attention, by being distracted, or by simply having incompetent staff.

What can be done about this? How can we prevent it? First, the state needs to more carefully monitor and significantly punish facilities that violate safety standards. A common consequence when the state finds a safety violation is a citation and a small fine to the facility. Guess that’s not doing the job, is it? Sometimes, these facilities need to be shut down. Cutting state budgets for enforcement of the rules literally costs lives.

Further, families need to become the safety police. They need to call their elder every day and visit whenever possible. I can assure you that the quality of care a nursing home resident gets has a direct relationship to how often family visits and calls to check on them. If your elder has a tendency to wander outside, be sure you insist that safety measures specifically tailored to your aging loved one’s habits and needs are in place. If you speak up, ask questions, and require accountability, your parent or loved one’s chances to stay safe are a lot better.

Carolyn L. Rosenblatt is a registered nurse and an attorney with 40 years of combined experience in her two professions. She and her husband, Dr. Mikol Davis, a psychologist, are the founders of AgingParents.com, a resource for those who are caring for aging loved ones at home or in facilities. She is a consultant to individuals and families struggling with aging-related issues and a mediator for families in conflict. Carolyn is also the author of The Boomer's Guide to Aging Parents, a nine-part series offering practical solutions to common legal and health care problems caregivers and adult children of aging loved ones face every day.

Published February 4, 2010