Risk Management Tools & Resources

 


Communication Risks in Senior Care

Communication Risks_Overview

Susan Lucot, MSN, RN, MLT (ASCP), CPHRM

Analysis of senior care medical malpractice cases shows that the majority involve resident falls, pressure injuries, elopements, assaults, and other safety incidents and mishaps. A closer look at these cases reveals the multitude of factors that contribute to these situations.

Contributing factors are multi-layered issues or failures in the process of care that play a role in the resident’s outcome and/or the initiation of the case (or had a significant impact on case resolution). In most cases, a combination of factors — not just one — leads to the malpractice allegations.

As with other medical malpractice cases, a top contributing factor in senior care claims is communication in a variety of forms. MedPro data show that communication is a contributing factor in 72 percent of senior care cases that close with an indemnity payment of $500,000 or more and in 53 percent of cases that close with an indemnity payment less than $500,000.1

Some of the most pressing communication issues that senior care organizations need to focus on when training staff and handling resident/family expectations include the following:

To learn more about each of these issues, including recommendations for how to address them, click the links above. For more information about effective communication with senior care residents and families, see MedPro’s articles 10 Strategies for Communicating Effectively With Senior Care Residents and Risk Considerations: Communication, Relationships, and Working With Difficult Family Members in Senior Care.

Endnote

1 MedPro Group senior care cases closed with >/=$500K indemnity paid 1/1/2017 through 6/30/2023 (Skilled + Assisted N=78); closed with <$500K (Skilled + Assisted N=1380).

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