Free Press reporter finds obits helpful in nursing home stories
Robin Erb, Detroit Free Press
Inadequate nursing home care has created headlines across the country as cases of neglect increase. Robin Erb and Kristi Tanner of the Detroit Free Press found that inspectors in Michigan handed out serious citations nearly twice as often as the national average. In part one of the three-part series called “Trust and Neglect,” they offer readers the grim statistics:
“Over a recent, 34-month period analyzed by the Free Press, Michigan nursing homes accumulated $9.9 million in federal fines, the most of any state. That statistic, while troubling, doesn’t necessarily put Michigan at the bottom of national rankings because many states rely on state, rather than federal, fines to punish errant homes.
But Michigan nursing homes also have the ninth highest rate of serious violations per capita, according to a Free Press analysis of federal data. Over a three-year period, Michigan homes were cited for serious violations — incidents that harmed residents or put them in immediate jeopardy of harm — 2.7 times for every 100 residents. The national rate was 1.5.”
But they also look at factors that can lead to neglect.
Click the image to go to 'Trust and neglect: Special report on nursing homes in Michigan.'
“Describing horrific things that happen in healthcare is the easy part. It’s more difficult – but more accurate and fair – to find out why they happen,” Robin says. “Only then can we really understand how to better protect vulnerable patients.”
In parts two and three, they explore why some troubled nursing homes remain open, and they focus on the homes where patients do receive good care – something many series don’t do.
Today’s Tip: “Use obituaries, funeral homes, lawsuits and death certificates to connect the human toll to the very dry, clinical reports,” Robin says.
Robin says violation reports only provide the age of the person who died, not the identify of staff, residents or family members. She says to use the age and the date of death to scan local obituaries, and lawsuits such as wrongful death claims.
“It doesn’t always work, but it often will,” she says.
Once you have a name, use death certificates to confirm the identity and to find relatives.
