When you place a loved one in a nursing home, you’re trusting that facility to provide the best possible care for them. They’re required by law to provide for residents’ physical, medical, mental, and emotional needs. Besides that, morality and humanity demand no less of them. Unfortunately, not all facilities and caregivers live by the law. Some don’t even seem to have moral compasses to guide them. Instead of offering the people in their care love, kindness, and compassion, they neglect, abuse, or take advantage of them.
When nursing home negligence takes place, it can lead to poor health, serious injuries, emotional harm, and even death. Victims and their families are often left wondering what their rights are and whether they have any options for pursuing justice. If you or a loved one has been a victim of this type of wrongdoing, suing for nursing home negligence may ensure the guilty parties are held responsible for their actions.
Recognizing the Warning Signs of Negligence
First off, it’s important to understand the potential signs of nursing home neglect. Bedsores are common indications that patients aren’t being cleaned properly or moved as often as they should. Poor hygiene can also be a red flag. Unexplained bruises, lacerations, and broken bones are warning signs of neglect and abuse as well. Sudden weight loss may be an indication that a patient isn’t being fed properly.
Not all signs of negligence and abuse are physical. If your loved one becomes withdrawn, depressed, or anxious, that could be a warning sign of abuse or isolation. In some cases, money that inexplicably goes missing from a loved one’s bank account or suspicious medical bills can be warning signs that a nursing home isn’t acting with your loved one’s best interests in mind.
How to Pursue Justice
If you suspect nursing home negligence or abuse, your first step should be getting your loved one to a safer environment. Remove them from the nursing home, and be sure they get medical care for their injuries. That’s essential for your loved one’s recovery. At the same time, their doctor can document their injuries or symptoms. That documentation can be used to prove the nursing home’s wrongdoing.
Report the Negligence
Secondly, report the negligence to the state agency that governs nursing homes and other care facilities. Nursing homes are held to high standards when it comes to caring for their residents, and reports of wrongdoing are taken seriously. Once you file a report, the nursing home will be investigated.
Contact a Personal Injury Attorney
Additionally, don’t hesitate to contact a personal injury attorney. Nursing home negligence cases can be complicated and difficult to prove. These facilities are often owned by corporations that have teams of attorneys and insurance adjusters working for them. Going up against them on your own isn’t recommended. You need an attorney who has the victim’s best interests at heart and will work to ensure the guilty parties are held accountable for their actions.
Seeking Justice for Nursing Home Neglect
If a loved one has been the victim of nursing home neglect, you have rights. It’s important to act quickly to stop the abuse or neglect. Documentation of the victim’s injuries, filing a report with the proper agencies, and having an attorney on your side are also important measures here. Those steps can help ensure the nursing homes or caregivers that fail to live up to their responsibilities are brought to justice.
