How to Check Kentucky Nursing Home Violations and Report Elder Abuse

1. Go to Medicare Care Compare and search for nursing homes by name or ZIP code.
2. Open the facility and check the health inspections tab. Look at the number of deficiencies, the severity, and whether residents were harmed or put in immediate jeopardy.
3. Check the staffing tab for nurse hours per resident per day and staff turnover.
4. Look for penalties: fines and payment denials. Repeated fines are a red flag.
5. Check whether the facility is marked with an abuse icon, which flags recent citations for abuse.

Kentucky's Office of Inspector General, Division of Health Care licenses and inspects long-term care facilities. You can also ask the facility to show you its most recent survey results, which federal rules require it to make available.

• Call lights that go unanswered, residents left in soiled clothing
• Strong odors, dirty rooms or bathrooms
• Residents who look over-sedated, thin or dehydrated
• Unexplained bruises, fractures or bed sores
• High staff turnover or heavy use of agency staff
• Staff who won't answer questions or let you see the care plan

Federal rules give residents the right to be free from abuse, neglect, misappropriation of property and exploitation (42 CFR 483.12). Facilities can't use physical or chemical restraints for discipline or convenience, can't retaliate against a resident or family for complaining, and must follow strict rules before transferring or discharging a resident. Kentucky adds its own resident rights in KRS 216.515, including the right to sue the facility when those rights are violated.

Kentucky law requires any person with reasonable cause to suspect that an adult has suffered abuse, neglect or exploitation to report it (KRS 209.030). Ways to report:

• Emergency: call 911.
• Adult Protective Services hotline: 1-877-597-2331 (1-877-KYSAFE1), any time.
• Online: the Kentucky abuse reporting system for non-emergencies (checked weekdays during business hours).
• The facility: tell the administrator in writing. Federal rules require the facility to report and investigate.

Write down dates, names and what you saw, and take photos of injuries.

A report starts a government investigation. It doesn't get your loved one compensated. If a resident was hurt, a nursing home abuse lawyer can preserve the chart and pursue the facility. Most claims have a one-year deadline (KRS 413.140(1)(a)). See what to do if you suspect nursing home neglect.