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Nursing Home Abuse in Utah

Utah Nursing Home Laws and Regulations

In the past years, the federal government has put together laws in order to prevent nursing home abuse and neglect. That’s because this has been a rampant problem throughout the country for many years. You likely are even aware of these issues as more and more cases of abuse, neglect, and even wrongful death arise. While the federal government has these regulations in place, each state has the option to put forth their own laws as well. If you live in the state of Utah, are considering moving into a nursing home, or have a loved one in one of these facilities, then you need to know about Utah nursing home laws and regulations.

This way, if you are aware of the Utah nursing home laws and regulations in place, then you can better protect yourself or your loved one from abuse and neglect.

A Scary Fact

According to the Adult Protective Services division in the state of Utah, there were over 2,000 investigated concerns of abuse, neglect or exploitation of nursing homes in one year. About 33% of these cases resulted in proven cases of neglect. 18% involved emotional abuse. Another 18% resulted in proven financial exploitation. 15% of the cases involved physical abuse with 5% more involving sexual abuse.

These are frightening numbers because this means nursing home abuse and neglect are still a rampant problem. However, the state continues to create rules that will help quell this issue. Utah nursing home laws and regulations continue to evolve in order to best protect the elderly, but all cases are handled through Utah Division of Aging and Adult Services.

Utah Laws

There is a great deal more to the Utah nursing home laws and regulations than we could feasibly list here. However, the basics are listed below, and they include the federal government laws in addition.

  • All residents have the right to at least 100 square feet of personal space in single rooms or 80 square feet of space in multiple resident rooms.
  • All facilities must acquire immediate care from a qualified physician as soon as a patient is admitted.
  • All facilities are required to assess each patient immediately upon admittance in order to develop a personalized care plan for that patient’s health and wellbeing.

This is in addition to laws and regulations that are designed to protect the elderly from abuse or neglect in the state of Utah.

Reporting Abuse

If you believe your loved one is being abused, exploited, or neglected in a nursing home or assisted living facility, then Utah nursing home laws and regulations are designed to ensure you can report this easily. All reports go through the Utah Aging and Adult Services Division, and you can find out more at www.hsdaas.utah.gov. You can report abuse online through a form available on this website. Additionally, you can call the Elderly Abuse Hotline at 1-800-371-7897. In either case, reporting the abuse promptly is a must to ensure it does not continue and the situation is handled as soon as possible.

Utah nursing home laws and regulations are in place to protect patients, and they expand on the federal laws already put in place. If you believe any of the laws have been broken and a loved one is being abused or neglected, the first step to take would be contacting the proper authorities through the abuse reporting hotline or website. Then, you may wish to contact an attorney as well. Generally, proven cases of abuse in nursing home facilities can result in personal injury or wrongful death lawsuits depending on the situation, the patient, and the facility.

Resources:

https://www.nursinghomeabuseguide.org/states/western

http://www.elder-abuseca.com/stateResources/utah.html

http://www.hsdaas.utah.gov/

 

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