Supporting Resident Dignity and Preventing Resident Abuse

​"Abuse damages the resident, morale, and the reputation of the organization," said Mary Rodger, BSN, RN, CPASRM, Senior Risk Management Analyst and Consultant, ECRI Institute, during the presentation "Supporting Dignity and Preserving Resident Rights: Abuse Prevention," at the 2017 Spring Education Series: Dementia Care Workshop, proudly sponsored by Caring Communities and Peace Church Risk Retention Group (PCRRG) and in collaboration with ECRI Institute. Rodger described the elements of effective dementia management and abuse prevention and presented system-level approaches to supporting quality of life for residents. She highlighted seven key components of a system-based approach to prevention of abuse and neglect: prevention, screening, identification, training, protection, investigation, and reporting/response, emphasizing that risk management and human resources need to work together in creating a person-centered care culture. This can manifest in strategies such as consistent assignments for staff, maintenance of documentation on background checks, assessment of staff knowledge on reporting requirements, and an emphasis on stability. Residents with dementia benefit from person-centered care especially, noted Rodger. "Acting out is a result of incongruence between the resident's quality of life or care and the resident's emotional, physical, or social needs," she said.