Failure to Restrict Guest Access

Nursing homes in Hollywood, Homestead, and across South Florida have an obligation to keep their residents safe, and that’s never been more important than now, with outbreaks of COVID-19 in Florida and across the country.

There are many steps that nursing homes in Hollywood and across Florida can take to keep their residents and their staff safe. One of the most important steps is to restrict guest access at the nursing home.

Nursing homes usually allow friends and family to visit and in fact encourage such visits to keep residents engaged and fully supported through their social networks. Unfortunately, during the time of the COVID-19 pandemic such visits can be deadly. Scientists have found that a person can be contagious with COVID-19 a few days before they develop symptoms. Some patients with COVID-19 never develop significant symptoms and may now know they are ill. This means that someone may be exposed to COVID-19, may not realize they have been exposed, and then enter a nursing home where they pass it on to a friend or family member.

Another risk with guests at nursing home is they may be more exposed to COVID-19. Family and friends who live outside a nursing home may still be traveling or going to a workplace where they are at risk of coming into contact with COVID-19. They may then unwittingly pass on the virus when they visit a nursing home.

Because of this risk, limiting guest access becomes very important for nursing homes. There is simply no reliable way to know which person without symptoms has been exposed to COVID-19 and is currently contagious and which person is not a risk. During the pandemic, all nursing homes should have strict protocols in place, especially when there is of an outbreak in the community.

For nursing homes in Homestead, Miami, and other South Florida communities, safe guest policies can include:

• Posting staff at the entrance to make sure unwanted visitors do not enter
• Contacting friends and family and informing them that no one can enter the nursing home while the pandemic is ongoing
• Staying up-to-date with health authority recommendations and following them
• Having security on site to ensure no one tries to push their way into the nursing home
• Setting up a meeting space through a window or through a closed glass so that nursing home residents and family and friends can still communicate safely
• Providing more access through telephones, internet video conferencing, or other means and supporting residents and family to use such options for communication

When nursing homes fail to take these steps and fail to limit guests at a nursing home, they can cause an outbreak. If this type of failure has led to an outbreak, the family and friends of a nursing home residents affected by COVID-19 may have a legal claim. If this has happened to your family, contact Flaxman Law Group for a free, no obligation case consultation. Our team has been fighting for the rights of nursing home residents for decades and we have recovered tens of millions of dollars on behalf of thousands of plaintiffs. Contact us today for a free, no obligation case consultation via phone or Internet.