According to findings recently posted by the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) and the Office of Inspector General (OIG), nursing homes fail to report 43% of falls with major injuries. Nursing homes have poor compliance with fall reporting requirements mandated by the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS).

As a result, the public does not see accurate fall rates when evaluating providers on CMS' Care Compare website. Nursing homes do not report 43% of falls that lead to major injury and hospitalization in MDS resident assessments as they are required to.

The MDS or Minimum Data Set is a questionnaire that nursing homes fill out regarding each of their residents designed to ascertain the resident's condition and needs. The MDS asks if the residents have any skin breakdown. The MDS includes questions regarding whether the resident has suffered any falls. Nursing homes are failing to report significant falls with injury in 43% of cases in these MDS's.

The non-reporting percentage was even higher, 45% among larger nursing homes with more than 160 beds. Nursing homes were also less likely to report major falls for younger residents and for male residents. Nursing homes did not report 54% of major falls experienced by short-stay residents. They failed to report 27% of major falls experienced by long-stay residents.

Clients often call us at The Dickson Firm and ask us how best to select a nursing home for their loved one who needs nursing home care. We often direct them to Medicare.gov where they can compare nursing homes near them. Medicare.gov evaluates nursing homes on a five- star rating system, where five stars is the best, and one star is the worst. Nursing homes have an overall five-star rating. They also have a staffing rating. The incidents of falls with major injury goes into their overall rating. However, as this report reveals, that rating is not necessarily accurate since so many falls are not reported.

The Medicare.gov website can still be used as a valuable tool for people trying to find a good nursing home for their loved one. However, after reviewing that rating, families seeking to place a loved one in a nursing home should definitely visit each nursing home they are considering. Often when visiting a nursing home, whether or not that nursing home provides good or bad care is readily apparent.

One thing to be aware of is that nursing homes often have a popcorn machine in the lobby of the nursing home. This seems like a nice touch until you learn that the reason that they have a popcorn machine in the nursing home is that the smell of popcorn is very strong. Often nursing homes put a popcorn machine in the lobby to cover up the smell of urine and feces. If you are thinking about placing your loved one in a nursing home, you should definitely tour that nursing home. Do not just tour the lobby or the common areas, but walk throughout the entire nursing home. You can either schedule a tour with the administrator of the nursing home, or you can just show up and walk around the nursing home.

Nursing homes should not be closed off to the public. You should be allowed to come and go as you please and visit your loved one when they are a resident there. As you walk around the nursing home, do you see staff? Do you see nurses and aides attending to the residents. Are there nurses at the nurses' station? Are there nurses and aides in the various rooms with the residents.

If someone you love is already in a nursing home, we recommend you visit your loved one at all different times. Visit them in the morning. Visit them at lunchtime. Visit them in the afternoon. Visit them in the evenings. When visiting with them in their room, push the call button and see how long it takes for someone to respond. If you loved one has specific needs, you need to have a detailed discussion with the administrator and the director of nursing as to how that nursing home is going to meet their needs. If they're at risk for falls, then they need to have a specific plan to prevent falls and to prevent injuries caused by falls. Does the nursing home use alarms? If they do not, what is their plan for keeping your loved one safe.

Nursing homes are legally required to provide their residents with adequate supervision to prevent accidents. What is their plan to give your loved one adequate supervision? If a nursing home does not use alarms, how do they keep an eye on their residents, particularly in the evening.

Imagine a wing of a nursing home with 35 residents being attended to by a nurse and two aides throughout the night shift. How are those three people keeping an eye on 35 residents? Imagine the nurse is in one resident's room giving them medication, and the two aides are in another resident's room transferring them to the bathroom. Who is keeping an eye on the remaining 33 residents? How does the staff know if somebody is getting up in their room without alarms?

The best advice that we give people who have loved ones in a nursing home is to visit often and ask questions. If anything occurs that causes you concern, make sure you request an explanation. Does your loved one have unexplained injuries? Visit your loved one at meal times. Are they being taken to the dining room. If they need assistance with eating, are they getting it? If they are supposed to eat in their room, is someone in there to help them. Is the food delivered on time? Is the food hot? Are they giving your loved one foods that your loved one enjoys. One of the biggest things we see in nursing homes are issues with nutrition.

There is a direct correlation between nutrition and hydration and the development of bedsores. There is a direct correlation between nutrition and hydration and falls. Residents who are not receiving adequate nutrition and hydration are at risk for any number of issues.

If someone you love has been neglected or abused at a nursing home, please call us at The Dickson Firm at 1-800-OHIO-LAW as we would be happy to talk with you and help you in any way that we can. We work with clients across Ohio – from Cleveland to Toledo, from Steubenville to Columbus.