4 Things You Should Know About Nursing Home Negligence

Nursing home negligence occurs when patients are injured because of negligent, reckless or intentional actions by nurses and other staff members at a nursing home facility. When the victim is an elderly person, nursing home neglect and abuse can be especially devastating because these individuals may live with disabilities that make it difficult for them to care for themselves. They rely on nursing home workers to provide them with the care they need, and when that care is denied or is below certain standards, the patient may suffer long-term physical and mental health consequences.

Nursing Home Negligence Scenarios

Failure To protect patients from falls  

Every day in America, 20,000 people suffer hip fractures due to falls. The victims of these falls are often the elderly, who may already be frail and living with other disabilities. They can’t afford to take another fall without it causing serious injuries. Many nursing homes fail to use correct restraints or safety precautions that could prevent patient falls.

Failure to provide life-sustaining treatments  

Some patients enter a nursing home because they are in need of life-sustaining services, such as nutrition via intravenous tube, breathing assistance, or medications. When these services are not provided properly by the nursing staff, the patient could suffer severe injury or even death.

Failure to provide patient hygiene 

Personal hygiene is one of the most basic needs that patients have. Without proper hygiene, patients may be at risk for serious illness or infection. Nursing home neglect occurs when the facility fails to provide clean bedding, towels, and clothes, allows waste collection containers in patient rooms, or fails to change dirty sheets on a regular basis.

Contact A Lawyer

It is important to have an experienced attorney review the nursing home’s records in order to evaluate your loved one’s case. Folks at www.hurtcallbert.com will be able to determine the extent of your damages and if a claim should be filed against the negligent nursing home. There are several types of claims that can result from nursing home negligence; visit the website here to learn more. These include cases where the facility is liable for physical injuries or pain and suffering, as well as those where your loved one died due to negligent care. 

A qualified attorney can help you to determine if a case has merit and guide you through the process of filing those claims, as well as help you recover any damages awarded to your loved ones, should a claim be successful. Your legal options may be limited by time, so it is important to take action as soon as possible and start your case with an attorney who cares about you and knows how to fight for the rights of victims injured due to nursing home negligence.

Claims Can Be Difficult To Prove

Nursing home negligence claims can be difficult to prove. When a patient suffers an injury or illness due to substandard care, it may be hard to pinpoint exactly who is responsible for the negligent behaviour. In many cases, the entire nursing staff is responsible for providing all necessary care to a patient. However, in some cases it may be a few negligent or careless employees rather than the entire nursing staff. To win your nursing home negligence claim, you must be able to prove that the defendants in your case provided substandard care resulting in injury or illness.

How To Prove Your Case

One of the steps in understanding nursing home negligence is recognising what you need to prove about your case. Once you know this, you can begin investigating and building a case that will help protect your loved one and hold the negligent parties accountable. If someone needs care, whether it be through assisted living facilities or at home with a visiting nurse, they are at risk for personal injuries or abuse.

Often, before an investigation is opened, the responsible nursing home will have already conducted an internal investigation. These are not thorough investigations, but are used to protect themselves from liability before any type of official investigation has even begun. If someone suspects that their loved one is being abused or there are serious medical errors, it is in their best interest to contact an attorney immediately. Remember, the more evidence you have in your favour, the better chance you will have in court. Evidence can be anything from pictures of bruises or bedsores to medical records and doctor reports . 

The key areas that need to be addressed when proving negligence includes examination about your loved one’s medical history and keeping a detailed journal of all information that you can find.

This will include the type of care they are receiving and any changes in condition that you have noticed. If there has been a change in condition, keep notes on when it started, when it got worse or better, and all your observations. Proper documentation is key to proving your case successfully. This means you need to keep track of everyone that was involved in an incident, be it family members or facility workers.

You want to prove that the nursing home did not meet their professional standard of care and therefore caused harm or injury to your loved one. If they were mistreated, neglected, or abused it is the facility’s responsibility to make things right for your loved one.

While it can be extremely difficult to win a medical malpractice case, successfully proving negligence in a nursing home could not only net you financial compensation for your loved one’s injury or illness, but also help prevent other patients from suffering similar fate. By finding and providing evidence that shows all parties involved were negligent and by working with an attorney who is familiar with these specific cases, you can help to protect future patients and hold all parties accountable for their actions.

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