People usually place their elderly loved ones in a nursing home when they can no longer reside in their own homes and take care of themselves. In some instances, elderly loved ones suffer from dementia and other medical conditions that may prevent them from speaking or communicating.
Sadly, these individuals are common victims of abuse and neglect at nursing homes and assisted living facilities. Since many of these residents suffer from dementia, including Alzheimer‘s disease, they may not even be aware that they are being abused or neglected by one or more nursing home staff members. In addition, if they are non-verbal, they can’t talk about their pain and suffering at the hands of abusive or negligent nursing home staff members.
If you suspect that your loved one is the victim of abuse or neglect while residing at a nursing home, there are certain signs and symptoms for which you should be on the lookout. For example, when visiting your loved one at the nursing home, you should take note as to whether there are any visible bruises or other signs of injury on your loved one’s body or abrupt changes in your loved one’s behavior. If so, there are certain actions that you should take, including reporting your concerns to the nursing home administrator in charge.
If your loved one has suffered an injury or illness that you believe resulted from nursing home abuse or neglect, it may also be a good idea to speak with an experienced nursing home abuse lawyer in your area. A lawyer could investigate your suspicions, and if necessary, take the appropriate legal action against the responsible nursing home employee or the nursing home itself.
What Types of Actions Constitute Nursing Home Abuse?
Sadly, nursing home abuse is a problem in nursing homes and assisted living facilities throughout the United States, despite heavy regulation. Nearly five million people across the country become victims of elder abuse every year, according to statistics provided by the National Council on Aging.
Even sadder still is the fact that a large majority of these nursing home abuse cases never come to light. In some instances, a nursing home patient, especially one who suffers from cognitive difficulties, may not even realize that someone is abusing them. Moreover, if the resident cannot speak, they may not express concerns or complaints to a loved one. In other cases, the resident may be afraid to report the abuse or neglect for fear that nursing home staff members might retaliate.
The United States Centers for Disease Control, more commonly known as the CDC, defines elder abuse as an intentional activity that causes an elderly person, including a person who lives at an assisted living facility or nursing home, to either suffer direct harm or the risk of harm.
Not all types of abuse in the nursing home setting are the same. In fact, nursing home abuse can take on many different forms. One of the most common types of abuse at a nursing home is physical abuse. A nursing home staff member physically abuses a resident when they hit, slap, strike, or otherwise cause the resident to suffer a physical injury or threat of injury.
Physical abuse of a nursing home resident is not limited to harm on the outside of the patient’s body. Using drugs or sedatives as a means of physically restraining a nursing home patient can also be a form of physical abuse. Various signs and symptoms often accompany physical abuse, including cuts and bruises when the resident did not suffer a recent injury or fall.
Nursing home abuse can also involve financially exploiting a resident by concealing, taking, or misusing a resident’s monetary funds or other property without the resident’s consent. Financial abuse also occurs when a healthcare professional overcharges for their medical services or bills a patient for services that the healthcare professional never provided. A healthcare provider may also recommend a medical procedure or course of treatment that the patient does not require.
Another form of nursing home abuse is verbal abuse of a resident. Verbally abusing a nursing home resident can involve making verbal threats to the resident, insulting them, or unnecessary and demeaning remarks to upset them.
An additional type of nursing home abuse involves sexually abusing a resident. A staff member who engages in unwanted sexual contact with a resident, such as fondling, touching, or penetration, engages in sexual abuse. In fact, any type of sexual attention by a staff member toward a nursing home resident that is non-consensual can constitute sexual abuse of a resident.
Finally, nursing home abuse may involve a staff member causing emotional or psychological abuse to a resident. Psychological and emotional abuse of a resident can involve threatening a nursing home resident, intimidating the resident, or ignoring the resident. For example, as a means of intimidating the nursing home resident, a staff member may withhold food or medication from them. Any type of intentional action or inaction by a staff member toward a resident that causes the resident to suffer mental anguish or emotional distress may constitute psychological abuse of the resident.
If you suspect, based upon your observations or the observations of others, that your non-verbal loved one is a victim of one or more of these types of abuse, an experienced nursing home abuse lawyer in your area can assist you. A knowledgeable attorney could investigate your suspicions, and if necessary, take legal action against the nursing home or the employee who caused the harm.
What Types of Actions and Inactions Constitute Nursing Home Neglect?
Neglect at a nursing home falls under the umbrella of abuse. Unlike nursing home abuse, however, nursing home neglect does not need to be intentional (although in some cases it can be). Nursing home neglect typically occurs when a nursing home staff member fails to provide a patient with safe, careful, and reasonable care. In some instances, this is through the staff member’s actions, while at other times, it is through the staff member’s inactions. In general, nursing home neglect is more common than physical or sexual abuse in a nursing home setting.
Several different types of actions and inactions constitute nursing home neglect by staff members. One of the most common types of nursing home neglect is failing to provide nursing home residents with the proper care that they need. One of the primary jobs of nursing home staff is to make sure that nursing home patients receive all of the care and treatment that they require. After all, the main reason why a person resides in a nursing home is usually that they require some special care and assistance.
To ensure that a nursing home patient receives the proper care that they deserve, staff members are responsible for making sure that patients receive their medications at the proper times, are bathed regularly, and receive their meals on time. In addition, nursing home staff members are responsible for responding to patient emergencies and symptoms, addressing them promptly, and ensuring that patients receive the medical care and treatment that they need.
In addition to failing to provide a nursing home resident with proper care, nursing home staff members commit negligent acts when they fail to keep a nursing home clean for the benefit of residents and visitors. In the present age of COVID-19, it is more important now than ever to ensure that nursing facilities are properly cleaned and disinfected at all times. This stronger focus on facility hygiene includes not just patient rooms and bathrooms but also common areas, such as parlors, hallways, and recreation rooms.
When nursing facility staff does not clean properly, germs can spread throughout the facility and ultimately to patients. Nursing home staff members and administrators are responsible for making sure that these areas are cleaned and disinfected regularly, usually several times per day.
Another way that nursing homes commit negligent acts is when they make a serious medical mistake. One of the reasons why many residents are present in nursing homes is because they require nursing care and medical attention around the clock. Nursing home staff members, including nurses, doctors, nursing assistants, and physical therapists, must make sure that nursing home patients are given the correct medications at the proper times of the day.
When staff mix up patient medications and a patient receives someone else’s medication, this can result in serious medical complications, including possible patient illness or death. In addition, nursing home staff members are responsible for making sure that medication dosages are correct and that they do not give the patient more or less than the required dosage. Healthcare providers are also responsible for accounting for medication allergies when they prescribe medications to nursing home patients.
Finally, nursing homes can commit negligent acts when they do not monitor their patients properly. When individuals cannot take care of themselves at their own homes, a family member often places them in a nursing home. The nursing home, therefore, is responsible for monitoring the patient around the clock. This care includes promptly addressing patient symptoms.
When a nursing home staff member, such as a nurse or nursing assistant, fails to address a patient’s symptoms, the patient could suffer a serious injury or illness, such as a stroke or heart attack. In addition, patients who suffer from dementia and other cognitive impairments, including those patients who are nonverbal, often require extra monitoring and supervision. The increased attention is especially important when patients are eating, using the bathroom, and taking part in other daily living activities. In the event a nursing home resident suffers a serious illness or injury due to a nursing home staff member’s failure to monitor, the patient can assert a legal claim against the nursing home or the at-fault employee.
Nonverbal patients cannot talk about their symptoms and concerns to nursing home staff members. Therefore, these patients require special attention. If you suspect that nursing home staff members have neglected your loved one who resides in a nursing home, speak with a nursing home abuse and neglect attorney in your area as soon as possible. Your lawyer can investigate the situation and advise if you may have a potential legal claim.
How to Tell That a Non-Verbal Nursing Home Patient Might Be the Victim of Abuse or Neglect
Nursing home residents who suffer from dementia and other cognitive disabilities, and those who cannot speak, are, unfortunately, the targets of abuse and neglect on many occasions. Individuals who are nonverbal might not communicate their symptoms or concerns directly to the facility’s management or people who could do so on their behalf. Moreover, if they suffer from cognitive impairment, they may not even be aware that abuse or neglect is occurring at the hands of one or more nursing home staff members.
Therefore, if your loved one resides in a nursing home and is nonverbal, you must look out for telltale signs and symptoms of neglect and abuse.
One of the first signs and symptoms that you should look for if you suspect that your loved one is being abused or neglected in a nursing home are physical signs of abuse and neglect. These physical signs often take the form of lacerations, cuts, bruises, or sores on your loved one’s body. Pressure sores (also known as bedsores) on a patient’s body are an especially common sign of nursing home neglect, and patients confined to a bed or a wheelchair can suffer these injuries.
Pressure sores may indicate that staff does not turn the patient regularly or bathe the patient regularly. If you observe any of these physical signs or symptoms on your loved one’s body, report them right away to a nursing home administrator or someone else who can investigate the situation. You can also ask your loved one if they are experiencing pain and other physical problems, and your loved one could point to the area of their body that is bothersome.
In addition to physical signs and symptoms of abuse or neglect, frequent mood swings, anger, frustration, or rage, are common signs of nursing home abuse or neglect. If your loved one cannot speak, this frustration or rage may come across as social withdrawal or isolation. If your loved one has not exhibited these kinds of behaviors in the past, the behaviors may be a sign that your loved one is suffering from abuse or neglect at the hands of a nursing home staff member. Again, you should relate your observations to a nursing home administrator as soon as possible.
Moreover, individuals who suffer from nursing home abuse or neglect may become ill more frequently than before. Frequent illness can often arise when a nursing facility staff does not clean or sanitize the facility properly or bathe the patients regularly. If you notice that your loved one is becoming ill more frequently than ever before, you should report your suspicions to a nursing home administrator who can investigate the situation.
Moreover, you should be on the lookout for unpleasant odors around your loved one or in your loved one’s bedroom or bathroom. These odors may be a sign that the facility is not being cleaned or maintained regularly and that the nursing home is being neglectful in its duties. When uncleanliness is allowed to persist in a nursing home environment, bacteria and germs can spread, and patients can become ill.
You should also be on the lookout for unusual bleeding on your loved one’s body, which could be a sign of physical abuse by a nursing home staff member. Finally, if you suspect that abuse or neglect is occurring at the nursing home, you may want to speak to other residents who may know your loved one, such as a roommate. If these patients are verbal, they can express their concerns directly to you, after which you could file a formal complaint with a nursing home administrator or with the state health department.
If your loved one is nonverbal or otherwise non-communicative and resides at a nursing home, look for physical signs, symptoms, and manifestations of potential abuse or neglect. You may also need to speak with others and report your suspicions to nursing home staff members. If that does not work, involve an experienced nursing home abuse and neglect lawyer in your area as soon as possible. A lawyer could investigate the situation and take the necessary legal action against the nursing home or a nursing home staff member, if appropriate.
Actions You Should Take if You Suspect That Your Non-Verbal Loved One Is the Victim of Nursing Home Abuse or Neglect
If you suspect that your loved one is the victim of abuse or neglect in a nursing home, there are certain actions that you should take. First and foremost, you should report your suspicions to a nursing home administrator. You should explain your observations and the content of your discussions with others and ask the administrator to develop a plan for moving forward. If your meeting with the administrator does not result in any change, immediately speak with a nursing home abuse and neglect lawyer in your area.
You or your lawyer can contact the state health department, who can begin an investigation of its own. In many cases, the health department will come to the nursing home unannounced. If there are deficiencies, the department could require the nursing home to come into compliance immediately. If the nursing home does not comply, the state could eventually shut it down.
If appropriate, your lawyer could help you file a claim or lawsuit against the nursing home or a nursing home employee for abuse or neglect, especially if your loved one suffered an injury, illness, or death as a result of suspected abuse or neglect. In that instance, if you prevail, you can recover monetary compensation and damages on behalf of your loved one.
If you suspect that your loved one who resides in a nursing home is a victim of abuse or neglect, speaking with an experienced attorney in your area can be extremely helpful. Your lawyer can help you develop a plan of action for moving forward and file a claim or lawsuit against the nursing home or a negligent or abusive nursing home employee.
Who Can Be Responsible for the Abuse or Neglect That Your Loved One Experiences at a Nursing Home?
Nursing home abuse or neglect can occur at the hands of several different parties. In some instances, another nursing home resident may commit the act of abuse, including an act of physical violence. At other times, nursing home staff members are the cause of abusive and neglectful actions.
Nursing home staff members have a duty to care for their patients in a reasonable, safe, and careful manner at all times. When they fail to do so, and the patient suffers an injury or illness as a result, the nursing home employee or the nursing home itself could be a defendant in a claim or lawsuit filed on behalf of the injured nursing home resident. Examples of neglect or abuse that can lead to a claim include failing to provide medical care, failing to provide sanitary living conditions, verbal abuse, or physical abuse.
Potentially abusive or neglectful nursing home employees can include doctors, nursing assistants, nurses, administrators, dietitians, maintenance staff, and others employed at the nursing home on a full-time or part-time basis.
If you suspect that your loved one who resides at a nursing home has suffered abuse or neglect at the hands of one or more of these individuals, report your suspicions as soon as possible. It is also a good idea to get in touch with an experienced nursing home abuse and neglect lawyer in your jurisdiction for help on how best to proceed with your case.
Proving That a Nursing Home or Nursing Home Employee Was Abusive or Negligent Under the Circumstances
When it comes to proving a case of nursing home abuse or negligence, the affected nursing home resident, through their attorney, has the legal burden of proof. First, the nursing home resident will need to demonstrate that a negligent or abusive nursing home or nursing home employee owed them a duty of reasonable care.
This point is fairly straightforward, given that nursing home facilities and nursing home employees owe all of their patients an extremely high duty of care to look after them in a safe, reasonable, and careful manner at all times. Nursing home employees, such as nurses, are held to a reasonable standard of care. Therefore, the actions or inactions of a nurse hold to the standard of care of a hypothetical ‘reasonable nurse’ acting under the same or similar circumstances.
Nursing home staff members and employees violate (or breach) the standard of care when they act unreasonably under the circumstances. A nursing home staff member, for example, may do something that a reasonable employee would not have done or may fail to do something that a reasonable employee would have done. Nursing home abuse or negligence can take on a variety of forms, but it usually includes failing to properly care for or monitor a resident, leading to a resident’s injury, illness, or premature death.
The nursing home resident, through their attorney, must also establish that the staff member’s negligence resulted in an injury, illness, or some other complication for the patient. Finally, the nursing home resident must have suffered some type of damage.
Malpractice insurance policies typically cover nursing homes and nursing home employees. Therefore, if one or more nursing home staff members make a medical mistake that results in a complication to a patient, it is this insurance policy that typically steps in and provides the necessary coverage, monetary compensation, and damages.
In some cases that involve nursing home neglect or abuse, the nursing home resident passes away as a result of a staff member’s negligent or wrongful activities. In that instance, the surviving loved ones of the nursing home resident can file a wrongful death claim against the nursing home or the negligent or abusive employee. Wrongful death claims and the individuals who assert those claims often vary based upon the jurisdiction.
For example, in some jurisdictions, any surviving loved one is eligible to file a wrongful death claim on behalf of the deceased individual. In other jurisdictions, the appointed representative will open an estate on behalf of the deceased loved one. Then, the personal representative of the estate can file a wrongful death claim on behalf of the estate, seeking monetary compensation and damages.
As part of your wrongful death claim, the surviving loved ones of the decedent could recover monetary compensation for funeral costs, burial costs, and medical expenses that the decedent incurred up until the time they passed away. The decedent’s surviving loved ones could also pursue monetary compensation for the loss of the deceased individual’s comfort, care, and companionship.
An experienced nursing home abuse and neglect attorney in your jurisdiction could assist you in investigating your suspicions and determining whether abuse or neglect likely occurred at the nursing facility. If so, your lawyer could assist you with taking legal action on behalf of your loved one, such as filing a complaint with the state health department or filing a claim or lawsuit against the negligent nursing home or the negligent or abusive nursing home employee.
Your lawyer may then assist you throughout the claims process, and if necessary, file a lawsuit in the state court system on behalf of your loved one. Finally, your lawyer can assist you with litigating the case through the court system in pursuing monetary compensation on behalf of your loved one.
If your loved one died as a result of nursing home neglect or abuse, your attorney could file a wrongful death claim on behalf of your deceased loved one, seeking the necessary monetary compensation and damages.
How an Experienced Nursing Home Abuse Lawyer in Your Area Can Assist You
If you suspect that your non-speaking loved one has been a victim of abuse or neglect while residing at a nursing home, there are several ways that an experienced attorney can assist you. First, your lawyer could assist with investigating the situation at the nursing home. They could also file a claim with the state health department on your loved one’s behalf, after which the health department can begin its own investigation.
Nursing Home Abuse Lawyer, David Brauns
If you need to take legal action against a staff member at the nursing home or the nursing home itself, your lawyer will assist with that. Similarly, if the case cannot resolve by way of a settlement or alternative dispute resolution with the nursing home, your lawyer could file a lawsuit on behalf of your loved one and litigate the case through the court system.
The primary goal of pursuing a claim or filing a lawsuit is to recover monetary compensation for all of the injuries, pain, and suffering that your loved one had to endure as a result of the nursing home abuse or neglect. This compensation comes in the form of payment of medical bills and compensation for pain and suffering, inconvenience, loss of use of a body part, loss of enjoyment of life, and any permanent disability that resulted from the abuse or neglect.
A nursing home abuse and neglect lawyer in your jurisdiction will do everything possible to help you pursue as much compensation as possible for your loved one’s injuries and damages. Contact Brauns Law Accident Injury Lawyers, PC today.
