The Risk of Falls from Bed can Be reduced
Falls from bed in nursing homes and other care facilities is a common way that residents suffer serious and life-threatening injuries. What would be a minor fall for most younger people and elderly person may be able to stop the fall and their bones are often more fragile due to age and/or osteoporosis. Medications may also play a role in how the injury occur. Others such as blood thinners may impact ways the injuries can be treated.
There Are Interventions Nursing Homes Can Take to Keep Residents Safe
Each resident should be assessed by a registered nurse and physical therapist, occupational therapist to evaluate their risk for falling in a care facility. The risk of falling from bed should be addressed as well. Common interventions include using a concave mattress which helps keep the resident safe from rolling out of the bed. Another way to decrease the risk of injury if a fall from bed does occur is the use of floor mats similar to wrestling mats, which absorb the force from a fall.
Bedrails can be used when there is a need and an assessment to the risks associated with bedrail entrapment or injury is weighed against the risk of falling. Often times there is a fall risk analysis using a flow chart or other method to determine if the use of rails or guards on the bed are appropriately used. There is a risk of entrapment of strangulation from the bed rails. There is also the idea that the rails are a restraint. In the past facilities would use bed rails to keep resident in bed as a management tool.
The use of bed rails is considered a restraint in some circumstances, and the use of bed rail guards is regulated by Minnesota Statute Section 144.651, Subd. 33, which states in part that
(a) Competent nursing home residents, family members of residents who are not competent, and legally appointed conservators, guardians, and health care agents as defined under section 145C.01, have the right to request and consent to the use of a physical restraint in order to treat the medical symptoms of the resident.
(b) Upon receiving a request for a physical restraint, a nursing home shall inform the resident, family member, or legal representative of alternatives to and the risks involved with physical restraint use. The nursing home shall provide a physical restraint to a resident only upon receipt of a signed consent form authorizing restraint use and a written order from the attending physician, advanced practice registered nurse, or physician assistant that contains statements and determinations regarding medical symptoms and specifies the circumstances under which restraints are to be used.
Contact Experienced Attorneys to Discuss Your Case
We have handled hundreds of cases of injuries and death suffered from preventable falls. Speak with us in a free no commitment or cost consultation, call 612-743-9048.
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Answer: We only charge fees and the related costs of recovery when our client receives a verdict or settlement in their favor.
Answer: Depending on the type of facility and care they are providing to residents. According to Minn. Stat. § 145.682 a "health care provider" includes all persons or entities providing health care, such as hospitals and nursing homes.
Answer: Yes, Pursuant to Minnesota Administrative Rule 4658.0300 USE OF RESTRAINTS, Subpart 1. definitions. For purposes of this part, the following terms have the meanings given.
A. "Physical restraints" means any manual method or physical or mechanical device, material, or equipment attached or adjacent to the resident's body that the individual cannot remove easily which restricts freedom of movement or normal access to one's body. Physical restraints include, but are not limited to, leg restraints, arm restraints, hand mitts, soft ties or vests, and wheelchair safety bars. Physical restraints also include practices which meet the definition of a restraint, such as tucking in a sheet so tightly that a resident confined to bed cannot move; bed rails; chairs that prevent rising; or placing a resident in a wheelchair so close to a wall that the wall prevents the resident from rising. Bed rails are considered a restraint if they restrict freedom of movement. If the bed rail is used solely to assist the resident in turning or to help the resident get out of bed, then the bed rail is not used as a restraint. Wrist bands or devices on clothing that trigger electronic alarms to warn staff that a resident is leaving a room or area do not, in and of themselves, restrict freedom of movement and should not be considered restraints.
Answer: The Minnesota Department of Health maintains a site to search for Health Care Provider Complaints. The site includes information about the complaints if they were substantiated as well as what measures were taken to improve the facility afterwards.
Answer: There is a Minnesota Adult Abuse Reporting Hotline Center (MAARC), which intakes elder abuse and neglect concerns and is answered 24 hours a day at 1-844-880-1574.