As with many states, response to complaints has been slow and at times downright lax. There is a shortage of surveyors and ombudsmen- the people charged with investigating claims of abuse and neglect.

Texas nursing-home residents who may have suffered abuse or neglect waited weeks last year for a state agency to investigate thousands of complaints, despite a federal policy requiring a rapid response.

On average, state surveyors took 20 working days to check out complaints, when they should have been done in half that time, according to a spokesman at the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services, or CMS.

Last year, the state received about 5,200 reports that, under federal guidelines, should have been investigated in 10 working days.

Texas sets its own demanding deadlines for investigators.

10 to 20 days is TOO long. On the other hand, we’re not hearing the details of the complaints. Some are just plain petty and silly.

But it’s hard to tell how close the Texas Department of Aging and Disability Services, or DADS, comes to meeting its own requirements. That’s because the state doesn’t track whether it investigates complaints on time, a spokeswoman said.

The agency did a better job of investigating the fewer — but more serious — complaints it received of immediate jeopardy. Those cases involve circumstances that could lead to death, injury and “the worst things you can imagine in nursing homes,” said David Wright, CMS’ long-term-care branch chief for a five-state region that includes Texas.

Of the 576 immediate-jeopardy complaints received last year, Texas responded to all but a few within two working days, as federal policy requires

Two days can be too long as well. While it might be annoying and aggravating to those who file the complaints, if it’s not a serious issue it isn’t going to get the attention.

Across the nation, complaints ranged from bedsores and patient falls to a woman who had an untreated urinary-tract infection, was locked in a dark room and broke an arm when she was dropped in a bathroom.

The federal agency works with states to bring them into compliance but can ultimately penalize them financially.

“It’s unfair for these people to be in these conditions and not have a survey agent come in there,” said Lou O’Reilly, founder of Texas Advocates for Nursing Home Residents.

Because so much time passes before investigators respond, there is sometimes no evidence to support allegations of neglect or abuse. In other cases, the root cause of a problem isn’t addressed, said David Bragg, an Austin attorney who has represented AARP in the Legislature and was Gov. Ann Richards’ appointee to investigate the Texas nursing-home industry.

A facility is supposed to do it’s own investigation of potential abuse and neglect situations, AND any other complaints. That can only occur when management knows of these things though. Often a family or staff file a complaint without notifying the facility.

A couple of years ago, for instance, an employee was accused of sexually assaulting a nursing-home resident and was arrested, Bragg said. The state did not investigate for more than 20 days, he said. That left the essential question — “How in the world did that happen?” — unanswered for weeks.

“Even though a perpetrator is arrested, the conditions that allowed that person to be employed in the first place probably still exist and will continue to exist until DADS gets out there and does an investigation,” Bragg said.

In my state someone who is arrested is investigated by the police. They gather evidence and order tests and all that. It’s not in the hands of the facility OR the state. The police will share their findings however.

This is a long article. Go read it and think about the times your facility has been investigated. How did it work out? Did the ombudsmen come into the place in a timely manner? Were the police involved?