Litigating Nursing Home Cases in Georgia
| Jurisdiction | Georgia,United States |
| Citation | Vol. 8 No. 2 Pg. 0002 |
| Pages | 0002 |
| Publication year | 2002 |
GSB Vol. 8, No. 2, Pg. 2. Litigating Nursing Home Cases in Georgia
Georgia State Bar Journal
Vol. 8, No. 2, October 2002
Vol. 8, No. 2, October 2002
"Litigating Nursing Home Cases in
Georgia"
By Laura W. Speed-Dalton and Douglas F. Aholt
Caring for the elderly person who needs assistance is rapidly
becoming an issue that all families must face. Without a
doubt, some long-term care facilities, or nursing homes as
they are generally called, do a fine job in caring for the
elderly, but as discussed in a recent article in the
Atlanta Journal-Constitution, dozens of Georgia
nursing homes are understaffed, leaving thousands of their
residents without enough nurses and nurses' aides to care
for them.1 A lack of adequate staffing often leads to a lack
of supervision or care. Such circumstances, coupled with the
fragile nature of nursing home residents, in turn, has lead
to injuries and even death, thus making some nursing homes a
dangerous place for those who cannot adequately watch after
themselves
The issues surrounding the care of our elderly have lead to a
recent increase of litigation against nursing homes for
inadequate care. Such litigation is brought against not only
the nursing homes themselves, but also against treating
physicians, attending nurses and staff. Although Georgia law
does not make a nursing home an insurer of the safety of its
residents, nursing homes do have statutory and contractual
duties of care, and when these duties are breached, society
demands that those who have agreed to care for the elderly do
it properly or be subject to legal remedies like any other
wrongdoer
This article briefly sets forth an overview of nursing home
litigation in Georgia, including a roadmap to the statutory
and regulatory framework that often comes into play in
prosecuting such lawsuits or defending against them
In analyzing litigation involving nursing homes, it is
critical that counsel correctly identify the type of facility
that is involved in order to make a correct determination as
to which rules and regulations apply. Thus, this article
begins by describing the three types of long-term care
facilities defined under present Georgia law. Next, this
article sets forth a general overview of the regulatory
system that governs long-term care facilities in Georgia
This regulatory background is important in understanding the
potential causes of action that may arise in litigating a
nursing home case. The article then goes on to present in
greater detail the specific statutory and regulatory
framework that applies to nursing home cases. Finally, the
article concludes with a discussion of the various potential
causes of actions in nursing home cases.
TYPES OF LONG-TERM CARE HOMES
Even though the general populace typically refers to all
long-term facilities as "nursing homes," there are
different types of facilities that are governed by different
regulations. The State of Georgia recognizes and regulates
the following types of long-term care homes: personal care
homes; intermediate care homes; and skilled nursing homes. A
general description of each of these types of facilities is
set forth below, and the Georgia Department of Human
Resources' (DHR) Web site and representatives can provide
counsel with additional guidance in determining what type of
facility is involved in a particular case.2
Personal Care Homes - Personal care
homes are what most people generally think of as assisted
living facilities. These homes range in size from two to
approximately 200 residents. The DHR defines a "personal
care home" as any dwelling that provides or arranges for
the "provision of housing, food service, and one or more
personal services for two or more adults who are not related
to the owner or administrator by blood or marriage."3
These homes are licensed by the state4 and admit residents
who require a home, food service and one or more personal
services, such as assistance in the taking of medications,
eating, dressing, bathing or toileting.5 In addition,
personal care home residents do not generally require nursing
services or medical supervision.
Personal care homes in Georgia must follow the state's
rules and regulations for personal care homes,6 and personal
care home surveyors from the DHR's Office of Regulatory
Services (ORS) usually inspect personal care homes once a
year.7 In addition, OSR personnel may visit some facilities
more often, depending upon the frequency and nature of any
complaints that they may receive regarding the facility
Intermediate Care Homes-
Intermediate care homes are defined by the DHR as facilities
that admit residents on medical referral, maintain services
and facilities for institutional care and have a
"satisfactory agreement with a physician and dentist to
provide continuing supervision, including emergencies."
8 Intermediate care means the "provision of food
including special diets when required, shelter, laundry and
personal care services, such as help with dressing, getting
in and out of bed, bathing, feeding, [taking] medications and
similar assistance." 9 These services are provided under
the supervision of a nurse.10
Residents of intermediate care homes are individuals who,
because of their physical and/or mental condition,
"require living accommodations and care which, as a
practical matter, can be made available to them only through
institutional facilities and who do not have an illness,
disease, injury or other condition as to require the degree
of care and treatment which a hospital or nursing home is
designed to provide."11 Intermediate care normally does
not include providing care for bed-ridden patients (except on
an emergency or temporary basis), inserting or changing
catheters, hand feeding or caring for patients who cannot go
to a central area for the administration of medication
without assistance.12
Intermediate care homes are governed by Georgia's rules
and regulations for intermediate care homes,13 and an
intermediate care facility must obtain a permit that
signifies satisfactory compliance with these rules and
regulations.14 In addition, as discussed in greater detail in
the next section of this article, a facility choosing to
participate in federal Medicare and Medicaid programs as a
nursing facility must be certified.15
Skilled Nursing Homes- A
"nursing...
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