Even though few decisions are more heart-wrenching than choosing to place an elderly parent in a nursing home, relying on long-term care may be the best course of action for you and your loved one. Still, nursing homes are not perfect.
Put simply, nursing home abuse is a problem in Georgia. If your aging mother or father has bruises, bedsores or other signs of abuse or neglect, you must intervene as quickly as possible to boost your loved one’s care. You must also realize, though, that medication may be a problem at the nursing home. Here are some ways nurses get medication wrong.
Nurses rely too heavily on medication
Doctors and nurses rely on modern medicine to treat a variety of illnesses and injuries. While taking a pill may be the best way for your loved one to stay healthy, he or she should not take unnecessary medication. Unfortunately, though, nurses often use sedatives and other drugs to maintain control over their patients.
Nurses administer improper doses
As you probably know, nurses at long-term care facilities often treat dozens of patients while working long hours. While you may be able to trust healthcare professionals to act reasonably, mistakes happen. If a nurse administers an improper dosage of medication, your loved one may have either insufficient or excessive medication in his or her system.
Nurses fail to check drug interactions
Doctors, nurses and pharmacists receive extensive education on drug interactions. Before administering either prescription or over-the-counter medication, nurses should be sure new medication does not interact with other drugs. If professionals fail to check drug interactions, the error could be deadly.
Some signs of nursing home abuse are easier to see than others. If nurses in a long-term care facility do not administer medication correctly, your loved one may suffer. By understanding how medication errors occur, you can likely better advocate for your aging parent’s care.