Being a staff member in a nursing home requires extensive training and education to simply earn the credentials necessary to care for and treat elderly residents. Just from a medical standpoint, your elderly loved one in a nursing home may require around-the-clock care that only trained medical professionals like nurses can provide. Worse yet, there are times when your elderly loved one may have an incident or other accident that requires immediate, specialized care. So, when the nursing home staff isn’t properly trained, it can lead to serious consequences.
In California, negligent training can be devastating for both residents and the staff. It refers to a situation where the staff of a nursing home hasn’t been adequately trained to provide the necessary care to the residents, which can lead to preventable injuries and other accidents.
Maison Law Can Help You Hold California Nursing Homes Accountable
When your elderly loved one isn’t provided the necessary medical care they need, California law lets you hold nursing homes and improperly trained staff members accountable for the damage they cause. At Maison Law, we believe every nursing home resident in California has a basic right to be treated with care and dignity while in a nursing home. Unfortunately, abuse and neglect are an ongoing issues.
If you or a loved one has been the victim of nursing home abuse or neglect due to negligent training, it is important to contact our team of experienced California nursing home abuse lawyers. We can help you hold the nursing home accountable for its actions and ensure that you receive the benefits and support you deserve. Contact us today to set up a free initial consultation.
What Are Training Requirements For Nursing Homes in California?
In California, the Department of Public Health (DPH) is responsible for the regulation of nursing homes and care facilities throughout the state. Among the most important aspects of regulation in nursing homes is providing staff with comprehensive training to ensure the safety and well-being of residents.
The state has established specific requirements that nursing homes must meet in terms of staff training, which include:
- Orientation training – All new staff members must receive orientation training that covers the nursing home’s policies and procedures, resident rights, and emergency protocols.
- Continuing education – Nursing home staff members are required to receive ongoing education to maintain their skills and stay up-to-date with changes in regulations and best practices.
- Infection control training – Another requirement for nursing home staff members involves receiving training on infection control, including how to prevent the spread of infectious diseases. Infections are incredibly common and extremely dangerous for elderly nursing home residents, so the proper treatment of them is vital.
- Abuse prevention training – Nursing home staff members must receive training on identifying and preventing abuse and neglect of residents.
- Resident care training – Nursing home staff members must receive training on how to provide basic care to residents, including bathing, dressing, and feeding.
- Medication management training – Nursing home staff members who administer medication must receive specific training on how to do so safely and accurately.
While nursing homes are required to provide ongoing training to ensure that their staff members are adequately prepared to provide the best care possible to residents, there are often examples of this training failing to meet these standards. In those situations, it can lead to abuse or neglect. Thus, it’s helpful to know what to look out for if you believe your elderly loved one is being abused in their nursing home.
What Are Some Warning Signs of Negligent Training in California Nursing Homes?
One of the issues with nursing home abuse in general is that it’s often difficult to detect. This is especially true because most abuse and neglect occur subtly when a caregiver has uninterrupted or isolated time with your elderly loved one. But there are always warning signs of abuse and neglect, and along those same lines, there are always warning signs of negligent training.
These warning signs may indicate that the nursing home staff members that care for your elderly loved one are not adequately trained:
- High turnover rates – High staff turnover rates can indicate that the nursing home is not investing in its employees and providing them with adequate training.
- Inadequate staff-to-resident ratios – If there are not enough staff members to attend to the needs of the residents, it can indicate that the nursing home is not investing in its staff or providing adequate training.
- Inconsistent care – If the care provided to residents is inconsistent or varies from one staff member to another, it can indicate that training is not standardized or effective.
- Frequent medication errors – Medication errors can be a sign of inadequate training or poor communication between staff members.
- Lack of staff knowledge – Staff members who lack knowledge about the medical conditions, medications, or treatment plans of residents can indicate that the nursing home is not providing adequate training to its staff.
- Ignoring residents’ needs – If staff members consistently ignore residents’ needs or fail to respond to requests for assistance, it can indicate that they are not adequately trained to provide care.
- Failure to follow protocols – If staff members consistently fail to follow protocols, such as infection control or fall prevention protocols, it can indicate that they are not adequately trained in these areas.
- Resident injuries – Frequent resident injuries, such as falls, bedsores, or infections, can indicate that staff members are not trained to identify and prevent these issues.
While these are common signs of negligent training, it’s important to understand that every nursing home abuse claim is unique. Generally speaking, though, if you begin to notice these signs in conjunction with other out-of-the-ordinary behavior from your elderly loved one, it may be time to take the necessary steps to remedy the situation.
Proving Negligent Training in a California Nursing Home Abuse Case
There are two elements to proving negligent training in a California nursing home abuse case: establishing negligence and providing evidence. In the context of nursing home abuse, negligence is any action that goes against a reasonable standard of care that should be provided to the residents. In practice, this involves the following:
- The nursing home had a duty to provide adequate training to its staff members.
- The nursing home breached this duty by failing to provide adequate training to its staff members.
- The nursing home’s failure to provide adequate training was the cause of your elderly loved one’s injuries or damages.
- Your elderly loved one suffered damages as a result of the nursing home’s failure to provide adequate training.
To prove negligent training, you must provide evidence that the nursing home failed to meet its duty to provide adequate training to its staff members. This evidence could include the following:
- Video or photographic evidence – Video or photographic evidence of staff members providing inadequate care or failing to follow proper protocols can provide evidence of negligent training. This is typically among the strongest pieces of evidence in these types of cases.
- Documentation – Documentation, such as staff training records and incident reports, can provide evidence that the nursing home failed to provide adequate training. Incident reports and complaints about nursing homes and staff members are publicly available from the DPH.
- Testimony from expert witnesses – Expert witnesses can provide testimony regarding the standard of care for nursing home staff members and whether the nursing home failed to meet that standard.
- Witness testimony – Witness testimony from staff members or other residents can provide evidence of negligent training, especially in nursing homes that either outright failed to give training or were not thorough.
Filing a Claim
The ultimate goal of proving negligent training is to file a claim for damages against the nursing home. To that end, It’s essential to work with our team of experienced California nursing home abuse lawyers. We can help gather and present this evidence to the insurance company or even in court, should we file a lawsuit on your behalf.
We can also help establish the full extent of the damages suffered by your elderly loved one, such as:
- Medical expenses
- Pain and suffering
- Emotional distress
- Lost income or earning capacity
- Loss of enjoyment of life
- Punitive damages
With the right evidence and legal representation, it’s possible to hold negligent nursing homes accountable for their failure to provide adequate training to their staff members. Our team can help make sure that your elderly loved one and other residents are protected from nursing homes that foster an environment of abuse.
Contact Experienced California Nursing Home Abuse Lawyers Today
When you believe your elderly loved one is being abused in their nursing home, time is of the essence. Every second that they are forced to live in that environment is one closer to potentially being injured. At Maison Law, we stand up for the rights of elderly nursing home abuse victims. We can make sure they receive adequate treatment and that nursing homes take their responsibility to them seriously. This includes making sure that staff members are adequately and properly trained for whatever needs the residents have.
If your elderly loved one has suffered abuse or neglect in their California nursing home, don’t hesitate. Contact us today for a free consultation.
