Tulsa Oklahoma Legal Blog

We like to think that our loved ones are safe, happy and being well cared for when they go to live in a nursing home. Before helping them decide on their next residence, we accompany them to tour homes, ask questions and check references.

But after the move is made into an Oklahoma nursing home, what if you see signs that all is not what you hoped for when your loved one moved there? If a resident is neglected in a nursing home, physical or psychological damage can result. Here are some signs of potential nursing home neglect.

1. Unsanitary living conditions. Every bedroom should have clean bedding, a clean bathroom and surface areas wiped clean with a disinfectant. If the nursing home staff neglects to do so, sickness could result.
2. Bad personal hygiene. The staff should make sure residents have bathed, brushed their teeth, combed their hair and changed clothing. If residents are unable to do so themselves, staff must assist them. A lack of personal hygiene could lead to illness.
3. Mobility issues. Nursing home staff should see to it that residents are active by getting out of bed and moving around as much as possible. Daily walking helps to maintain or build strength and muscle tone, increase balance and improve circulation. Residents can face conditions such as infections and bedsores if they are left in bed and don't get exercise.
4. Improper nutrition. Malnutrition and dehydration can result from improper care and can lead to sicknesses. Inadequate staffing or high staff turnover often are to blame.
5. Injuries that go unexplained, such as bruises, head injuries or broken bones. Those injuries can be an indication of neglect or abuse.
6. Emotional issues. Conditions such as depression can be caused by neglect, and they could lead to residents doing things such as refusing to eat or take medication.

Summer is in full swing, and it may be time to send the kids off to an Oklahoma sleepover camp for a week or two. Time in the outdoors, with friends both old and new, probably will be the highlight of the summer for them.

However, there are a few precautions you should take:

1. Give the camp and your kids an up-to-date list of emergency contacts. You probably filled out such a form months ago when you completed out the registration paperwork, but things change. That trusty neighbor could have moved, or your best friend could have switched jobs and have a new work number.
2. Pack any medications that your child might need, especially allergy medications such as an Epi-Pen. Discuss any specific medical issues with the camp nurse and the counselor who will be in your child's cabin. Provide any written doctor's notes and medication permission slips that are needed.
3. Check out the facilities before you leave. The time you drop off your child might be the first time you see the camp. Is the cabin where your child will sleep in good shape? Is the ladder to climb to the top bunk secure or does it have a few loose rungs? Even the seemingly smallest issues can cause big injuries. If you see something that could pose a danger, say something to the camp staff.
4. If you didn't check the camp's accreditation through the American Camp Association before you registered your child, do so now. Accreditation means the camp meets rigorous standards.
5. Ask questions about the staff training. Are they first aid- and CPR-certified? Have they been trained to spot and report any forms of child abuse? If you don't feel comfortable with the staff, don't leave your child there.

Oklahoma’s workers’ compensation program can help employees pay for medical expenses, lost wages and other costs associated with injuries that occurred at work. However, not all workers’ compensation claims are successful.

If you were injured at work, you may have assumed that you would be approved to receive worker’s compensation benefits. Having your claim denied can come as a big shock, but you may still have options.

It's summer -- the carefree time of the year for our kids. There are visits with friends, pool parties and concerts. But when teens ride together with a teen driver behind the wheel, the accident risk goes up in Oklahoma and throughout the United States.

The AAA Foundation for Traffic Safety found that when a teen is driving with another teen as a passenger, the nationwide fatality rate for everyone in the car increases by 51%. When people 35 and older ride with a teenage driver, fatality rates in accidents drop by 8%.