New Trend in Nursing Homes: The Rise of Younger Residents

There’s an interesting new trend in nursing home care.  The number of younger residents in nursing homes has increased in the last few years.  The number of nursing home residents under the age of 65 has jumped 22%.  This means about one in every seven residents is under 65 years of age, some even in their twenties and thirties.  

What’s causing this growing phenomenon in medical care?  The Washington Post reported that it’s due to 1) medical advances that help individuals survive traumatic illnesses and injuries, and 2) the closing of mental health facilities.  Many of these younger residents have suffered severe injuries. Others have neuromuscular diseases such as multiple sclerosis, or have suffered a stroke. 

This trend has proven a challenge for caregivers and residents, because while the younger residents may have some of the same physical demands as older residents, their social and psychological needs are much different.  

While many facilities try to separate the older from the younger generations, this isn’t always possible because of the still small number of younger residents.  This can cause tensions between the generations.  The older residents complain about loud music and young visitors.  On the other hand, the younger residents don’t want to room with someone with dementia, they don’t want to be forced to eat food specifically with the elderly in mind, and hate that the only social activity is bingo.  

Living in these facilities can also cause the younger residents to become depressed not only because of their disabilities or illnesses, but because they’re constantly surrounded by the elderly and dying, and quite simply, they’re lonely.

Some homes have already accommodated these younger guests by giving them their own wing, offering poker instead of bingo, pizza and pop instead of meatloaf and tea.  They even take them out on outings. If this trend continues, the nursing home industry will have to adapt in order to not only give the elderly comfortable quality care, but also the young who suffer from debilitating injuries and illnesses.

Sources: 

Nursing Home Abuse Blog

 

Time Healthland

McKnight's Long Term Health Care News

MBC attorney speaks at Nation Business Institute seminar

MBC attorney, John R. Christensten, participated as a speaker at NBI's, Plaintiff's Personal Injury From Start to Finish, seminar.  He spoke on the topic, Statutes Which Affect Liability Evaluation, which covered the statute of limitations, auto accident statutes, and recreational and sovereign immunity.

He also participated in the presentation, Understanding the Law of Damages, in which he focused on such issues as: non-economic damages, pain, suffering, and inconvenience, disability, disfigurement, and loss of of enjoyment of life, and wrongful death claims and statutes, among others.

At the conclusion, John received an rating of 'excellent' from the seminar attendees.

Here's what they had to say:

"Knowledgeable speaker"

"Very solid; quite excellent; quality presentation"

"I have seen John speak before and he is a great presenter."

"I am a 25 year practitioner and I learned."

"Speaker's extensive experience allowed informative case examples for principles of law being discussed."

"Stated information clearly and easy to understand.  Made great connections between rules and actual cases."

Congratulations to John on a job well done.  Visit our Facebook fan page to find out about upcoming speaking engagements  by the attorneys at MBC.

Ski Lift Safety

The end of 2010 saw an abundance of ski chair lift incidents.  Six people were taken to hospitals after five ski lift chairs fell to the ground at a Maine ski resort.   A 10 year old girl was injured last week after falling about 15 feet from a chairlift at Hidden Valley.  About 100 people had to be evacuated from Crabbe Mountain's ski lift when the emergency brakes on the system activated and stopped the lift.

These are only a few of the chair lift incidents that took place within days of each other the last couple weeks that have people asking themselves, are chair lifts really safe?

 It’s not just skiers asking this question either.  Ski resorts are double checking procedures and equipment to make sure everything is up to standards where safety is concerned.  Lawmakers in Montana are looking into a chairlift safety bill.  Even before these incidents the Alpine Meadows Ski Resort in Lake Tahoe had installed Magnestick harnesses on their lifts to keep children safely in place.

While many of these incidents were caused by high winds or power outages, you, the skier, can also take precautions to ensure your own safety on the lifts.

When boarding the lift use extreme caution.  While waiting for the lift, remove the pole straps from your wrist and put both poles in one hand.  When the lift nears the back of your legs, grab the center bar with your free hand and sit, scooting all the way to the back of the chair.  If you need extra accommodations ask the operator before getting in line.

When riding the chairlift, keep your ski tips up and hold on tightly to all your gear. Keep the safety bar down at all times during the ride.  Don’t lean forward, swing your legs, nor do anything else that would cause your chairlift to swing.  If your chair has footrests, keep the skis securely in them throughout the ride.  Be alert to your surroundings.

Always keep your safety bar down until told to raise it.  There should be signs directing you when it is safe to raise the bar, but if not, raise the bar only when you are approaching the station. Be careful of potential injuries. The bar can hit you or your chairlift partner on the head if swung with excessive force.

Watch for signs or markers that tell you when to disembark the chairlift. Check for loose clothing that could get caught on the lift chair. When approaching the station, scoot forward on your chair and raise your skis slightly so you can glide off the lift. If there are no markers, simply stand up when you feel your skis touch the snow. After standing up, ski to the side, out of the way of other chairlift passengers. When getting off of the lift, hold on to your ski poles tightly. 

If you feel like you’re about to drop something while on the lift, do NOT lean forward and grab at the item.  Just let it fall.  Tell the operator at the station so he or she can help you leave the lift safely and recover any personal items. 

Many accidents can be avoided by simply following the ski resort rules.  For those accidents that may be the fault of defective equipment or inadequate maintenance, you  may need to call an attorney.


Stay safe and have fun on the slopes.

Sources:
Ehow

Trails.com

Associated Press

Montana Snow Sports

Pittsburgh Post Gazette

Time & Transcripts 

Update: Prescription drug disposal

You may remember a few weeks ago we blogged about the dangers of prescription drugs.  Local health and law enforcement officials have launched a campaign to make it easier for people to dispose of prescription medications in order to curb the alarming rate of accidents and deaths caused by them.

Steel drop boxes are being placed at police stations so that people can dispose of their left over prescription drugs safely and anonymously.

Fourteen medicine drop boxes have been established in nine Pierce County cities and towns: Puyallup, Tacoma, DuPont, Eatonville, Fife, Gig Harbor, Sumner, Steilacoom and University Place.

More than 8 million prescriptions were filled for Pierce County residents last year and so far this year, more than eight hundred pounds of prescription drugs have been left at the drop boxes.  You can imagine how much damage that amount of drugs can cause, how many people will abuse them, how many will be accidentally poisoned, not to mention the environmental impact.  According to the Health Department, prescription drug abuse causes more deaths in our state than methamphetamine, cocaine and heroin combined.

Ridding our cabinets of old prescriptions properly isn’t as easy as it may seem. It’s not a good idea to flush them down the toilet because sewage treatment plants and septic systems are not built to filter them out, and minute amounts of certain drugs can adversely affect aquatic life forms.  If you throw them in the garbage there’s a potential for theft, plus the chemicals can leak out into the earth at the landfill.

Right now the drop boxes are the best option until either the law makers and/or drug producers do something about it.

A couple things to remember: never take medications not prescribed to you and never give anyone your prescription medication.  Just last month a twelve year old girl died after her mother gave her part of her methadone dose for an injured knee.

Consider using these new drop boxes to dispose of old or unused medications.  Right now it’s the safest choice we have.

For drop off locations click here. 

For more information on medication return programs throughout Washington State click here.
For more information on drug enforcement visit the DEA website.

Sources: 

The News Tribune:

Drop boxes for unused drugs arriving at police stations

Mother charged in overdose death of her daughter

Ski Safety

By James W. McCormick

It’s my favorite time of the year again – ski season!  With the huge early storm upon us and La Niña in full effect, the mountains are getting covered with huge amounts of beautiful, fluffy, white snow.  If you’re like me, you are probably already watching the web cams and weather reports, and getting your gear together so you’re ready for opening day.  With opening day almost here, it’s a good time to think about some safety reminders before you hit the snow. 

At MBC we have represented people who have been hurt severely in skiing and snowboarding incidents.  These injuries usually come about because someone has chosen not to follow the safety rules of the ski area – typically known as the skier responsibility code.  Usually, ski areas have these posted at the hill, on the lift towers and even on the back of some lift tickets.  In Washington, ski safety is so important that the skier responsibility code has actually been codified into law.  You can find it at RCW 79A.45.030.  Here’s an overview of the skier responsibility code:

1.       Always stay in control, and be able to stop or avoid other people or objects.

2. People ahead of you have the right of way. It is your responsibility to avoid
them.

3. You must not stop where you obstruct a trail, or are not visible from above.

4. Whenever starting downhill or merging into a trail, look uphill and yield to others.

5. Always use devices to prevent runaway equipment.

6. Observe all posted signs and warnings. Keep off closed trails and out of closed areas.

7. Prior to using any lift, you must have the knowledge and ability to load, ride and unload safely.            

Its important that everyone on the hill knows and follows this code.  If you have young children on the mountain, work on teaching it to them.  You can make a game out of it for them and start them off learning to ski safely on the mountain.

In addition to learning the skier responsibility code, there are other things you can do to stay safe on the slopes.  Take your skis and boots into a reputable shop and have your bindings checked and adjusted for your height, weight, and skier ability before the season.  This will make sure they are working properly and will release if needed when you fall.  Wear a helmet.  I’ve talked about this in prior blogs, but I can’t stress it enough.  Put a helmet on kids and set a good example by wearing one yourself.  Your head is no match for trees, rocks and lift towers.  Most ski shops and ski areas rent helmets these days.  If you don’t want to buy one, call the rental shop before you go. 

Around the lodge, watch out for falling snow.  People are injured every year by snow falling off of the roofs of buildings. 

For the more adventurous skiers out there, keep early season conditions in mind.  Remember that rocks, stumps, logs, ditches, creeks, etc. are all just under a thin layer of snow.  There can be serious hazards under what looks like a pristine layer of powder.  Last year at Heavenly in Lake Tahoe I hit a huge rock in waist deep snow while skiing in the back-country there.  I ended up with a severely sprained ankle that took months to heal.  So, take your time, more snow is on the way and the coverage will get better later in the season.  When we do get a big storm and you plan to head off the beaten path, go with a partner.  Wear an avalanche locator beacon/transceiver and carry an avalanche probe, shovel, and sufficiently warm gear.  Stay away from tree wells that can entrap skiers.  Don’t cut lines and ski into closed or out of bound areas.  Finally, be aware of the snow conditions, weather forecast and degree of avalanche danger – these can all change fast.  If in doubt, don’t go.

Finally, to get to the mountain and back, we usually have a decent drive here in Washington.  Take your time and be safe on the roads.  Putting yourself, your passengers and others in danger by passing a line of cars because you are excited to get to the mountain is not a good.  Those extra three minutes in the parking lot are not worth the risk.  Make sure you have good tires on your car.  Studded snow tires are excellent.  However, neither snow tires nor four wheel drive are substitutes for slowing down and driving a safe speed for the conditions. 

If you or someone you know is hurt in a skiing or snowboarding incident on the mountain or in a collision on the way up or back, contact MBC to see if there is anything that can be done. 

Until the lifts start turning, do your snow dances.  When the mountains open, have fun and be safe out there this season!   

PS:  Stay tuned later in the season for an update on terrain park safety!

Helmet Safety

by James McCormick

In our practice, we deal with clients who have been horribly injured all the time.  No matter how long you do this work, you never get used to the loss some of these injuries cause the victims and families of those we represent.  One of the worst injuries we often face is one you can’t see, touch, or feel.  It’s a brain injury.

Brain injuries are terrible.  Even a “minor” brain injury can leave a person with deficits in balance, word finding, memory, recall, or speech.  More severe brain injuries can be completely disabling and leave someone only a shadow of the person they once were.  Even worse are those in which the brain has been injured to such a degree that the body lives on in a persistent vegetative state or a coma.  Working with a family who has experienced a loved one suffer this extent of injury is a wrenching experience.

Brain injuries can be difficult, if not impossible to treat.  There are no magic surgeries or medications to heal the brain.  Unfortunately, nerve cells do not divide like other cells in our bodies and when a nerve or brain matter is damaged, it is often permanent and irreversible.  For less severe injuries, treatment usually focuses on “therapy.”  The brain is trained to essentially work around the injury.  People are taught to talk again, to remember, or to process complex tasks again by using other parts of their brain or even by using external cues such as note cards and other reminders.  This process is slow, tedious, and never guaranteed to return the person to where they were before the injury.

At MBC we’ve helped a lot of families put their lives back together after a loved one has suffered a brain injury.  However, our advocacy isn’t limited to what we do for our clients.  Each year MBC supports and contributes to the Brain Injury Association of Washington.  We also support safety efforts to prevent others from suffering brain injuries. 

The brain is a very fragile part of the body which must be protected.  I frequently see kids in skate parks without helmets.  Sometimes I even see people on motorcycles or ATV’s helmetless.  Brain injuries can happen in a split second and causing one takes a lot less force than you might think. 

Things you can do to protect yourself, your children, and others from brain injury is to wear a helmet when engaged in activities such as biking, climbing, motorcycling, skating, or skiing.  Helmets are no guarantee against injury, but can drastically improve your chances.  When motorcycling or skiing, I always wear a helmet, as do my family members.  We make sure our daughter wears her helmet when riding her bike or skiing. If you make it fun for kids, helmet use will become a routine habit.  Additionally, I would recommend buying the best quality helmet you can reasonably afford.  Make sure it’s certified for safety.  A helmet needs to fit snuggly and always have the chin strap connected.  On motorcycles, ATV’s, or BMX bikes, there is no substitute for a full face helmet which protects the jaw and face as well as the head. 

Remember to protect your brain.  It’s the only one you have.    

Prescription Drugs that Kill

by John R. Christensen

I recently handled a tragic case involving a registered nurse and mother of two children who died from an accidental overdose of prescription pain killers.  Of all people, you would think a medical professional would appreciate the dangers of these types of drugs.  However, the fact that she knew the drugs were dangerous just goes to show the power of addiction, and the death grip pain pills such as Oxycontin and Oxycodone can have on people.

This is not the first drug overdose case I have handled at the MBC Law Firm, and because of the wide spread abuse of certain drugs, it sadly won’t be the last.  That is why MBC is working with the Washington State Attorney General, Rob McKenna, to help get the word out and educate the public about the dangers of prescription pain medications.  Hopefully this public safety initiative will help save lives.

In 2008, more than 500 people lost their lives to accidental drug overdoses involving prescription drugs.  The unused or expired painkillers found in our medicine cabinets are contributing to the problem.

Users are mixing them with alcohol or other drugs.  Some people even snort them or shoot them up for a quicker, sometimes fatal high.

The most commonly abused prescription drugs are:

Opioids, such as, OxyContin, Vicodin, and Demerol.   Abuse of drugs such as these can lead to vomiting, mood changes, decreased ability to think, and even decreased respiratory function, coma, or death. This risk is higher when opioids are taken with alcohol or other drugs.

CNS Depressants, like, Nembutal, Valium, and Xanax. Abruptly stopping or reducing these types of drugs too quickly can lead to seizures, and taking them with other medications, such as prescription painkillers, some over-the-counter cold and allergy medications, or alcohol can slow a person's heartbeat and breathing, enough to kill.

Use of Stimulants, such as Ritalin and Adderall, could lead to heart failure or seizures. The risks are increased when stimulants are mixed with other medicines.  Also, taking too much can cause dangerously high body temperature or an irregular heartbeat. Taking several high doses over a short period of time may cause overly aggressive behavior or paranoia. And though these may not lead to physical dependence and withdrawal, these drugs can cause people to become habitual users, creating an addiction that's hard to break.

Chronic users, teenagers, even normal every day people are getting hooked and overdosing on prescription drugs.  This kind of abuse could be caused by the fact that prescription drugs are more accessible these days through friends, family, and online pharmacies.

It has become such a serious problem that the DEA sponsored a national “Take Back” campaign in which citizens could drop off their unused or expired drugs from their medicine cabinets, no questions asked. The DEA also urges consumers to check, lock, and properly dispose of prescription drugs from time to time.  The best way to dispose of these drugs, unless otherwise stated on the label, is in the trash.

Here are some prescription drugs facts from the DEA:

• Nearly 7 million Americans are abusing prescription drugs*—more than the number who are abusing cocaine, heroin, hallucinogens, Ecstasy, and inhalants, combined. That 7 million was just 3.8 million in 2000, an 80 percent increase in just 6 years.
• Prescription pain relievers are new drug users’ drug of choice, vs. marijuana or cocaine.
• Opioid painkillers now cause more drug overdose deaths than cocaine and heroin combined.
• Nearly 1 in 10 high school seniors admits to abusing powerful prescription painkillers. A shocking 40 percent of teens and an almost equal number of their parents think abusing prescription painkillers is safer than abusing "street" drugs.
• Misuse of painkillers represents three-fourths of the overall problem of prescription drug abuse; hydrocodone is the most commonly diverted and abused controlled pharmaceutical in the U.S.
• Twenty-five percent of drug-related emergency department visits are associated with abuse of prescription drugs.
• Methods of acquiring prescription drugs for abuse include “doctor-shopping,” traditional drug-dealing, theft from pharmacies or homes, illicitly acquiring prescription drugs via the Internet, and from friends or relatives.
• DEA works closely with the medical community to help them recognize drug abuse and signs of diversion and relies on their input and due diligence to combat diversion. Doctor involvement in illegal drug activity is rare—less than one tenth of one percent of more than 750,000 doctors are the subject of DEA investigations each year—but egregious drug violations by practitioners unfortunately do sometimes occur. DEA pursues criminal action against such practitioners.
• DEA Internet drug trafficking initiatives over the past 3 years have identified and dismantled organizations based both in the U.S. and overseas, and arrested dozens of conspirators. As a result of major investigations such as Operations Web Tryp, PharmNet, Cyber Rx, Cyber Chase, and Click 4 Drugs, Bay Watch, and Lightning Strike, tens of millions of dosage units of prescription drugs and tens of millions of dollars in assets have been seized.

Remember, never use drugs that aren’t prescribed to you and check your medicine cabinet periodically for unused or expired drugs.  If you or someone you know is addicted, seek help immediately.  You could be saving a life.  It could be your own.

If you have any questions about any prescription drugs you find at home or elsewhere, please contact your doctor or the poison control center.  If you or a loved one has suffered injury or death because of addiction to prescription medications, please call me at the MBC Law Firm.

Sources: 

http://www.justice.gov/dea/concern/prescription_drug_fact_sheet.html

http://www.whitehousedrugpolicy.gov/drugfact/prescr_drg_abuse.html

http://kidshealth.org/teen/drug_alcohol/drugs/prescription_drug_abuse.html

http://www.nlm.nih.gov/medlineplus/prescriptiondrugabuse.html

Trip and falls are not always cut and dry

We at MBC handle a variety of injury cases.  Some are clear cut and involve catastrophic injuries.  Others are not absolutely clear cut and may involve injuries that are not catastrophic.   My next trial is such a case, but it will be given the same preparation and treatment as all cases.

This case involves a 70-year old man who tripped and fell over a pallet underneath a box of watermelons at the local grocery store.  He landed on his right side, injuring his shoulder and having to undergo surgery. 

The pallet was the same color as the box and one could hardly see the four to six inches that the pallet protruded from the box.  Store employees had “pallet guards,” which were soft devices to put around the edges of the pallets to prevent tripping.  They forgot to put them on this particular day.  That would seem like a clear cut case, but the store says it is not at fault, that our client should have seen the protrusion and, in any event, he was old and his shoulder was already worn out.

To counter the argument that they did nothing wrong, we have shown standards of the industry regarding guarding protrusions such as this and that this store and every other store that has such a protruding pallet needs to mark it with cones or similar warnings or use pallet guards.

To answer the claim that our client was at fault, we hired a “human factors” expert to explain that the main marketing tactic of stores is to attract your visual attention to displays, products and activities.  They want people looking anywhere other than the ground.  That was the situation in our case.  There was an outdoor kiosk selling fish just across from the watermelons and there were people crowding around.  It was a visual attraction.  The corner of the pallet was not.

In response to the cynical argument that the client was old and already had a bad shoulder, we have two answers.  First, his surgeon says that, but for the fall, the client would not have had the surgery.  Second, the law says a negligent party is not entitled to a healthy victim.  If you hurt someone who, because of age, prior disability or other weakness, has a worse injury than a younger, healthier person might, you pay for the whole injury caused.  That is basic fairness.

The case is not the biggest in the office, but we are busy preparing it for trial and hoping to report a positive result on a blog in the near future.