Unsafe working environment... I want to quit

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JGROSSII

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My job is in a nursing home. Residents are frequently left sitting in fecal matter and urine for extended periods of time...the and rails are loose along the walls and there are cracked tile and warped flooring along with water leaks coming from the ceiling. How do I document compelling evidence of these and other unsafe working conditions without my employer catching on to what Im doing as I plan on voluntarily quitting citing these unsafe conditions? Ie pics on my camera phone...ect?
 
Agree, just contact OSHA - they will come out & check.
 
OSHA may or may not be the appropriate entity. OSHA regulates workplaces but not nursing homes per se. Some of what you describe has a greater impact on those receiving care, not the general physical environment. You can find the contact info to report problems with the nursing home itself to the Department of Public Heath's Bureau for Long Term Care.
I'm not sure what your motivation is in documenting before quitting. If you are trying to get unemployment, your chances are not great if you quit. Especially if you do so without trying to resolve things with your employer first.
 
May I just comment on one thing here?

In a nursing home it's inevitable that at least at some point a resident is going to be sitting in their own mess. Bladder and fecal issues don't follow any schedule. Are we talking 8 hours here? 15 minutes? An hour?
 
In IL this link is the state agency that regulates and oversees nursing homes.

http://www.idph.state.il.us/about/ohcr.htm

I suggest you contact them, but if you're smart, you won't quit UNTIL after they've inspected the facility and advised you as to whether the place is in violation.
 
You don't want to quit unless you have another job lined up. You "generally" (in most cases) do not get UI benefits if you quit. You would need a very good reason to quit & get UI. You might not have that good reason at this time.
 
May I just comment on one thing here?

In a nursing home it's inevitable that at least at some point a resident is going to be sitting in their own mess. Bladder and fecal issues don't follow any schedule. Are we talking 8 hours here? 15 minutes? An hour?


The OP did say extended periods of time. What exactly is extended periods of time to the OP, agree that the OP would need to come back & tell us.
 
I'm not finding any local or federal laws addressing a minimum time between "going" and the nursing staff actually addressing the issue.

I'm not even sure that would be feasible; you can't force someone to "go", and there are going to be patients who have absolutely no control, are non-ambulatory and/or unable to alert someone for some reason. A check every 15 minutes may not be a reasonable request, depending on the facility and staff availability and then you have the problem of the patient who can only "go" after the staff have left the room...and may do so inconsistently. With that said, letting someone sit for three hours is absolutely unacceptable and for those patients who are comatose there are alternate methods of feeding and dealing with waste.
 
I wouldn't think there are any actual laws.
 
There is a huge difference between your own health and safety being in jeopardy and not agreein gwith the standard of care provided to patients/clients. The former can be a valid reason to collect UI, but those conditions generally have to be pretty eggregious and it helps if you have tried to resolve the problems internally to no avail. Unless you are being asked to break the law in caring for patients, it is going to be near impossible to get UI if you quit. Inadequate care might be a good reason to report them to the state authorities and look for another job, but the state is always going to prefer you work and not collect benefits. Anytime you voluntarily leave a position in favor of collecting UI, be prepared to face an uphill battle and do not expect to prevail.
 
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