California drug rehab clinics owe their vulnerable patients a special “duty of care.” That duty includes providing enough staff members to provide adequate monitoring and care.

Facility staffing at night can be reduced, but that should never affect the level of care patients receive.

If staffing issues contribute to an overdose death, facility owners and operators can be held liable by the victim’s family.

Understaffing Dangers at Night for Rehab Facilities

Inpatient drug treatment centers usually promise benefits like a drug-free environment, frequent checks on patients, and quick response if someone manages to suffer injuries.

But the level of care promised can be hard to keep without the proper staffing to provide it. Patients can be put at risk, especially when the sun goes down, and things often change at a facility.

At night, some California facilities are allowed to reduce staffing, giving patients more unsupervised time to harm themselves and others. It can also be a time when drug use isn’t noticed until it’s almost too late.

There are no strict staffing limits (or mandated staffing ratios) placed on non-medical drug treatment centers in California. Facilities are supposed to provide sufficient staff according to patient needs and the level of care (LOC) provided. Unfortunately, even these loose guidelines can get stretched at night.

Why Staff Is Reduced at Drug Rehab Clinics at Night

Most facilities go on lockdown in the evening, with no visitors allowed, so owners and operators believe it’s a good time to save money and cut down the staff to a minimum.

However, a reduced staff can lead to heightened risk for patients for these reasons and others:

• Fewer staff to perform bed checks and room searches
• More unsupervised time for patients to obtain drugs and overdose
• With less monitoring, patients who manage to overdose aren’t discovered as soon
• In some cases, more chance for concealment of contraband at night
• Additional monitoring of patients while they sleep
• A less desirable overnight shift can mean less qualified and less motivated staff members are in charge
• Fewer people to respond to overdoses, to call 911, administer Narcan, and to stay by a patient’s side

California Code of Regulations Title 9, § 531 allows some facilities to reduce staffing down to two employees at night if there are very few residents staying at the clinic. This is also dependent on the needs of current patients. Facilities are also required to have emergency plans in place.

Corporate owners of rehab facilities may save money this way, but they are still responsible for the security of patients. When a patient dies because there was no one around to help them, families could seek justice and support.

Support Available For Families After a Deadly Rehab Overdose

When facilities get careless with their staffing, and a patient suffers a deadly overdose, they can be held financially liable.

Unfortunately, the owners of large health networks behind facilities will have the money to hire corporate lawyers to defend them from litigation. Aggressive lawyers will try their best to blame a patient for an overdose.

A skilled attorney investigates a tragic accident and collects evidence to keep owners and operators from escaping blame.

An experienced lawyer then files a wrongful death claim (and in some cases, a Survival Action) on behalf of the family, and seeks full compensation for these hardships and others:

• The facility pays all funeral costs.
• The facility pays for any remaining medical bills left behind.
• The facility reimburses the family for any income that the deceased would have provided the family.
• The facility provides support for the loss of care, security, and guidance that a loved one provided.
• The facility provides support for parents who lose a child at an adolescent drug rehab center, especially for their loss of companionship.
• Punitive damages penalizing rehab providers, with the fines going to family members.

Punitive damages aren’t awarded in every wrongful death case. They are intended as an extra punishment for health care companies that are grossly negligent in the care of a patient, well beyond normal carelessness.

Owners are hit with fines to hopefully discourage them from allowing such negligence again. A drug rehab facility that cut staffing to protect profits and allowed a patient to get hurt could convince a judge to hand down this extra punishment.

See: Who can file a Wrongful Death Claim?

Contact Us if a California Rehab Facility Allowed Your Loved One to Overdose.

Attorney Martin Gasparian offers a free, confidential consultation to families who have suffered the ultimate loss due to a rehab center’s negligence.

Families may need a lawyer’s help to prove a lack of staffing during the day or at night, put a victim at elevated risk.  Mr. Gasparian keeps the blame on the facility and makes sure families earn justice and support.

Call us today or fill out a free case review form. There’s no obligation to you for meeting with us. But remember, if you require our help to take down a rehab facility, you don’t need any up-front money. We aren’t paid unless we win your case for your family. Then our fee comes out of the money a drug treatment center must provide to you.