Nursing Home Pressure Ulcers / Pressure Ulcers and Bedsores in Nursing Homes 

A nursing home bedsore lawyer who is also a nurse reviews the skin assessments and turning logs, because a pressure ulcer is a record of missed care.

A pressure ulcer forms when a resident stays in one position too long and blood flow to the skin is cut off. Heels, hips, the tailbone, and the shoulder blades are the usual sites. Stage 1 is red skin that does not blanch. Stage 4 exposes muscle or bone. A deep wound rarely appears overnight; it was usually visible and treatable earlier. Federal regulations require a facility to prevent pressure injuries in residents who enter without them and to promote healing in residents who have them (42 C.F.R. section 483.25(b)). Turning every two hours, pressure-relieving mattresses, clean dry skin, and adequate nutrition prevent most of them.

We Investigate

• Skin assessments on admission and after

• Turning and repositioning logs

• Wound care orders and whether they were carried out

• Nutrition and hydration records

• Staffing on the shifts when the wound developed

What Families Can Do

• Look at the heels, hips, and tailbone during visits

• Ask what stage any wound is and what the treatment plan says

• Photograph the wound with the date if the resident consents

• Request the wound care notes in writing