The number of citations for putting patients in “immediate jeopardy” increased 22% from 2000 through 2006, according to the records from the U.S. Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services, which regulates nursing homes. Those citations are the most serious reprimand inspectors can issue and often follow cases in which patients were physically or sexually abused or left without medications. The Medicare and Medicaid services’ records for 2007, still incomplete, already show more than 1,300 “immediate jeopardy” citations!
I don’t know if this increase in the number of violations means that nursing homes are getting worse or if it means the investigators are doing a better job of policing these facilities. Either way…keep a close watch on the care provided to your loved one!