Iowa Nursing Home Abuse
Nursing Home Abuse News in the State of
Iowa:
December 2005
"
Iowa Nursing Home Complaints Rise Dramatically"
Iowa nursing home complaints have risen a staggering 34 percent in the last year, a new report has determined. The rise in complaints is the largest such jump in at least five years. The new findings fly in the face of state reports that say the quality of care in Iowa nursing homes is improving.
Dana Petrowsky of the Iowa Association of Homes and Services for the Aging said that nursing homes were reporting more cases of complaints than usual because of new laws put into effect in Iowa.
The statistics actually paint another picture, however. Since the percentage of self-reported claims has not changed dramatically, and the new laws were regarding that form of nursing home abuse reporting, Petrowsky's statement seems unlikely. Substantiated complaints have remained stable at about 33 percent.
Since 2003 Iowa has revoked the licenses of six nursing homes in the state and some 24 nursing homes are facing a denial of Medicaid funding, both up significantly from previous years. Fines against nursing homes increased from 2004 to 2005 to $787,000, up 38 percent from the previous fiscal year.
While many state officials in the past have said that just a few bad nursing homes were the cause of most of Iowa's complaints, a closer look at the more recent numbers suggests that the problem is more widespread than previously thought. In fact, the number of different nursing home complaints jumped over 60 percent. Theft was up also, at a very high 78 percent increase from the previous year.
Despite the increase Iowa still has one of the lowest rates of nursing home abuse cases in the country.
October
2003
"Iowa Nursing Home Abuse on the Rise"
Over 300 nursing home abuse complaints during 2002’s fiscal
year were referred to Iowa criminal investigators. This is an increase
of 92% of nursing home abuse complaints from the previous year,
but still not one Iowa nursing home company or owner has been charged
with abuse yet. The Iowa nursing home abuse reports have been severe,
yet the state imposed regulatory fines against the homes that make
it cheaper for owners to keep paying for fines instead of adding
more staff.
An Iowa nursing home in particular had 13 shifts one month with
just one nurse on duty to care for up to 98 residents according
to state records. That nursing home was fined $3,500 in November
for all the problems and the home stated they did have enough workers.
When inspectors cited the home again for inadequate staff eight
weeks later, no fine was imposed.
Inadequate staffing is the biggest cause of nursing home abuse
neglect according to federal officials, but many states like Iowa
do not have specific legal requirements for staffing except to indicate
it must be adequate. For more information on Iowa nursing home abuse
contact us.
Contact a Iowa Nursing Home Abuse
Lawyer
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