Investigation Reveals Many Calls for Help from In-Home Hospice Care Patients are Mishandled

Reporters from Kaiser Health News recently conducted an investigation of in-home hospice care and discovered more than 700 complaints about the way hospice agencies handled calls for help from patients or their loved ones.

Reporters found that many requests from patients and their loved ones were ignored or mishandled, with some patients being promised services that were never delivered.

If you have a loved one receiving hospice care who was mistreated or neglected by a caretaker, you may be able to file a claim to recover compensation for the damages you and your loved one suffered. Contact our Milwaukee nursing home abuse lawyers today for a free, no obligation legal consultation to determine your legal options.

Findings from the Investigation

Reporters discovered the 700 complaints while they were studying about 20,000 hospice inspection records from Medicare. They discovered a variety of problems with the way these complaints were handled, including:

In one case, the wife of a man who was dying of cancer called the hospice agency to get pain medication for her husband. However, the person she spoke with said he or she could not get into contact with the doctor because he was sleeping after working at night at the hospital. The Alaska Department of Health and Social Services later determined that the hospice agency failed to properly coordinate services for this couple.

Many patients have nurses they are allowed to call in the middle of the night to report problems. However, sometimes these nurses did not do their jobs. The reporters from Kaiser Health News discovered a case of a nurse who had her cellphone on silent and missed 16 calls for help from a patient’s wife.

Contact a Nursing Home Abuse Lawyer Today

Unfortunately, there is a lot of neglect that occurs in hospice care and other similar settings, like nursing homes and long-term care facilities.

When this happens, families are often unsure about how to fight back. That is why it is in your best interest to contact a lawyer for a free, no obligation legal consultation to determine if you have legal options.

Our experienced lawyers in Milwaukee are well-versed in the many aspects of these claims and are committed to building a strong case as we try to recover the compensation you deserve.

Complete a Free Case Evaluation form today to get started.