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When Around Water: Insist on One to One (1:1) Care

Posted by: Craig A. Knapp
November 20, 2011
Topic: Drowning Deaths in Group Homes

What if you were physically unable to take care of yourself? You couldn't eat, bathe, or live alone. You needed someone to care for you all day, everyday. Sounds pretty difficult, right? What if on top of this, you lost your ability to communicate your needs and wants? In fact, you are not able to even understand your needs and wants, let alone communicate them. In this instance, you'd probably hope that whoever is in charge of taking care of you knows what they're doing and cares enough about you to do it well. Unfortunately, there are many instances where this scenario is a reality.

Thousands of people live in group homes each year that have little to no capacity mentally and physically to take care of themselves and it's up to the caregivers working in their group home to tend to their every need.

Because of this, you'd think that every cautionary measure would be taken in order to ensure the safety of those in a group home, but a recent story by The New York Times shows that many more steps could be taken to ensure safety of residents.

In their research, they found that "One in six of all deaths in state and privately run homes, or more than 1,200 in the past decade, have been attributed to either unnatural or unknown causes." Many of these "unknown causes" have been drowning or choking instances, which, with proper training and supervision, could have been avoided.

James Michael Taylor was a victim to this supervisory negligence in 2005 when he drowned in a bath tub after being left alone for 15 minutes. James Michael Taylor was a 41-year-old quadriplegic who had the mental and physical capacity of a three-month-old. Upon further investigation of this case, it was found that his caretaker had worked many hours of overtime during this time and that James was put in a tub for ambulatory (able-bodied) patients, not non-ambulatory patients, like James was. Also, upon researching, the New York Times found that a similar drowning case took place a mere four months prior in the same group home.

It should be noted that Arizona is no exception to group home drowning cases. In 2001, one of our clients drowned in a bathtub at her group home. The caregiver left her alone for 10-15 minutes unsupervised. Despite her parents being very active in trying to protect their daughter ( i.e., educating the staff) it was not enough.

Instances like these put an increasing amount of importance on ensuring group homes have standards they are required to follow and measures of checking that they are being followed properly. A few steps that group homes can take:

1.) Ensure that there is an adequate number of staff on duty to tend to not only the number of residents they have, but also the dependence level of each resident on staff.

2.) Give caregivers a maximum amount of hours they are able to work per week to avoid being overworked and less proficient in their responsibilities.

3.) Require that each caretaker is properly trained in handling various tasks or accidents that arise and routinely check that these are understood.

You as a parent or guardian can:

1.) Insist on 1:1 care while your loved is around water.  CONSTANT SUPERVISION (never out of sight) is a must

2.) Be actively involved by calling every day, visiting as often as possible, and educating each staff member on the do's and don'ts.

When Connecticut enacted some of the rules above, the amount of unnatural death cases dwindled to one in 25, compared to New York's one in six. Measures can be taken to prevent your developmentally disabled neighbors, friends, and loved ones from becoming a victim of negligence in group homes. If you or your loved one has endured neglect or abuse in a group home, don't be afraid to reach out for help. Knapp & Roberts has experience in handling these cases and can assist you in ensuring that others are not treated the same way. We have a passion for standing up for those who can't stand up for themselves. We can help, give us a call.

Source: In State Care, 1,200 Deaths and Few Answers

The Knapp & Roberts law firm represents serious injury and wrongful death clients throughout Arizona, including the communities of Phoenix, Scottsdale, Tempe, Chandler, Gilbert, Mesa, Glendale, Peoria, Surprise, Queen Creek, Apache Junction, Goodyear, Tucson, Flagstaff, and Yuma in the Valley of the Sun - Maricopa County, Pinal County, Coconino County, Yuma County, and Gila County.