December 27, 2012
For the last nine years, nursing home patients in North Carolina have depended on a government-funded reporting system, known as the Medication Error Quality Initiative (MEQI), which reports nursing home medication errors to the general public. The reporting system, which is meant to hold nursing homes accountable for their actions, also has been key in tracking the number medication errors in the state. It has not only been prominent in targeting problems that can lead to North Carolina Nursing Home Abuse, but also has been a vital part in creating a paper trail for errors; however, beginning in the new year, the MEQI will be eliminated.
According to a press release from the University of North Carolina’s Cecil G. Sheps Center for Health Services Research, which has overseen the program since its inception in 2003, funding will no longer be provided at the end of the year. This means that beginning Jan. 1, 2013, nursing homes will no longer have to report medication errors to the system, and access to past errors will only be available through the end of March 2013.
The North Carolina Personal Injury Lawyers with HensonFuerst Injury Lawyers recognize the loss of the system will make it more important than ever for nursing home patients who have been affected by medication errors to explore their legal rights while having an experienced attorney on their side.