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Any info in dealing with this would be appreciated.The involved family fears the NH will further neglect the client as it will be obvious that its family that filed concerns.They fear reporting for fear of reprisal and or a lack of assistance for the family member. Thanks!

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I am an Ombudsman. I am not impartial, I am there to represent the patient. The response I have seen is that the facility gets a wake up call, the patient gets proper service, good PT and the family is relieved. I also make sure the POA has the state hotline 800 number and my cell number.
When I sign in at the front desk, I tell the receptionist who I am coming to see. She alerts the Director and things start to roll immediately.
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downerdebbie, as an Ombudsman I cannot address legal issues, you need a lawyer for that. And I cannot represent the family members, only the patient.
As far as a denied med, the nurse cannot discuss meds unless you have the HIPAA clearance. Your first concern is clearing your name. Get an attorney.
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Debbie, if the patient is on hospice, they are not going to a hospital or even a doctor's office for any kind of treatment. Pain relief only. All you can do is hold their hand, nothing more. No more treatments for anything. Time is short.
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I was an Ombudsman for 17 years. Ombudsman are Federally mandated Resident Advocates for residents in long term care facilities. Ombudsman are there to represent the resident and what the resident wants, not what the facility or family member wants.
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Debbie, I can't be sure that my experience here applies to your situation but here goes---my mother was in a NH for four years. Once during that time, ironically, not at the end of her life, it was recommended by the staff that we change to her hospice care. We quickly found it to be a disaster. The NH staff, who had always provided good care, would do nothing for my mother, always saying for whatever she needed "we have to wait for hospice to come" So she sat unbathed, uncleaned, uncared for until the hospice worker appeared, often many hours. The previously caring NH staff seemed relieved to have one less patient to deal with and the hospice workers just randomly appeared and were quickly gone. This went on for a few weeks and after we could find no advantage at all to it we put a stop to it and discontinued hospice. Mother went back to getting care from the NR staff and wasn't neglected any longer. We never did fully understand this weird division of labor between NR staff and hospice but it was certainly a disaster for us. I've always heard how well hospice works for others, so maybe it's just here. Maybe something for you to look into, or maybe doesn't apply at all.
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It depends. Based on my experience, the ombudsman can be in cahoots with the terrible nursing home staff or they can be caring people who got into the job because they wanted to be able to protect and help the helpless. I do know that they are not allowed to speak to NH staff about your concerns without your permission. You should call your local ombudsman, tell them what's going on, and see what they would advise. You can do that confidentially. IF you have a good ombudsman who makes you feel confident that they can handle this properly, you can allow them to take action.

Pamstegma is correct; on hospice, no other health issue is addressed, just pain. But not treating open sores, even for pain relief, seems inhumane. What you should do is call the state and report the abuse. My state (NY) has a nursing home abuse hotline. Ask your ombudsman for the number to yours. The person from the state will come in, examine the patient, and ask questions. The person from the state can assess fees and penalties, up to and including forcing the nursing home to close (there are 4 or 5 levels of penalties for NHs that don't comply with the mandated standard of care). I think this is a good move.

Personally, I was terrified to "report" my mom's nursing home because they were such bullies. I was afraid of retribution. The people who I had seen make waves either had their loved ones kicked out or terribly neglected, in one case to death (R.I.P. Annette Giordano). However, my husband called the state behind my back, and the result was positive! A real improvement in her care.

Schoolyard lesson: a bully can be silenced by a bigger bully. The state is a bigger bully. Good luck, and I'm so sorry.
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All I can say is that my family had a good ombudsman and that the care did improve - it kept them on their toes. I would hope that anyone who is supposed to be advocating for the patient would not be influenced by the nursing home. We had good experiences with social workers also ( the nursing home hated them!)
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Great answer Pam! Often people think the purpose of ombudsmen an geriatric care managers are to be impartial. Impartial between squabbling family members, yes, but their job is only to advocate for the one that needs care. What is best for that person is the only concern.
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I am an Ombudsman. My responsibility is to my elder client.
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Pamstegma no offense intended, however what does not having any information on the person reporting the problem have to do with anything? Perhaps you perform your duties differently than I do, the persons complaining in my experience are the clients themselves....

What are the specific concerns downerdebbie? What actual proof do you have of occurrences; do you have names, dates, and witnesses to occurrences? As an ombudsman I have access to a Legal Dept. should actual charges be supported.
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