When you decide to place a loved one in a nursing home, you likely try to find the best available facility to meet their needs. The devastation of learning that the nursing home you chose has allowed your loved one to suffer abuse is unthinkable. Fortunately, you may have legal recourse to hold negligent nursing homes accountable for the abuse of your loved one. A Kansas City sexual abuse lawyer can examine your circumstances and determine the most effective course of action in your case.
At a time when your loved one and your family are dealing with so many challenges, filing a legal claim may not be foremost in your mind. However, getting justice for your loved one and holding negligent nursing home facilities accountable for their actions can be helpful to the overall healing process.
Exploring your options for legal recourse with Pintas & Mullins Law Firm will allow you to make the decisions that are right for you and your family. Call (800) 842-6336 to take the first step toward achieving justice for the abuse that your loved one has suffered while in a nursing home.
Sexual Abuse in Nursing Homes
While nursing home abuse often brings to mind physical abuse and neglect of residents, the sad fact is that sexual abuse in nursing homes is an all too common phenomenon. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) defines sexual abuse as any forced or unwanted sexual interaction of any kind, ranging from sexual harassment to forced sex acts.
The National Consumer Voice for Quality Long-Term Care reported that in 2016 alone, 819 complaints to the agency that investigates nursing homes involved sexual abuse. However, sexual abuse in nursing homes goes severely underreported.
To further compound the lack of data on sexual abuse in nursing homes, residents may be reluctant to report abuse, often out of intimidation or threats of harm from the perpetrators. In other cases, residents may be unable to report their abuse due to a lack of physical or mental capacity to do so, or administrators simply may not believe the accusations of the residents, particularly if they have a mental condition such as dementia.
Nursing homes also have many incentives not to report or publicize cases of sexual abuse. Not only can they face civil liability, but the publicity from an employee or other person sexually abusing a resident can be harmful to business. Similarly, if state or federal regulatory agencies are aware of the incident, they could remove public health funding. This loss of funding can lead to the closure of the facility in many cases.
Liability in Nursing Home Sexual Abuse Cases
Nursing homes can face liability for the sexual abuse of their residents, no matter who the perpetrator of the abuse is. These nursing homes have a legal duty to protect their residents and keep them safe from all types of abuse, including sexual abuse.
If employees or other residents subject a nursing home resident to sexual abuse, the nursing home can face liability for injuries that residents related to the abuse. Likewise, if a third party inflicts the abuse on a nursing home resident, such as an outside medical provider or therapist, delivery person, or contractor making repairs, the nursing home is still liable for failing to keep the resident safe from harm.
Whether a nursing home has exercised reasonable care depends on the circumstances. For instance, a nursing home might be negligent if it fails to properly screen new employees and hires someone whom others previously have reported for abuse.
Nursing homes also have a duty to train, monitor, and supervise employees. If a nursing home has no safeguards in place to prevent abuse, such as not relying solely on one employee to monitor or care for a patient, the nursing home could face liability if a nursing home resident ends up suffering abuse.
Likewise, if chronic understaffing results in a patient being isolated and thus more vulnerable to abuse, the nursing home could be liable for the resulting abuse. A Kansas City sexual abuse lawyer can assist nursing home residents who suffer abuse, as well as their families, in navigating the filing of a legal claim for compensation. Call us today for a free consultation.
For a free legal consultation with a Sexual Abuse Lawyer serving Kansas, call (800) 794-0444
Fighting Back Against Abuse of Nursing Home Residents
Any form of abuse against nursing home residents, who are among the most vulnerable members of American society, is unconscionable, but sexual abuse is particularly egregious.
Injured nursing home residents and their families have the right to hold negligent nursing homes liable for their role in causing the abuse and resulting injuries. Since injury victims have only a limited time under state law to file their claims, contacting the law firm of a Kansas City sexual abuse lawyer as quickly as possible following the discovery of abuse may be wise. Failing to get prompt legal advice may result in an inability to seek compensation for the abuse to your loved one.
You may wonder how you can finance a legal claim against a nursing home in your situation. We want everyone who falls victim to nursing home abuse to have an equal chance to hold nursing homes liable when they fail to protect their residents.
As a result, we will handle your legal claim on a contingency basis, which means that you pay no money upfront or out of pocket for our services. Instead, we receive payment of our fees only once your family has received payment of compensation for your injuries from the responsible parties. Call (800) 842-6336 to reach Pintas & Mullins Law Firm today and get more information about how we can help.
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