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MA orders nursing homes to work harder to prevent violence

Hospital Safety Connection, February 17, 2004

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Massachusetts public health officials on February 3 ordered nursing homes to better protect their vulnerable residents from violence, the Boston Globe reports.

A study found that every year more than 1,000 nursing home residents in Massachusetts are attacked by other residents. The state plans to require each home to more carefully assess new residents for violent tendencies and to design programs that give residents healthy outlets for their aggression.

Victims were more likely to be men with failing mental abilities and a tendency to wander into harm's way, the study found. Some victims may have unintentionally provoked violence by walking into the wrong bedroom or eating off another resident's plate. The most common injuries were cuts and bruises, with most injuries coming to the head and neck.

The Journal of the American Medical Association on February 4 published the study from the Harvard School of Public Health and the state Department of Public Health. The study looked at more than 1,100 reports of physical abuse in 2000, focusing on 294 individuals who suffered visible injuries. There were 472 reports of staff abuse of residents last year in Massachusetts among about 110,000 nursing home residents.

The researchers suggested that homes post warning signs outside the rooms of residents who may become violent if confronted. They also said homes should develop music therapy and other programs to calm residents.

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