The following was adapted from ConsumerAffairs.com : A new report by Consumer Reports Health finds that risky drugs are commonly being used to sedate patients. Sales of these “atypical” antipsychotics have been rising steadily from $8.4 billion in 2003 to $14.6 billion in 2009 — outperforming sales for drugs to treat  more common conditions such as depression, heartburn, high cholesterol and hypertension. “Our analysis indicates that the use of these drugs in confused or demented patients …

An investigative report was released Tuesday by the Department of Health which stated that the a longtime resident was injured at her nursing home when she slipped out of a sling while being moved with a mechanical lift in June. She hit her head on the floor. The 88-year-old woman died about a week later from a subdural hematoma (bleed in the brain).

State officials have told one nursing home hat they must make changes. The facility was cited after finding that staff were forgetting to give patients pain medication, failing to change the bedding of incontinent patients and not having enough hot water for patient showers. The Department of Health and Human Services (DHHS) said that the Nursing Home and Rehab Center has until February to correct the deficiencies.

A 60-year-old nursing-home patient who fell in his room, landed on a baseboard heater and suffered intense burns that led to the loss of a leg has sued the facility, The man moved to the facility in March of last year had a known history of falling, said the complaint. The man, who has been in long-term care for much of his life suffers from dementia and heart disease, according to a state investigation. According to the complaint, the man suffers from neuropathy which prevented him from feeling…

The wife of a man who died last year after multiple falls and severe pressure ulcers (bedsores or decubitus ulcers) has filed a wrongful death lawsuit against the man’s former nursing home.  The complaint alleges that the facility committed negligence when the failed to prevent the man’s frequent falls, including one Dec. 12, 2008, in which suffered a hip fracture and had to undergo surgery. The suit also alleges that the facility also failed to prevent deterioration of a sever ulcer the ma…

Two former nursing home employees were placed on probation and ordered to pay back money they stole from the nursing home’s residents. The two employees each appeared for sentencing earlier this week. Both women plead guilty to prosecutor’s information for single counts of theft, a fifth-degree felony.