If you have a loved one in a nursing home in New Mexico, then you probably have concerns about his or her safety. When you looked for a nursing home, you likely did research and looked at its reputation. You may have inquired about instances of abuse. Your main goal was to ensure your loved one would be well cared for and safe.
The unfortunate reality, though, is no matter how thorough you were in your research, things may be happening at the nursing home that has gone unreported, so there would be no way you would ever know it had a safety issue. According to NPR, many cases of nursing home abuse are not reported to the proper authorities.
The law requires reporting serious cases, but about a fourth of all such cases were never reported to law enforcement. The government has become aware of the issue and is taking steps to remedy it, but in the meantime, evidence has been destroyed and residents have had their rights taken away by not being able to get justice for what happened to them.
Many times it is the nursing home that is at fault because they want to cover things up. Having abuse reported looks bad on them, which is something they do not want. However, if they are not reporting it, then you would never know that a nursing home may be a bad place to send your loved one.
You can help, though. If you are ever alerted about abuse, ask the nursing home staff if it was reported. If it was not, then you should report it yourself. This information is intended to educate and is not legal advice.
