Can patient care devices really reduce nursing home abuse & neglect?

What is one way to crack down on abusive or neglectful nursing home staff members?  Make sure that they can’t falsify data in their patient care log books, for one.  This may be the answer for some nursing homes seeking to improve patient care and reduce the opportunities for abuse and neglect.

A number of nursing homes in New York State will be trying out this theory, thanks to an undercover investigation by the state’s Attorney General’s office.  The investigation used a hidden camera in a resident’s room to find evidence of serious abuse and neglect at one NY nursing home.  As a result, a number of homes across the state will have to install point-of-care devices in all residents’ rooms.

These devices will force staff members to enter care information in real-time in the patient’s room (no walking back to a central station), as the care is provided to the patient.  Proponents of this technology hope that it will ensure that the appropriate level of care is provided to all patients.

But will this new technology really make a difference?  Is better record keeping the real issue behind nursing home abuse and neglect cases, or is there more to it?  What about hiring practices, staff training, supervisor oversight, and pay for staff – these issues won’t go away just because nursing home residents each have a fancy computer in each room.

Better tracking of staff activities as they pertain to nursing home residents is certainly a good thing, but let’s hope it does not make supervisors and management companies complacent.  Technology can’t solve all our problems, and families of nursing home residents must still remain vigilant for signs of abuse and neglect.