Nursing homes are facing more and more problems when it comes to senior care. Many facilities are understaffed, while others do not provide the required services. Many are facing funding issues, and these problems are beginning to lead to an increase in problems with the existing staff.
As problems in nursing homes worsen, the staff members that are there are struggling with a variety of issues. The added stress may be leading to an increase in strange and possibly illegal actions throughout their care practices. This can have a negative effect on senior residents.
If you or a loved one received substandard care in a facility where the staff behaved in an odd way, it may be a good idea to consult a San Francisco odd actions on the part of the staff lawyer. This is especially true if you had injuries and other problems related to your care. Contact Pintas & Mullins Law Firm to speak to our legal team about your case.
Signs of Odd Staff Actions in Nursing Homes
There are many ways that staff members can behave strangely in a nursing facility. While not all of these strange actions are signs of illegal behaviors, it is important to see how they affect seniors. Justice in Aging, an organization that tries to protect seniors, monitors, and reports on strange actions that happen in facilities. Some of these behaviors include:
- Preferential care: Because of the difference between Medicare/Medicaid and other payment options, staff members may show preferential treatment to seniors that are not Medicare/Medicaid eligible.
- Behavior management medications: Using drugs to manage behavior is only acceptable in very specific situations. Using it outside of these situations can be seen as abuse or misuse of medications.
- Physical restraints: There are a few reasons why physical restraints should be used. Using them on a regular basis is a sign of abuse.
- Excessive stress around seniors: With the increasing shortage of nursing home care staff, current staff members are growing more stressed with working conditions. However, this should not be apparent to patients.
There are many other odd actions that are not covered on this list. When staff members begin to act strangely, it may be time to think about changing facilities. No facility should give seniors problems for any reason. If these problems persist, then it may be time to consider legal action to help resolve the problem.
Prevalence of Odd Staff Actions in Nursing Homes
Off staff actions tend to stand out in facilities, having a significant effect on patient care and caregiver reviews of facilities. Medical Care Research and Review assesses odd staff actions to see how seniors are affected. Research shows that family members and some seniors are aware of these odd actions, and it affects how they perceive and rate care. Since many of the studies on this are based on state efforts to improve care, they may lead to changes in the future. However, it continues to be an increasingly prevalent problem to look for in nursing homes.
For a free legal consultation with a Odd Actions on the Part of the Staff Lawyer serving San Francisco, call (800) 794-0444
Statute of Limitations
If an incident occurs and you do decide to file a lawsuit, then it is important to be mindful of the statute of limitations. It is a legal time limit on how long you have to file a lawsuit. In California, the statute of limitations is two years from the date that you were injured. However, the rules are different for injuries that take time to be discovered. In those cases, you have one year from the day that the injury was discovered.
Consult a lawyer as soon as possible to avoid letting the statute of limitations lapse. If it does, then you will not be able to file the lawsuit. There are statutes of limitations for most case law instances, and lawyers are familiar with working inside specific time constraints.
For seniors, there are no exemptions for the statute of limitations on personal injury. However, property damage has a separate statute. If your property was damaged because of the strange actions of the facility, you have three years to file a lawsuit. Even if the statute lapses for the personal injury case, you can still file for the property damage case.
San Francisco Odd Actions on the Part of the Staff Lawyer Near Me (800) 794-0444
Seeking Legal Action
There are certain situations where the odd actions of staff members can lead to legal action. For you to be able to seek legal action, the actions of the staff must either lead to an injury or a violation of your rights. These situations give you appropriate causes of action, or legal precedence, to file a lawsuit. Otherwise, it will be difficult to prove that their actions caused any measurable damage.
If you do decide to seek legal action, consult with a lawyer before taking any of the other steps. Have a lawyer review your case to see if you have a chance at winning and to see if it is a good option for you. There are situations where filing a case may not work in your best interest. The best way to predict how a case might turn out is to have a lawyer review it.
Click to contact our Odd Actions on the Part of the Staff Lawyers today
Understanding Your Rights
As a patient in a nursing care facility, you have specific rights that cannot be ignored. You have the right to quality care, which may be violated if the facility’s staff is acting strangely. If you feel that your rights are being violated or if you suffer injuries while in nursing care, you have the right to sue the facility and specific staff members depending on the situation. You have to right to seek compensation for expenses, damages, and emotional issues caused by what you experienced.
Complete a Free Case Evaluation form now
Discuss Your Potential Case with Our Legal Team
If you or a loved one was injured in a facility where the staff was acting strangely, then consult with a San Francisco odd actions on the part of the staff lawyer. You may have a case for a lawsuit, which can help you recover compensation to address the problems that you experienced. Call Pintas & Mullins Law Firm to discuss your case with our legal team.
Call or text (800) 794-0444 or complete a Free Case Evaluation form
