Nursing Home Abuse Glossary

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C-Diff. A strong type of diarrhea that is contagious.

Care Plan. See Plan of Care.

Carrier. A private company that enters into a contract with Medicare to pay a beneficiary's Medicare Part B (health care) bills.

Case Manager. A person who arranges necessary health-care services for a patient or group of patients. The case manager could be a doctor, a nurse, another health care professional, or a social worker.

Catastrophic Limit. The highest amount of a money a person would be required to pay out of his or her own pocket during a certain period of time for certain covered health-care charges.

Certified or Certification. A health-care facility is certified when it passes a survey conducted by a state governmental agency. Medicare only covers care in facilities that are certified or accredited. Compare with Accredited.

Circumstantial Evidence. Evidence not based on actual personal knowledge or observation of the fact in dispute, but, rather, evidence of other personal knowledge or observation which allows a jury to infer the existence or nonexistence of the fact in dispute. An example of direct evidence of who was at fault for an act of abuse would be a witness who actually saw the abuse. An example of circumstantial evidence in this case would be a witness who was entering a resident's room and saw another person walking out of the room with blood on their hands. When the witness entered the resident's room, the witness saw that the resident had a bloodied nose.

Civil Action. Action brought to enforce private rights. Generally, all actions except criminal actions.

Civil Law. Body of law concerned with private rights and remedies, as contrasted with criminal law. Compare with criminal law.

Coerce or Coercion. To compel by pressure, threat, or force.

Cognitive Impairment. A breakdown in a person's mental state, which may affect the person's ability to think clearly. It may also affect moods and induce fear and/or anxiety.

Complaint. In the legal sense, the document a plaintiff files with the court which contains allegations and damages sought. A complaint generally starts a lawsuit.

Comprehensive Assessment. Under the federal Nursing Home Reform Act of 1987, a nursing home must perform an initial comprehensive, accurate, standardized reproducible assessment of each resident's functional capacity within 14 days of the resident's admission to the nursing home. A comprehensive assessment must again be performed after significant changes in the resident's physical or mental status and/or at least once every 12 months.

Confidentiality. A person's right to speak freely with his or her health care provider without anyone else finding out what was said in the conversation.

Consent. Voluntary agreement of one who has sufficient mental capacity to make an intelligent choice to do something proposed by another person.

Contingent Fee Agreement. An agreement between an attorney and his or her client whereby the attorney agrees to represent the client for a percentage of the amount recovered. This fee agreement is frequently used in personal injury actions.

Contracture. The drawing together of muscle or scar tissue that results in distortion or deformity. Contractures can be caused by long periods of confinement in bed.

Contributory Negligence. Broadly, carelessness on the plaintiff's part. More precisely, conduct which falls below the standard of care established by law for the protection of one's self against unreasonable risk of harm.

Copayment. The dollar amount some Medicare beneficiaries are required to pay for each medical service, such as a doctor's visit.

Court. Refers to a specific court, such as The Supreme Court of Pennsylvania, or may also refer to a judge.

Court Reporter. The person who stenographically records and transcribes testimony during court proceedings or related proceedings such as depositions.

Covered Benefit. A health service or item that is paid partially or fully by a person's health plan.

Covered Charges. A health service or benefit that is paid partially or fully by a person's health plan.

Criminal Law. Criminal law declares what conduct is criminal and prescribes punishment to be imposed for criminal conduct. The purpose of criminal law is to prevent harm to society. Compare to Civil Law.

Custodial Care. Personal care given by one person to another. Personal care includes such services as shopping and cooking. Personal care costs are usually not covered by Medicare.

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