I had a couple outstanding aides that would give me inside details but management has pushed them out due to overworking/underpaying and now there is VERY limited staffing caring for the Alzheimer's wing and these individuals are being neglected on many levels. How can families get permission to get inside to care for these type of residents? Is it legal to put nanny cams in without letting facility know?
I placed a camera in full sight in my LO's room after announcing it to the NH because I suspected sexual abuse which turned out to be true. I was shocked to see the horrifying things that occurred with my LO's care after and before my visits. And the number of unreported falls. In my state they are not illegal. I was told that I have the right to protect the health and safety of my loved one. S/he did have to sign a consent form which was fine, and we had a private room for our loved one so there were no HIPAA violations. NHs can certainly choose to evict but who cares if you suspect abuse or neglect.
I trust the whispers from God. If you feel n your spirit that something is not quite right, then trust that uncomfortable feeling. It may save your loved one's life.
I wish that I had an answer about how to handle the major turnover, under staffing, poor quality of care, and how to get permission to get inside to care for our LOs during this crises (see my comments below to sjplegacy).
I have called state and national legislators, news stations, written blogs, but my audience reach is too low. And my LO has tested positive for Covid so the level of fear, angst, worry, is off the charts. Early on I wrote our Governor requesting the National Guard be brought in to help with the staffing shortages which was done, but now even they are stretched thin. I've tried ringing the alarm bell that nursing homes are dangerous understaffed during the worse pandemic of our lifetime, and mostly I get a head nod, statements like"we know" that nursing homes are under siege, and "we are doing the best we can with the resources we have". That doesn't help when it is your loved one who is at risk of dying, when you know there is not enough staff on-site to properly care for those who are sick, when you can see and hear the exhaustion in the voices of the nursing staff and their sadness knowing they can't save everyone after a major Covid outbreak. It's like standing outside of your house, watching a fire burning it down, knowing your loved ones are trapped inside, and you can't get in to help them. Praying that NHs/ALs, you/I get the help we need and that the loss of lives due to this horrible virus stops.
When caring for your LO at home would you stand for your sibling, for instance, placing a camera in your home so he can watch your every move and make sure your caring for your LO to his expectations? What would his expectations be? What are your expectations of the facility? So if you want to smuggle a camera in it's your choice. Don't be upset that when the camera is discovered your LO is evicted. COVID is not an excuse for you to believe the facility is abusing your LO.
What I was told about nanny cam's was this: If the room is shared with someone else you can get in trouble because of privacy if you film. If it's a private room, you can hide a camera, but if facility finds it they may have the right to remove it - read the contract.
Would you be able to care for your LO, at home with assistance? This might be an option.
A teddy bear camera might be allowed. Unfortunately, short staffing may not be something that can be remedied at this time.
Can you video chat?
Praying for you and your loved one.
If you are truly concerned about neglect of your loved one, you may be better off taking him/her home and contracting home health care aides round the clock. Check with the LTC facility about their regulations as well as insurance before making such a drastic change in your LO's life.
You can't do anything about the turnover of staff. That's a result of reasons I've previously mentioned. You can't do anything about COVID or the facilities policy on trying to keep its residents safe. You've got to come to terms with that. You can do something about your mistrust of his care. What are your expectations of his care? He's no longer at home where he rec'd one on one care. If you can't get in, why do you suspect poor care? The "inside" information you rec'd from the ousted aides I would take with a grain of salt. And once you can enter the facility you can certainly discuss his care but you won't physically be caring for him. You're role is now being his advocate in communicating your care wishes to the staff.
“Lord, grant me the serenity to accept the things I cannot change,
The courage to change the things I can,
And the wisdom to know the difference.”
“Andrew Cuomo deserves to be on trial for the elderly people his nursing home order directly murdered. Instead, he’s getting an Emmy,” The Federalist publisher Ben Domenech wrote.
In the early weeks of the pandemic, Cuomo was hailed by Democrats and members of the media for his daily briefings tackling the coronavirus. However, the governor has since been scrutinized for his order that required nursing homes in his state to admit COVID-19 patients. While that order has since been reversed, the policy has been heavily attributed to New York’s record-breaking death toll, which includes many senior citizens living in nursing homes. Stop Andrew Cuomo is benefitting from his criminal actions of infecting thousands with covid 19. He needs to be put on trial not commended for his reckless deadly order not given an Emmy. I hope the people that are giving him an award reconsider their heartless actions of giving him a accommodation. Please! Please! Please! for god sakes. Please unless your loved one vaccinate from covid 19 and you are able to visit her and staffing is improved stay away and listen to us that have lost our loved ones in these facilities. These facilities right now you can not sue them for bad care and poor treatment because Cuomo give himself and these assisted living homes immunity from prosecution. Until that has changed stay out of them.
Now consider Federal laws: Nanny cams can get you in very serious trouble due to violation of HIPAA laws, and wire tapping laws as voice in included in nanny cams. You may live in a state that permits it but be aware of Federal laws.
In short, you need to consult an eldercare attorney about the local, State and Federal laws regarding recording. Yes it is that complicated.
If you want to oversee your loved one's care then take them out and take care of them yourself. You may install cameras in your OWN home. but if you bring hired caregivers in there you need to tell them they are on camera and have them sign WRITTEN consent due to wire-tapping laws. Crazy...isn't it?
If you were relatively content with the care your husband received when he entered the facility, you can hopefully understand that EVERYTHING and EVERYONE has suffered because of the difficulties at all levels of management, right down to hands on care.
Did you have reason to think that there were “inside details” that impacted directly on your DH’s care? Do you have a way of substantiating deficiencies in care such as what you’ve mentioned? Are you aware of the personal dangers to caregivers, families AND residents in circumstances such as we have at present?
If you were to plant a camera, how would you enter the facility to do it? What would you do with a video that showed “neglect”?
I understand your anxiety, fear, and concern only too well, having lived with my own emotional roller coaster since the end of March, I’ve come to realize that against the virus AND the lack of nation wide awareness concerning “the best way forward”, both residents AND caregivers are at risk almost equally, and I pray for all who have suffered from, or because of, this horrid experience.
I hope with all my heart that you can find some way to bring yourself peace. I trust those in care, even when they’re not the best of the best. Their sacrifice to be there to care for my LO tells me a lot about all of them.
As for the camera, it wouldn't be allowed and I wouldn't try to sneak one in.
Above is a link to an organization by our current administartion that is fighting the rollback of regulations on Nursing Homes nationally after many were instituted in the Obama years. It was a cornerstone of the current administration to roll backregulations in general,, and many have been. Some states have their own rules, but ALF are not really regulated at all. States have their own rules and regulations, but that I know of no states have regulations on staffing other than CA and that for hospitals only; I still remember when we got them under Rep. Gov Schwartzenegger, may he be bless for it! I still remember the difference it made in the safe care I was able to give.
I think that you are correct, that given you cannot be there, there is much you cannot see or know. Other than taking your Mom into your own care you can never be certain, and the anecdotal reports of Seniors can be wrong.
Any adversarial relationship you get going with a facility can also boomerang. I doubt that legally you can mount nanny cams inside anyone else's property to watch them. So that I know of you are kind of stuck.
What evidence of problems are you seeing and hearing currently at your Mom's facility?
I don't know why I should be surprised that he took an interest in care quality standards, but I'm delighted to hear it (and grinning all over my face).
I suppose I just don't naturally associate Conan the Barbarian with good nursing care.
I do not think you can install cameras without informing people, but that may vary from state to state so you need to check the laws where you reside.
What makes you think the aids were "pushed out"? Do you mean they quit? How is that the facility's fault? There is a labor shortage in this country. There is not enough skilled people to work in NHs. Now facilities need to try to keep staffing levels up while staff are being exposed to covid and must quarantine. It's a conundrum.
How do you know if you can't get in how your DH is being cared for? You may want to call your State Ombudsman and see if they can investigate. And no, a facility probably will not allow a nanny cam. Its a privacy issue for other residents and the staff.