Moving from one’s own home into a residential nursing home or care facility can be a difficult step for a Bridgeport resident and their family. As previously discussed on this legal blog, there are a number of things that families should look for when such a move becomes a necessity. However, once they have settled their loved one into their new home, that individual has important rights to be treated fairly and with respect.
For example, nursing home residents may not be isolated for kept away from their friends and families. They cannot be prevented from spending time with other residents of their facilities or from retaining possession of their own things.
From a medical perspective, nursing home residents do not lose their right to confidentiality in their medical records when they move out of their own homes. They retain their rights to refuse certain treatments and to be involved in how their medical conditions will be treated. Nursing home residents are allowed to pick their own doctors and cannot be prohibited from doing so.
When a nursing home resident becomes aware of a deficiency in their care they have the right to file a grievance regarding their complaint. That grievance must be addressed by the management of their facility and when inspections are done at nursing home sites the residents must be allowed access to the findings that result.
This post covers only a few of the many rights that nursing home residents retain when they leave their private homes. For readers who have questions about their rights as nursing home residents, help is available. Attorneys who practice nursing home neglect and abuse law can provide client-specific support.
