Long-Term Care

Mentally ill residents in nursing homes come under scrutiny

Contemporary Long-Term Care Weekly, March 26, 2009

The way nursing homes handle young, mentally ill residents living among frail, elderly residents came under scrutiny this week when the Associated Press reported instances of violence that have occurred as a result of mixing the two populations.

One such instance occurred in 2008 when a young, mentally ill resident in a Chicago nursing home allegedly bludgeoned a 77-year-old resident to death with a clock radio, according to the Associated Press report.

The number of young, mentally ill residents in nursing homes has increased, partially because of the closing of state mental institutions and a shortage of hospital psychiatric beds, according to the Associated Press. In 2002, 6% of nursing home residents were young and mentally ill, compared to 9% in 2009.

The report also suggested economic pressures, including nursing facilities’ need to fill beds, have led to the increase.

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