What Protections Do Healthcare Workers Have When They Report Abuse or Neglect of Patients?

Employees of nursing homes, convalescent homes, and other similar institutions cannot be fired or otherwise discriminated or retaliated against for reporting a violation of the law to the employee’s supervisor, the facility administrator, a state regulatory agency (such as the Texas Department of Aging and Disability Services, or “DADS”), or a law enforcement agency.  Such employees are also protected against this kind of retaliation when they initiate or cooperate in an investigation by a governmental entity related to care, services, or conditions at the institution.  These claims can be brought by nurses as well as other employees.  Complaints leading to these types of claims often involve the neglect or abuse of residents or patients, such as allowing them to lie in wet beds, improperly restraining or sedating them, failing to properly safeguard the confidentiality of their medical information, or failing to provide them with proper medication or nutrition.

These claims must be raised very quickly or they are lost forever. Specifically, the employee must initiate legal action not later than the 90th day after the date their employment is suspended or terminated.