One in Three Residents in Skilled Nursing Facilities Suffered Harm Related to Their Treatment.

A 2014 report by Office of Inspector General of the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services concluded that “One-in-three patients in skilled nursing facilities suffered a medication error, infection or some other type of harm related to their treatment, according to a government report released today that underscores the widespread nature of the country’s patient harm problem.”  Residents harmed – read the full report. 1.

Shockingly 59% of those adverse events were “clearly or likely preventable”.  The study concluded that much of the harm was due to “substandard treatment, inadequate resident monitoring, and failure or delay of necessary care.”  The study found that 22% of those studied “experienced adverse events during their (nursing home) stays. An additional 11% … experienced temporary harm events during their stays.”  2.

The Department of Health and Human Services estimated that “21,777 post-acute Medicare (nursing home) residents experienced at least 1 adverse event during their stays that ended in August of 2011.”  3. “An estimated 1,538 experienced adverse events that contributed to their deaths during the study month.” 4.

The study “estimated the national incidence rate preventability and costs of adverse events in skilled nursing facilities by using a two-stage medical review to identify a sample of 653 Medicare beneficiaries discharged from hospitals to skilled nursing facilities for post-acute care.”  Read an in depth analysis by Probublica of the study.