If your folks are in a nursing home, when was the last time you saw them? It has been harder to visit people recently due to restrictions. Visiting people in nursing homes is essential. It maintains your emotional connection and allows you to check that they are all right.

Nursing home neglect was a widespread problem before recent restrictions. It is unlikely to have got better and has probably got worse. There have been moves to give nursing homes protection from lawsuits. Doing so could be a “Licence for neglect,” according to Richard Mollot, executive director of the New York-based Long Term Care Community Coalition in an interview with Time magazine.

75 percent of nursing homes did not meet adequate staffing requirements before March, according to Charlene Harrington, professor at the University of California, San Francisco’s nursing school. Adequate staffing is one of the principal reasons that nursing home neglect occurs. The staff has to do too much in too little time, which may mean they cannot give your parents the care they need.

If you wonder why homes do not take on more staff, especially with many people looking for work, the answer comes down to money. With so many nursing homes privately owned and run for profit, reducing costs can take precedent over providing the level of care required. You can still maintain contact via telephone and video calls if you have not been able to visit your parents recently. When you talk to them, ask the kind of questions that will let you know if they are receiving the level of attention they deserve. While these are undoubtedly challenging times for nursing homes, they have a duty of care to their clients.