| May 13, 2011 | by Crystal |
Having the right assisted living insurance is critical. But even Sexual Abuse and Molestation coverage will only get you so far. You can do your due diligence when hiring employees, but at the end of the day, you as the owner, are taking a leap of faith with that person. You have the responsibility of protecting your patients, not only your employees but from other patients, and visitors. Here are a few things you can do to minimize risk at your assisted living facility.
Perform Criminal Background Checks On All Employees
Your clients are elderly and many of them may be sick. It is important you know the people to whom you are entrusting their lives. In 2010, a certified nursing patient was sentenced to 60 years in prison for four counts of sexual battery against patients for whom he was responsible. Later, the former director and other executives of the nursing home were reprimanded for not noticing the abuse sooner. Don’t put yourself in this situation. Get background checks for all of your staff.
Perform Criminal Background Checks On All Residents
It is not only employees who can harm your patients but other patients as well. Your residents spend a good amount of time together, so it is important to protect your patients from potentially violent acts, no matter who the attacker is. In 2010, a nursing home came under fire after a patient, who was a convicted sex offender, was found assaulting a female dementia patient. If you allow sex offenders to reside at your nursing home, it is important that all staff members are aware and necessary precautions are taken. Better yet, screen these patients out by conducting background checks.
Review Your Sign-in Procedures For Visitors
It is not feasible to expect a nursing home to run a criminal background check on all visitors. But it is reasonable to expect a nursing home to protect their patients from all visitors. A man in Michigan was recently charged with sexually assaulting a comatose patient in a local nursing home. He was visiting another patient of the home. It is important to not allow visitors to come and go unmonitored. Make sure to keep a list of approved visitors for each patient, require photo ID from all visitors, and only allow visitors access to monitored areas.
Following these tips, along with purchasing Sexual Abuse and Molestation coverage will go a long way in protecting your patients. DO NOT forget to add this extremely important coverage to your assisted living insurance!
**For more information about Assisted Living Insurance contact me at CToney@SouthernStatesInsurance.com or call me at (678) 715-9119.
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