Any adult child will naturally feel profound frustration upon learning that their elderly loved one endures sitting on soiled clothing due to nursing home negligence. After all, the facility has broken their trust when they expect nothing but dignified care.
Adding insult to injury is finding out that their senior loved one’s poor hygiene leads to incontinence. When left unsupervised or mismanaged, a lack of bladder and bowel control may heighten the chances of bedsores.
Managing incontinence to prevent bedsores
Bedsores may develop in incontinent nursing home residents when urinary and fecal waste come in contact with their delicate skin for prolonged periods of time. Severe complications may emerge without the following preventive measures:
- Monitor a healthy intake of fluids and food
- Facilitate pelvic exercises that control muscle movement
- Use and constantly change customized protective undergarments or absorbent adult pads
- Maintain a regular restroom schedule or keep call buttons accessible to notify the staff for assistance
Elderly nursing home residents are inherently susceptible to incontinence due to mobility concerns that come with age. However, their situation may not escalate to bedsores and other fatal conditions if their Maryland nursing home does not breach their duty of care.
For a loved one’s quality care
In the wake of an injury or illness, an adult child can always take it upon themselves to recover damages and transfer their loved one to another nursing home. This way, they may even play a role in reforming the facility’s substandard practices, saving other residents from possible harm.
