Blog #2 Wild Card

One of the biggest problems that stick out in my mind is that of abuse and neglect in the LTC facility. I have not only experienced this problem personally, but as a a professional as well. May Uncle just passed away yesterday and he was residing in a LTC, and I performed my first clinical rotation at an LTC during nursing school. In both of these situations I have encountered neglect, with one incidence being that of not keeping a good watch on the patients, and the other of bodily fluid neglect.

I believe that for the expensive prices that family members and insurance companies pay for residents to live in LTC, they should be taken better care of than what is currently being done. I firmly believe there should be strict rules and regulations placed on employees that are taking care of residents. This should also be enforced during the employees duration of employment, not just as a hiring formality. Also if the LTC would treat there employees better, such as a higher compensation rate and good benefits, they would be more inclined to take better care of residents. I also agree if should not matter as all residents should be well taken care of for the simple fact that the are human. However not everyone thinks this way!

Enforcing the rules and regulations for LTC might help improve the statistics on abuse and neglect in the facility. Family members and/or patient advocates can be a vital part of the reduction in abuse and neglect, because the more someone is around and involved the less likely bad things will happen to their loved on.

Tomi Gentile

What does LTC mean to me

LTC is for patients that need care for more than 30 days. It can be for patients that are severely disabled, mentally impaired, or with severe physical deficits. In this case continuous medical care is needed. It is important for the patient to and their families to know that this care can be administered in skilled nursing facilities, intermediate care facilities, retirement communities, and residential care facilities. I guess hospice could be considered LTC, but the stimulation is that patients who go to Hospice are to have a diagnosis for the reminder of their life of 6 months or less. In some situations LTC gives the patient a sense of freedom, with this in mind it will also depend on the living arrangements that the patient has claimed. However the bottom line really depends on the patient and their needs, as some patients will require a lot more attention than others, this will depend on their diagnosis; for example, a patient who is on a ventilator would need more attention than a patient who is developmentally disabled.
Tomi Gentile