Nursing homes are complex places that rely on the help of many different kinds of people for their maintenance of high standards of care. Some of the main reasons for such a dire need for assistance includes the volatility of elder patients’ health and the stress of fixing oftentimes lacking healthcare systems.
Getting proper help and information from nursing home abuse attorneys can drastically improve your capabilities of navigating through the world of senior living – even on its legal side. Joel Bryant is one of these attorneys, joining the effort to more effectively communicate people’s rights and deepen their understanding of nursing homes’ problems and the people who solve them.
What Exactly an Ombudsman Is
Nursing home ombudsmen’s primary goals are to ensure the overall wellbeing of the seniors that live in a given facility. They help to resolve issues related to the legal rights, safety, and health of seniors. This is oftentimes achieved through education, promotion, and collaboration. Every state in the United States of America has a Long-Term Care Ombudsman Program that organizes the paid and volunteer work that the ombudsmen do.
Nursing Home Ombudsmen as Mandated by Law
The Older Americans Act is an act that was passed by the United States Congress in 1965. It was the first piece of legislation aimed at delivering sweeping healthcare coverage and medical support to aging Americans around the country. While it established important organizations such as the State Units on Aging, the Administration on Aging, and more, it marked the founding of the famed National Ombudsman Reporting System.
This system requires that data be collected on national, state, and local levels regarding abuse, complaints, and negligence. This system is incredibly useful to administrators as it helps them meet the specific needs of senior citizens in their facilities. Additionally, lawmakers are better informed on legislation that could be created with the intention of providing more nursing facilities in communities with overflowing senior living homes, for example.
Daily Tasks of an Ombudsman
The daily duties of an ombudsman are structured around protecting and providing a better quality of life for the senior residents of a nursing home. In short, they are advocates for the senior, attempting to improve any problems that they may have with healthcare. They may be contractors or employees hired by a facility, government, university, or organization.
Ombudsmen will:
- investigate claims made by senior citizens and their loved ones on the individual level, eventually attempting to resolve them.
- try to uncover larger-scale operational or systemic issues within healthcare facilities and report them through the proper channels for eventual resolve.
- identify and attempt to find solutions to issues in the context of the entire private or public sector of healthcare in a given region of the country.
Any Nursing Home Issues? Contact a Nursing Home Abuse Attorney Today
California nursing home abuse attorneys often work with ombudsmen to get a better picture of the issues that a facility or resident is experiencing. As the U.S. is rampant with cases of senior abuse and negligence, there is an essential need for lawyers like Joel Bryant who are committed to the improvement of nursing home systems in the country. Reach out to Joel Bryant today to learn how your case of San Diego nursing home abuse could be remedied in a quick and decisive manner.