A recent article pointed out life inside one of Illinois’ “one-star” nursing homes. Notably, when inspectors arrived they found:

The lobby smelled of urine. In one room, they found a 97-year-old woman, lying in her own waste. She had severe bruises on her arm, foot and both legs that the staff could not immediately explain. Another resident had a bed sore larger than a golf ball and dripping blood.

It was also noted that an obese man suffocated after getting stuck between a mattress and side rails and the State of Illinois fined the facility $50,000 for the death–noted as one of of the largest nursing home penalties in the state last year.

In my earlier posts, I stress often that when placing a loved one in any nursing facility, do your due diligence. Check the ratings system. Check the Illinois Department of Public Health. Ask questions of the staff and visit the facility at various times. There is no reason that any resident should ever suffer through these issues