Nursing & Elder Home Abuse

Cases We Handle 

Domestic
Institutional 
Financial
Bed Sores
Broken Bones
Falls
Head Injuries
Dehydration
Malnutrition
Physical Abuse
Sexual Abuse
Mismedication
Failures to Diagnose
Delays in Treatment
Escape from Facilities

Elder abuse can take many forms, including physical abuse, emotional abuse, sexual abuse, negligence by an in-home caregiver, financial exploitation, and/or health care fraud. Nursing home neglect is when residents of a nursing home suffer from a lack of proper nursing care, resulting in illness, physical harm, or even death. When that happens, the care provider might be held responsible for negligence.

Types of Elder Abuse and Neglect

According to the National Center on Elder Abuse, nursing home abuse can be divided into three categories:

Domestic: Maltreatment of an older person by someone who has a special relationship with the elder, including a spouse, sibling, child, friend, or caregiver. The abuse can occur in the elder’s home or in the home of a caregiver.

Institutional: Any abuse that occurs in residential facilities for older persons such as nursing homes, foster homes, group homes or board and care facilities. Perpetrators of institutional abuse are usually persons who have a legal or contractual obligation to provide the elderly with care and protection.

Financial: The financial exploitation of an elder through coercion, force or by taking advantage of a senior’s dementia. This may include forged checks, scams, excessive withdrawals, changes in living wills and other legal documents, and other schemes to drain a senior’s savings, according to the National Committee for the Prevention of Elder Abuse.

Self-neglect: Behavior of an elderly person that threatens his or her own health or safety. Self-neglect generally manifests itself in an older person as a refusal or failure to provide himself or herself with adequate food, water, clothing, shelter, personal hygiene, medication, or safety precautions. This excludes a situation in which a mentally competent older person, who understands the consequences of his or her decisions makes a conscious and voluntary decision to engage in acts that threaten his or her health or safety as a matter of personal choice.

Common Signs of Nursing Home Abuse

As many seniors in nursing home care suffer from dementia, abused loved ones may not always be able to communicate the abuse or neglect that they are experiencing. It falls to family members to observe any signs of abuse and speak up about suspicions of wrongdoing.

Although nursing home abuse can take many forms, according to the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services these are some common signs that your client’s loved one may not be receiving the care they deserve:

• Bed sores
• Unexplained bruises or injuries
• Dehydration and malnutrition
• Poor hygiene
• Fear and anxiety
• Withdrawal from normal activities

Other Forms of Elder Abuse

Elder abuse isn’t just limited to nursing homes and care facilities. Sadly, the elderly are targeted in a number of ways, including:

Domestic: The neglect or abuse of an elder by a family member or caregiver, including spouses, siblings, children, or friends. This abuse often occurs in the home of the elder.

Financial: The financial exploitation of an elder through coercion, force, or by taking advantage of a senior’s dementia. This may include forged checks, scams, excessive withdrawals, changes in living wills and other legal documents, and other schemes to drain a senior’s savings, according to the National Committee for the Prevention of Elder Abuse.

Abandonment: When a senior is purposefully abandoned by a family member or caretaker at a hospital, nursing home, or public location.

What Our Attorneys can do for Your Client

If an offer to settle a case is unacceptable, we are not afraid to take our cases to trial. To strengthen your client’s nursing home abuse claim, our attorneys can:

• Work alongside medical experts to determine the exact cause of your client’s loved one’s injuries
• Review your loved one’s medical records
• Help ensure the nursing home does not attempt to block access to relevant information
• Gather photographic evidence and review security videotape from the time of the abuse
• Review business records to determine the legality of the nursing home’s hiring practices
• Interview other employees and residents of the nursing home
• Interview witnesses to the abuse, if possible
• Work alongside medical experts to determine the projected future cost of living after the abuse
• Determine the cost of non-economic damages from the abuse

Steps When Bringing a Case of Nursing Home Neglect or Abuse

Seek Medical Attention: When a nursing home resident complains of abuse, the first step is to help them seek medical attention. This is especially important if they have been injured or fallen sick due to the abuse. For example, if they have been physically assaulted, call 911. In addition, request an ambulance if they have suffered life-threatening injuries.

Documentation and Notification: Next, your client will need to document the incident and notify relevant authorities. Each state has an agency that handles cases of nursing home abuse or neglect. Whether your client is a member of staff or a direct relative of the resident, it is important to report the incident to the relevant authorities.

File a complaint: Nursing home staff are regarded as mandatory reporters. Therefore, failure to report abuse or neglect at a nursing home comes with serious consequences for the mandatory reporter. After filing a complaint with the relevant government agency, the next step is to consult a nursing abuse or neglect lawyer.