The hospital social worker can direct you to the nearest Medicaid office. The facility's administrator or director of nursing should be contacted when you have concerns. If your problem is not taken care of, call the local ombudsman. The ombudsman is an advocate for people who live in care facilities who may not be able to speak out for themselves. They see that residents' rights are not abused.
All states have ombudsman programs to handle complaints in nursing homes.
The ombudsman visits each facility and tries to get to know the residents so they will call if they have problems. The ombudsman's phone number is posted in each facility. Written by Carolyn Norrgard, RNC, BA, MEd, and Carol Matheis-Kraft, PhD, RNC, for iMcKesson Clinical Reference Products. Published by iMcKesson Clinical Reference Products. All rights reserved.