Plant City UTI Attorney
Nobody in a nursing home should ever have to suffer from a preventable infection. Yet as a result of poor infection-control measures, understaffing, and a variety of other potential causes, elderly nursing home patients routinely are diagnosed with serious infections that ultimately can be life-threatening if they are left untreated. While urinary tract infections (UTI) are typically quite treatable for younger patients, UTIs can cause serious problems for older adults. According to a study in Annals of Long-Term Care, UTIs are the second most frequent infection in patients living in nursing homes and other long-term care facilities, and treatment of UTIs represents anywhere from about 30 percent to 50 percent of antibiotic prescriptions in long0term care facilities.
Catheters are often a major source of infection, and UTIs regardless of their cause ultimately can travel to a patient’s bladder or kidneys and can result in significant harm or death. An experienced Plant City UTI attorney can assess your case for you today.
Dangers of UTIs in Nursing Homes, Assisted-Living Facilities, and Other Long-Term Care Facilities in Plant City
Urinary tract infections are not always easily treatable in older adults in nursing homes and other long-term care facilities, and these infections can pose serious risks. A report from HealthDay News cites some of the following facts and figures concerning UTIs in skilled nursing facilities in Florida and across the country:
- UTIs in older adults can result in dangerous consequences beyond the initial infection, including the possibility of delirium, deadly blood infections, and falls;
- Most UTIs in nursing homes result from poor infection-control and other preventive measures;
- UTIs can be more difficult to diagnose in older adults, especially those with dementia or other types of cognitive impairments who cannot report common UTI symptoms like painful urination or increased urination;
- When UTIs are left untreated in older adults, they can result in dehydration and infection in a person’s bloodstream;
- In any given month, more than 5 percent of nursing home residents suffer from a UTI;
- Nursing home residents with catheters are four times as likely as other residents (those without catheters) to suffer from a UTI;
- UTIs are also linked to other infection-control problems unrelated to catheter usage;
- Failure to properly clean urine collection bags can result in UTIs, and less than half of all nursing homes regularly clean urine collection bags for patients with catheters;
- Bladder ultrasounds may be necessary to detect UTIs in patients with cognitive impairment, but only about 20 percent of nursing homes use bladder ultrasounds to diagnose patients;
- Failure to ensure that patients have proper hygiene, and are washed with soap and water frequently, can result in UTIs; and
- Staff members touching catheters without practicing proper hand hygiene can result in UTIs in nursing home patients.
Contact a Plant City UTI Attorney
If you or someone you love were diagnosed with a UTI at a nursing home, it may be possible to hold the facility accountable for the infection. A Plant City UTI lawyer can speak with you today about your case. Contact Kohn Law for more information about filing a lawsuit.
