The coroner in Morgan County, Ill., notified nursing home investigators last year when he determined that a nursing home resident had died after choking on a piece of ham.
Coroner Jeff Lair, who asks that nursing homes in his county report all deaths to him, said investigators then cited the facility because the resident was supposed to be on a special diet and be supervised while eating but was not.
The coroner in Effingham County, Ill., also contacts state officials about nursing home deaths.
"We have to speak for these people," said Leigh Hammer, Effingham's coroner. "We have to give them a voice. Just because they are elderly doesn't mean that they were meant to die."
Kentucky does not require nursing homes to report most deaths to coroners, who are rarely called even when abuse or neglect are suspected. However, that might change if a bill proposed by Rep. Tom Burch, D-Louisville, passes.
Read more: http://www.kentucky.com/2011/01/19/1603010/states-say-coroners-help-in-nursing.html#ixzz1BW9b47l6
States say coroners help in nursing home deaths | Voiceless & Vulnerable: Nursing Home Abuse | Kentucky.com
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