Entering a nursing home is a significant change for residents. They leave behind the comforts of home and become dependent on the facility’s staff to care for their needs. While many care facilities and staff provide quality care, unfortunately, nursing home abuse is rampant.
Abuse of the vulnerable is immoral and illegal. If your loved one has been victimized, the personal injury lawyers at GKBM are ready to fight back. A knowledgeable, caring Millington nursing home abuse and neglect lawyer will investigate your case and provide the highest quality representation.
Types of Millington Nursing Home Abuse
Nursing home abuse takes a variety of forms. Sometimes it is so horrific it falls into criminal territory. In those cases, the state can file criminal charges and take further action in those instances.
However, you do not need a criminal charge to take legal action against negligent parties. If you see signs of abuse, speak with a nursing home abuse and neglect attorney in Millington immediately.
Physical and Sexual
Incidents of nursing home abuse are on the rise. The most common type of abuse is physical, where nursing home staff kick, push, strike, or restrain residents, but sexual abuse is also rampant. Sexual abuse includes forcing sexual acts on residents, forcing them to commit sexual acts, or forcing them to watch others, even on video, engage in sexual behavior.
Nursing home abuse lawyers have handled many cases of abuse involving these injuries:
- Bruises
- Broken bones
- Burns
- Cuts and abrasions
- Sexually transmitted diseases
- Traumatic brain injuries
- Wrongful death
Both sexual and physical abuse lead to psychological and emotional trauma, such as anxiety, depression, and post-traumatic stress disorder.
Neglect
Neglect can be harder to detect. It involves the intentional or unintentional failure to provide for a resident’s basic needs. There are essential provisions nursing home staff must give residents, such as food, water, medical treatment, and clean accommodations and facilities. Neglect can manifest in injuries including:
- Infections
- Extreme dehydration
- Bedsores
- Malnutrition
- Significant weight loss
- Reduction in hygienic standards
Financial Exploitation
Caretakers may take financial advantage of the vulnerable. Some nursing home residents lack the understanding to pay their bills and handle their finances as they once did. Unscrupulous staff will use this loss of understanding to charge residents extra or manipulate residents into handing over cash or information, such as Social Security numbers, that allow the abuser to open bank accounts or credit cards in the victim’s name.
Caretakers can also steal heirlooms and valuables from the residents’ apartments or rooms. Some staff will even manipulate the resident into altering their accounts with the staff member’s information, unwittingly giving their abuser direct access to their money.
Emotional and Psychological
Emotional and psychological distress can result from experiencing other types of abuse. If you notice new signs of anxiety or depression, or other mental health issues, it can mean abuse is happening. Verbal threats, insults, mockery, and derogatory language are also emotional abuse.
Sometimes, residents’ social needs are ignored, and they are left isolated for hours or days on end. This isolation often leads to depression and severe loneliness.
Whatever form of abuse your loved one has experienced, a nursing home abuse and neglect attorney in Millington can notify the nursing home, contact state departments, and start building your case.
A Millington Nursing Home Abuse and Neglect Lawyer Will Determine Liability
Finding the person responsible for harming a nursing home resident is challenging as many caregivers are typically involved in each resident’s care. Sometimes the facility itself is liable along with caregivers, or on its own, depending on the circumstance of the abuse. A nursing home abuse and neglect lawyer in Millington will investigate those circumstances to determine liability and include every person responsible in a personal injury claim.
Nursing Home
The nursing home is responsible for the actions of its staff and everyone under its care. They are held accountable through vicarious liability and are typically named in most nursing home abuse claims. In some cases, their overall mismanagement or corruption creates an environment of abuse.
Staff Members
The most likely liable party for nursing home abuse is the staff members. They are at the front lines of care and have the most involvement with residents. Direct caregivers, supervisors, medical staff, administrative staff, and auxiliary staff comprise nursing home staff.
Third Parties
Many people enter the premises, and the nursing home bears responsibility for who is allowed to enter and what checks are in place to ensure these guests do not endanger residents. The third-party abusers can include social workers, transportation personnel, residents’ visitors, and volunteers.
Other Residents
There are many residents in nursing homes, and some can become abusive. When one person injures another, the injured party has the right to seek compensation. Nursing home staff and caregivers can also be held liable if they encourage or allow the abuse to continue.
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Compensation Your Millington Nursing Home Abuse and Neglect Attorney Will Pursue
Nursing home abuse victims can seek two types of compensatory damages. In some instances, punitive damages are also available. A Millington nursing home abuse and neglect attorney will evaluate your loved one’s losses and damages with precision and demand a fair settlement.
Economic Damages
Economic losses are expenses a victim incurs from an injury. Financial losses can include medical costs, medical treatment, transportation, loss of assets, and more.
Non-Economic Damages
Non-economic losses can include loss of enjoyment of life, loss of consortium, emotional distress, and pain and suffering. The intangibility of these losses can make calculations challenging, but Millington nursing home abuse lawyers have the tools to determine their value.
Punitive Damages
When a defendant is grossly negligent or intentionally victimizes your loved one, your Millington nursing home abuse and neglect lawyer may seek punitive damages. These damages can increase the final settlement significantly but can only be sought in certain circumstances.
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A Millington Nursing Home Abuse and Neglect Lawyer Is Here to Help
Millions of older adults suffer neglect or abuse annually in nursing homes, and many incidents of abuse are unreported. Family and friends of nursing home residents must stay vigilant and note any changes in their loved one’s behavior or care.
If your loved one is a victim of nursing home abuse or neglect, connect with a Millington nursing home abuse lawyer from the team at GKBM. We are here to help you and your loved one, and any other abused resident, seek compensation and justice. Call us today to schedule a free consultation.