Violations Involving Verbal or Other Abuse and Neglect

The review of the state inspection reports reveals that, in addition to sexual and physical abuse, nursing home residents were subjected to verbal and other forms of abuse. For example, the state inspection reports documented instances where nursing staff told residents "If you hadn't sh*t all over yourself, I wouldn't have to clean your ass," and "I ... am sorry you were born," told residents that "they ate like a pig," told residents to "shut the f--- up," and called residents "a blob, "stupid," and "bitch."

In an Oklahoma nursing home, residents were subject to repeated instances of verbal abuse from staff. When a resident asked for her medications, a nurse aide told her that "she hoped the resident choked on them." In the same nursing home, a staff member was overheard saying that "the residents they didn't want to die did, and those they wanted to die didn' t.

This verbal abuse can have serious effects. In one Texas nursing home, two residents were subjected to repeated instances of verbal abuse and intimidation at the hands of an aide." One of the residents stated that a staff member would yell at him for using his call light and that the staff member would "tell him she didn't have time to be bothered with him." At other times when the resident used his call light, the same aide would come to the resident's room and yell at him, "What do you want now, you're always wanting something." The resident's roommate confirmed his fear of the staff member, and noted that he tried to transfer himself to avoid contact with the aide. The resident was so afraid of the abusive staffer that he did not seek any assistance even after he fell twice from his bed and fractured his hip. Only after intervention by state inspectors and a social worker from the Texas Department of Human Services was this employee forced to resign.

In some cases, nursing homes were also cited for abuse violations for intentionally denying basic care to residents. For example, in one Florida nursing home, a staff person forced a call light from a resident's hand, placed it out of reach, and refused to comply with the resident's requests for assistance on numerous occasions. When the resident required a bedpan at night, the staff person did not provide it, forcing the resident to urinate in bed and wait until morning for their diaper to be changed."

If you believe a loved one has been subjected to abuse, contact us for an legal evaluation of your situation.

* Special Investigations Division of the House Government Reform Committee in 2001

Terms and Conditions