Families of elderly loved ones that need special attention and care often look to place their family members in a nursing home to ensure that they receive the supervision they need for their health and safety.
This is always a difficult decision for every family member, but in the end, they decide it is the best chance at a healthy life for their loved one. Unfortunately, some elderly residents of nursing homes experience infections because of their frail state or medical condition.
When an elderly resident of a nursing home suffers from an infection, they should receive immediate medical care to avoid it leading to sepsis, a potentially life-threatening condition, according to the Mayo Clinic.
If your loved one suffered an infection that developed into sepsis, they might have experienced nursing home abuse or neglect. Consider hiring a Detroit sepsis lawyer from Pintas & Mullins Law Firm. Call us today at (800) 842-6336 to learn more about how to receive justice for your loved one’s suffering.
How Infections Cause Sepsis
When left untreated for a long time, infections can cause sepsis, which is a life-threatening condition. Sepsis can result in permanent tissue damage, organ failure throughout the body, and even death. There are several ways that infection can result in sepsis.
Medical Malpractice
When a doctor or resident medical professional of a nursing home fails to identify that a nursing home resident has an infection or fails to treat an infection properly, this may result in sepsis.
The failure to identify or treat sepsis could result in a claim of medical malpractice if a family can prove that another doctor or medical professional in a similar situation would have had the ability to diagnose and treat the infection in their family member.
Nursing Home Negligence
If a nursing home fails to properly monitor and care for a nursing home resident, the staff may fail to properly identify that a resident developed an infection. Nursing homes have a duty and responsibility to ensure that their residents receive proper care and supervision. This duty includes monitoring patients for all of their healthcare needs and examining them for potential infections that could develop into life-threatening sepsis.
Additionally, if a nursing home staff member knows that a resident has an infection and fails to report that the infection has somehow worsened to management or to the on-staff medical provider, this can also rise to the level of nursing home negligence.
It is important to note that if an elderly resident of a nursing home does not receive immediate treatment for infections or for sepsis, serious injuries or death can occur. In many cases involving sepsis, where death does not occur, the person may suffer irreparable damage to their body and experience pain and suffering for the rest of their lives as a result.
Symptoms of Sepsis
The National Institute of General Medical Sciences (NIGMS) indicates that bacteria, viruses, and fungi can cause sepsis. While most sepsis occurs as a result of bacterial infections, it can also be the result of viral infections.
Because nursing homes have experienced many deaths as a result of these types of viruses, they have a unique responsibility to carefully monitor their residents for any potential development of sepsis symptoms. Some of the symptoms of sepsis include:
- Fever
- Chills
- Red patches or rashes on the skin
- Confusion or decline in cognitive function
- Rapid breathing
- Low blood pressure
- Rapid heart rate
- Abnormal white blood cell count
- Other signs or symptoms of infection
If you notice that your loved one has any of these types of symptoms when you visit them in the nursing home, you should request that they receive immediate medical attention. Additionally, you should ask why they have not already received proper medical evaluation and care.
If you believe that your loved one suffered from sepsis as a result of nursing home negligence, consider calling our legal team to learn how a Detroit sepsis lawyer at Pintas & Mullins Law Firm can help you better understand your legal rights.
For a free legal consultation with a Sepsis Lawyer serving Detroit, call (800) 794-0444
Nursing Home Negligence and Sepsis
The following are some ways that nursing home negligence can lead to sepsis:
- Failure to provide proper hydration and nutrition daily
- Failure to consistently reposition elderly residents who remain bedridden or in wheelchairs to prevent bedsores
- Failure to properly insert catheters and IVs
- Failure to properly use or apply medical instruments and equipment
- Failure to monitor patients at risk for infections due to chronic or serious health conditions
- Failure to train nursing home staff members to identify infections and sepsis in nursing home residents
- Failure to have a plan of action regarding steps to take once a nursing home staff member suspects that a resident may have developed sepsis
In many cases, an independent investigation must occur in order to determine exactly why an elderly resident developed sepsis and whether or not nursing home negligence was ultimately to blame for the serious medical condition.
Detroit Sepsis Lawyer Near Me (800) 794-0444
Consider Hiring a Detroit Sepsis Lawyer
When anyone develops an infection, they need immediate medical attention, care, and treatment to ensure that they do not develop sepsis or other life-threatening medical conditions.
Once a nursing home resident develops sepsis, it can trigger an inflammatory response that can cause death. Over one million people develop sepsis in the United States every year, and many of these people die as a result of their infection becoming septic.
If you believe your elderly family member experienced sepsis as a result of nursing home negligence, consider hiring a sepsis lawyer from Pintas & Mullins Law Firm. Call us today at (800) 842-6336 to help you better understand all of your legal options and learn how you can receive justice on behalf of your elderly family member.
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