The federal government passed the Nursing Home Reform Act of 1987 to protect the rights of nursing home residents and their families, according to the nursing home advocacy group, CareWatchers. One of the most important aspects of this legislation was the federally-mandated creation of "family councils" in all licensed nursing home facilities. These family councils serve as advocates for resident and family rights, though families have extensive rights outside the group when it comes to the care of their loved ones.
Right to Question Staff
Families have the right, under various federal and state Nursing Home Patient Bill of Rights laws, to request private meetings with nursing home staff when they are concerned about the treatment or care of their loved ones, according to AmeriLawyer.com. Nursing home administrators are required to attend these meetings.
Right to Be Informed
Nursing home staff must inform families of all their rights and the loved one's medical condition. In this respect, doctors at the nursing home must be fully transparent with loved ones about a resident's condition. However, families may prohibit a doctor from withholding information from the resident regarding the resident's condition if the family feels it is not in the resident's best interests, according to AmeriLawyer.com.
Right to Information About Charges
The services of the facility and the charges for those services must be transparent to the families at all times. Nursing homes must present all charges for care not covered by programs like Medicaid or Medicare to the family in advance. Nursing homes cannot "hide" charges within nursing home bills.
Right to Choices and Financial Control
Residents and/or their families have the right to choose their own private physician and pharmacy, according to author Frederic Miller in his book "Elderly Care." They also have a right to manage the personal finances of the patient. If the nursing home keeps a "trust account" for the patient, families have a right to know the balance, how any money is spent and to receive accounting statements regularly.
Right to Clothing and Possessions
In general, nursing home residents have the right to wear their own clothes and keep personal items in their rooms. While all nursing homes must establish policies to control personal clothing and items, families also have the right to question the policies if they seem too strict.
Right to Dignity, Freedom From Abuse and Restraints
Families have the right to question administrators if they feel a staff member was physically or verbally abusive against a resident, used restraints or sedation without just cause or in some other way treated a resident with indignity. Nursing homes cannot retaliate against residents of families who file complaints.
Protection From Discharge
Families have a right to know that nursing homes can only discharge or transfer residents for medical reasons, not inability to pay, according AmeriLawyer.com. Nursing homes may discharge or transfer patients for their own welfare and the protection of other residents, but they must notify the families in writing 30 days in advance of the intent to discharge or transfer the resident. Families can appeal such a proposed move.
References
- CareWatchers: Choose a Nursing Home---That Protect Residents' Rights
- AmeriLaw.com: Nursing Home Resident's Bill of Rights
- "Elderly Care: Caregiver, Home Care, Family Caregivers, Carers Rights Movement, Caregiving and Dementia, Long-term Care, Senior Citizen, Assisted Living, Adult Daycare Center, Nursing Home"; Frederic P. Miller, Agnes F. Vandome, John McBrewster (Eds.); 2009
