Indiana Retirement Homes Rarely Face Licensing Action: Report
Published: August 25th, 2010 • One Comment
Indiana nursing homes that commit nursing home neglect and abuse have little fear of licensing action being taken against them, according to an investigative report by a local paper.
The Indianapolis Star found that only 2% of all reports of problems in nursing homes gets forwarded from the attorney general’s office for licensing or law enforcement action, even in such serious instances as rape. In fact, out of 300 incidents forwarded to the Attorney General’s office over the last five years, in only six instances did the office file an official complaint triggering a review by the Indiana State Board of Health Facility Administrators.
Unless the complaints are forwarded, the board does not have the opportunity to review the cases and possibly recommend disciplinary or corrective action. In five of the six cases reported, the board decided to take action.
Responding to the story, state officials said that there are sometimes informal actions taken to discipline administrators and some said that the ability of the AG had a narrowly defined definition of what cases it could forward to the Board.
Pingback by Oversight Board To Ensure Response to Indiana Care Facility Complaints | About Nursing Home Neglect on 26 October 2010:
[...] A report by the Indianapolis Star in August found that only 2% of all reports of problems in nursing homes gets forwarded from the attorney general’s office for licensing or law enforcement action. Out of 300 incidents over the last five years, only six resulted in a review by the Indiana State Board of Health Facility Administrators. [...]