If you have a loved one in a New Mexico nursing home, then you likely understand the importance of nursing home safety. You want to know your loved one is not going to be exposed to safety risks. The reality is, though, nursing homes often are fraught with safety issues. There are a few reasons why maintaining a safe environment is so difficult in this situation.
According to Becker’s Hospital Review, studies have found one barrier to nursing home safety is communication. This is actually a barrier is many medical environments. When providers are not communicating clearly, it hurts everyone. Communication issues can cause lapses in care, medication errors or other situations in which a patient is not getting proper care.
Another issue, is the overall fear of getting in trouble by staff. If there is a safety issue, many workers are afraid to report it because they do not want to get into trouble. They may not report, for instance, that your loved one almost fell in the shower. This means that further safety measures cannot be taken to ensure a fall does not happen in the future.
Finally, access to technology is a barrier. If records are not kept accurately and are not shared well, this can be problematic. Having computers available allows for more organized records and can even help communication. It is much easier for everyone if all the records are in one easy-to-access place, which technology makes possible.
If you have safety concerns about your loved one’s nursing home, then it may help to discuss how they handle these three areas. It could help you to identify issues and bring up concerns to make the nursing home a safer place. This information is for education and is not legal advice.
