Cape Cod Personal Injury Lawyer - Nursing Home & Elder Abuse

The Crime of the 21st Century? Elder Financial Abuse

Bruce Bierhans — Thu, 16 Jul 2009 09:33:54 GMT

On the heels of our Harwich elder securites fraud case:

Fred Joseph, president of the North American Securites Administrators Association has described elder financial abuse as "the crime of the 21st century". A column in todays Washington Post by financial writer Michelle Singletary expands upon the comments.

The typical victim? A 75 year old woman living alone (what a surprise!). Typical scams?

Forging signatures on legal instruments; promising lifelong care in exchange for money or property; using credit cards without authorization, and con men involved in scams by gaining victims trust (in the Harwich case, our conman desribed his involvement in his church at length).

The article also describes certain red flags to watch for as fraud alerts. See www.na-saa.org and search for "Senior Investor Resource Center".

By way of update on the Harwich case. Positive negotiations are progressing.

Bruce A. Bierhans

Originally posted at InjuryBoard by Bruce Bierhans

Update on Cape Elder Securities Fraud Case

Bruce Bierhans — Sun, 12 Jul 2009 09:42:32 GMT

http://www.bostonherald.com/business/general/view.bg?articleid=1183759

A while back, I wrote about a case involving an 86 year old Harwich woman that was victimized by a financial adviser (so he said) that she met at a Harwich Senior Center investor forum.

This past week, after investigating our clients' claims, Secretary Galvin filed a 43 page securities fraud claims against all potentially responsible parties. Named in the suit were Robert Blaisdell and the Economic Development Finance Corporation.

Our office is further investigating potential claims against an attorney that claimed she was an "elder law attorney" and may have played a role in the scheme, along with Mr. Blaisdell. Once our investigation is complete, additional civil claims will be filed on behalf of our client by our office.

I cannot stress enough how important it is to know who you are dealing with when discussing your personal finances. The fact that someone speaks at a Senior Center does not, unfortunately, mean they are legitimate.

The link above provides you with further information. Feel free to call our office if you feel you have been the victim of securities fraud or any other type of investor fraud.

Bruce A. Bierhans

Originally posted at InjuryBoard by Bruce Bierhans

Elder Abuse Rises in Massachusetts

Carrie Strasser — Fri, 13 Feb 2009 12:37:06 GMT

The Boston Globe reported on Monday that economic stress is causing more family caregivers to abuse and/or neglect elderly relatives. This is not only due to economic pressures on the individual families, but also because the social services that once provided much needed assistance with elder care, are being scaled back.

Dale Mitchell, the executive director of Ethos, a Boston nonprofit that runs the city's protective services program, explained that families taking care of elders are under an enormous amount of stress in this present economy.

Mitchell said his office received 134 reports of alleged elder abuse and neglect in January, the highest for any month in the agency's 32 years of running the program. Because of the caseload, workers are more frequently "triaging" cases, investigating only the most serious ones, Mitchell said.

Mr. Mitchell's, Ethos, is only one of almost two dozen programs in Massachusetts under contract with the state that investigates allegations of elder abuse. In the past, approximately 30 percent of these allegations were confirmed and now, that number is at more than 60 percent in the first quarter of this fiscal year.

Investigators have seen a spike in financial exploitation cases where family members have taken an elder member's life savings.

Directors of these programs explain that what has hurt family caregivers the most is the cut in state-subsidized homecare services. This service sends aides to elders' residences a few hours per week to assist with personal care and household chores. Since October, almost $4 million was cut from this program, resulting in a waiting list of 675 people.

The current economy has placed added pressure on every aspect of our lives, so it's no wonder that family caregivers are finding it more difficult to provide for their older relatives, while also trying to take care of themselves. But, added financial stress should not lead to abuse of our elderly loved ones. Here are some helpful tips to identify elder abuse.

Originally posted at InjuryBoard by Carrie Strasser

Nursing Home Ratings

Bruce Bierhans — Sun, 04 Jan 2009 12:40:59 GMT

Believe me...when I wrote my last post on Nursing Homes in my Cape Cod Barrister blog on CapeCod Today, I had no idea that nursing home grading would be the headline story in the Cape Cod Times just a few days later. Perhaps my timing is so good, I ought to buy a lottery ticket!

In any event, what do we learn from the study conducted by the HHS Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services?? As for Barnstable County, we learn that 45% of homes were ranked "above average" and 33% were rated "below average". On Cape Cod, 17% of the homes received the lowest coveted (tongue planted firmly in cheek) one star rating, compared with 14% statewide. Although Norfolk County received the lowest percentage of one star ratings, that happens to be the county where many of my cases to date have originated. In this county, how do you feel if your Mom or Dad is in one of the one star facilities or one of the 33% that were rated below average. Probably not warm and fuzzy.

What do these statistics tell us. Not much really, other than the fact that, as I have stated previously, due diligence and monitoring your family members care is paramount. Tragedies can occur in the best and worst of homes. For example, let me give you a brief rundown of the types of cases we have handled on behalf of client families. These will give you a beginning primer on what to look out for. Some of these cases have occurred in homes that were high end and sparkling.

a) Development of bed sores and other ulcerative conditions and the failure to treat the conditions when they occur;

b) Falls, frequently multiple falls, resulting in serious injury or death. This is the most common type of case we have handled. Patients "at risk for falls" are supposed to be assessed upon admission and closely monitored thereafter, with assistive devices, i.e lap buddies with wheelchairs, to prevent falls.

c) Failure to administer medication or actual overdosing of the patient. Again, a situation that results in serious injury or death;

d) Assault and Battery and theft. Yes, patients can be physically and emotionally abused behind closed doors. In addition, we have seen multiple cases where there is a theft of personal property.

Nursing homes are subject to a myriad of state and federal regulation because of their receipt of federal and state funds. The maze of regulations and payment options can be confusing to the best and the brightest. However, your first course of action is to be informed and to be an aggressive advocate for your family member. I will talk in later posts about some of these issues with more specificity.

Originally posted at InjuryBoard by Bruce Bierhans

Nursing Home Neglect

Bruce Bierhans — Thu, 04 Dec 2008 14:24:47 GMT

We are seeing an increase in calls from individuals complaining about the care and treatment received by family members in nursing homes.

We are hearing horror stories about bedsores, falls, broken bones, physical abuse, theft and emotional abuse. Many calls involve homes in which you would not expect such incidents to occur. Even when family members are actively involved in patient care plans and communicate with nursing home supervisors, neglect may still occur.

Our office has handled many of these cases and have a resource network of experienced nurses and physicians, some specializing in geriatric medicine, that assist us in evaluating these cases. When you have questions to be answered, we are there to help.

Originally posted at InjuryBoard by Bruce Bierhans

Over 90% of U.S. Nursing Homes Violate Federal Standards

Carrie Strasser — Tue, 30 Sep 2008 08:34:35 GMT

In a report issued yesterday, federal investigators stated that 94% of nursing homes were cited for health and safety violations last year with problems ranging from infected bedsores and medication mistakes to general abuse and neglect.

About 17 percent of nursing homes had deficiencies that caused “actual harm or immediate jeopardy” to patients, said the report, by Daniel R. Levinson, the inspector general of the Department of Health and Human Services.

The report found that for-profit nursing homes had more violations than nonprofit homes and government homes. A major problem cited by the report was the lack of the institutions' ability to maintain an adequate ratio of trained staff to patients.

Deficiencies varied from state to state and the President of the Nursing Home association, Bruce A. Yarwood, explained that this variation was a result of the subjective interpretation of federal standards by inspectors.

This December, the Bush administration hopes to alleviate the discrepancies by implementing a five-star ranking system to be published on a federal Website.

Elderly citizens are our most tangible connection to a past that may seem only abstract and elusive to a younger generation. All too often when our aging parents and grandparents enter these homes with the hopes of better and more constant care, their hopes are dashed through exposure to an overburdened, understaffed institution. If you are thinking about placing your elderly relatives in a nursing home facility, please take the time to choose the right facility.

Some things to remember include:

1) Research Several Facilities Before Committing

2) Consider Each Facility’s Reputation

3) Make Unannounced Visits at Different Times of the Day

4) Find Facilities that Cater to Your Specialized Needs

5) Make Sure that the Location is Right for You and Your Elderly Relative

If you have elderly relatives currently residing in a nursing home facility, please take the time to read tips on identifying elder abuse and neglect.

Originally posted at InjuryBoard by Carrie Strasser