Elder Law

State asks Nursing Home Employees to limit Cell Phone Use

By Levin & Perconti

A state is asking their nursing homes to limit employees? use of cell phones to prevent improper use of the devices in incidents involving residents. This comes after an investigation that revealed that staff members attached sexually explicit lyrics to photos of residents and sent them as text messages to other employees. Documents also revealed that employees recorded patients screaming or asking to use the bathroom and then played a guessing game to see which resident was involved. This included photos of resident?s that were not fully clothed. One employee did not view this incident as elderly abuse, but rather fun. In an incident of nursing home abuse, an employee took a photo of a resident entering the bathroom. The photo showed the resident?s exposed back, legs and incontinence brief, which additionally was wet. This staff member than attached the lyrics of a song entitled ?Stanky Leggs? to the photo and sent it to a nursing assistant. The nursing home has fired all those involved in the abuse incident. Illinois should consider enacting a law limiting cell phone use in nursing homes. To read more about the nursing home abuse, please click the link.

Full post as published by Illinois Nursing Home Abuse Blog on May 19, 2009 (boomark / email).