My family recently made the decision to move my grandmother to an assisted living facility. It was not an easy decision, but my parents, who bore most of the burden of the decision, felt that it was the best place for her to get the care she needs.
Recently, when visiting her, I saw something disturbing--or, rather, I heard it. My grandmother is very hard of hearing. She usually wears hearing aids, but she didn’t have them in when I saw her. And as I left, I heard a couple of employees of the facility (who didn’t realize who I was, or maybe that I was there) complaining about my grandmother near her room. They were very rude, but my grandmother, of course, couldn’t hear them.
I was very disturbed by this and didn’t tell anyone. I’m not sure what to do about it, if anything. Is it abuse? My grandmother can’t actually hear what’s going on, though I don’t know if that’s why they don’t have her wearing her hearing aids. Should I tell my parents? A lawyer? Help!
Nursing home abuse is a very serious issue, and such abuse is not limited to physical abuse. The nursing home abuse attornueys at Avrek are used to helping people decide if they should get a lawyer for a personal injury case, but their experience with nursing home abuse cases has shown that physical injuries are not always necessary to prove abuse. Verbal abuse at nursing homes is a serious issue with very real consequences for the residents.
It’s not appropriate for the employees of this facility to be speaking ill of the residents, especially while on the clock and especially while in the presence of someone there to see their loved one. This is true regardless of whether or not such an incident should be considered abuse.
With the information you have, it’s impossible to say if your grandmother’s hearing aid was removed with the goal of allowing the facilities’ employees to talk freely (and cruelly) about her. The audiologists at West Orange, New Jersey’s The Hearing Group say that there are sometimes legitimate reasons to keep hearing aids out, and the FDA offers a list of such reasons and potential dangers of hearing aids. It’s possible that there is a health reason that your grandmother’s hearing aids were not in.
However, it’s a good idea to raise this issue with your parents. They deserve to know this detail about the quality of care at the nursing home, and they can choose whether or not they want to pursue it further. They would be well within their rights to report the employees, and they may want to find out from the facility what reason, if any, led to the removal of the hearing aids. You’re good to stay so vigilant about the care your grandmother is getting. Good luck to you and your family in getting to the bottom of this.
“To care for those who once cared for us is one of the highest honors.” -- Tia Walker
