Elderly relative in a nursing home?

If you have a loved one in a nursing home and are concerned about quality of care, you should be aware of a good resource: Your local Ombudsman.

Long-term care ombudsmen are advocates for residents of nursing homes, board and care homes and assisted living facilities.  Under the federal Older Americans Act, every state is required to have an Ombudsman Program that addresses complaints and advocates for improvements in the long-term care system.

The ombudsman program is administered by the Administration on Aging (AoA).

Ombudsmen are dedicated to enhancing the lives of long term care residents.  They mediate:

• Violation of residents’ rights or dignity

• Physical, verbal or mental abuse

• Withholding of services or unreasonable confinement

• Poor quality of care

• Improper transfer or discharge of patient

• Inappropriate use of chemical or physical restraints

The program, funded by federal and state dollars.  To locate the ombudsman in your area, go to www.ltcombudsman.org.

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About the Author: Theresa Cooper, Certified Senior Advisor (CSA)®. As Client Navigator for Age Navigation, she coordinates and manages all client services. Her CSA certification supplements her 20 plus years of experience in office administration and research with ongoing education about the key health, social and financial factors that are important to seniors.