Good quality care is a known indicator of how well your loved one’s nursing home stands among the rest in the nation. However, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention reports that “about 2% to 28% of nursing home residents have pressure ulcers.” Additionally, pressure sores are more common as nursing home residents age, which is not reassuring for anyone who had to make the difficult decision to move a loved one into a nursing home.
Your parent or spouse in a nursing home is entitled to good quality care, and should not suffer bedsores at the hands of negligent caregivers. If you want legal representation for your loved one in a nursing home, call Pintas & Mullins Law Firm for a case consultation. We can connect you with a Savannah bedsores lawyer who wants to protect and defend your rights.
Why Bedsores Happen in Nursing Homes
Bedsores, or pressure ulcers happen in nursing homes because of many different reasons, but generally because of any prolonged pressure on the skin. They do not necessarily happen due to being bedridden, but that is one way they commonly originate. According to Mayo Clinic, bedsores happen most often to skin covering the “heels, ankles, hips, and tailbone,” with the likelihood of affecting bony areas of the body.
Mayo Clinic also says that the cause for bedsores is generally caused by the contributing factors of constant pressure or friction on parts of the skin. When someone like a nursing home resident with limited mobility experiences constant friction or pressure on the skin, pressure ulcers can form and grow worse over time.
Your loved one is at increased risk for bedsores and complications of them if they experience any of the following conditions, according to Mayo Clinic:
- Mobility Issues: If your loved one must use a wheelchair to move, they are more likely to experience pressure ulcers on their tailbone or buttocks, shoulder blades and spine, or areas of the body like the backs of arms and legs that rest on the chair.
- Bedridden: If your loved one is restricted to staying in bed, bedsores can commonly happen on the back of the head, shoulders, hips or lower back, and heels or areas behind the knees.
- Poor Blood Flow: Poor blood flow is a concern for the development and regeneration of damaged cells, especially for people with conditions that affect the heart and blood like diabetes, or vascular diseases.
- Cancer: When bedsores happen and are not treated in cancer patients, who are already vulnerable to complications of wound infection and healing time, the consequences of bedsores can be worse than necessary.
- Nutrition Problems: Your loved one may experience bedsores and further complications than another nursing home resident who is in good health. When the body cannot draw on external sources like food and nourishment to function, the overall healthy functioning of your body is at risk.
Of course, there is no one-size-fits-all explanation for the ways that bedsores happen and the potential complications that can arise. In any case, a lawyer who understands nursing home law in Georgia can analyze the unique circumstances of your case and determine any potential liabilities from abuse or neglect.
Staging Bedsores in Nursing Home Residents
You might not understand the medical processes involved with treating or diagnosing bedsores, but a lawyer can clear things up for you. Bedsores can range in severity, and are consequently graded in stages after diagnosis to determine treatment and to track progression. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention says that Stage 2 pressure ulcers were the most common in a study of 159,000 nursing home residents in 2004.
In another close look at the diagnosis and treatment of bedsores in nursing home residents, the American Family Physician mentions that bedsores are entirely preventable when precautions are taken for at-risk patients. Ideally, no nursing home residents would suffer from bedsores, but many still do. That is why you might want to work with a Savannah bedsores lawyer who can determine if your loved one’s injuries were preventable as research says. We can work with medical experts in the field of elder health and nursing home care to confirm liability in your case.
For a free legal consultation with a Savannah Bedsores Lawyer serving Savannah, call (800) 794-0444
Legal Advice for Nursing Home Abuse or Neglect
The best advice our lawyers have to offer for you is to begin working on your case as soon as you think you may have one. The statute of limitations for all of your potential claim types will vary. You can work with a lawyer to make holding negligent nursing homes accountable easier for you and your family, but there are some steps you can take in advance of calling a lawyer for help. For example, your loved one is assigned a local ombudsman by the State of Georgia who takes on the duty to investigate and report any suspected cases of nursing home abuse.
If your local ombudsman can confirm criminal abuse or reasonably suspects it, they are obligated under state law to report any case of abuse to Georgia’s Department of Human Services. Of course, a lawyer who understands the stipulations of the reporting process can do all of this for you, but that is just an idea of what you can do to help your loved one immediately. When you work with a Savannah bedsores lawyer, you may be advised to consider any of the following lawsuit types:
- Personal Injury: In personal injury cases, you can file a claim on behalf of your loved one for any medical expenses incurred from the bedsores. Frequently, people who suffer from bedsores will require further care from licensed physicians, and other potential treatment options that will require further costs. In Georgia, the statute of limitations for a personal injury case is two years.
- Breach of Contract: In order to receive at least $10,000 of Federal Government funding, nursing homes must provide all residents with written care plans, which residents may have a part in creating. This is to ensure the fair treatment and well-being of your loved one under specific terms. If your loved one is suffering from bedsores, they may be in a state of neglect, which would void the contract. In Georgia, the statute of limitations for a written contract like this required care plan is up to six years from the date of injury.
This is absolutely not exhaustive of all of your legal options in the event of elder abuse or neglect. However, the only way for our lawyers to address your case directly is to begin working with us. We work on a contingency-fee basis, so you do not pay for our work until you get a well-deserved settlement.
Savannah Savannah Bedsores Lawyer Near Me (800) 794-0444
Get Legal Representation for Your Loved One
Give the lawyers at Pintas & Mullins Law Firm a call to begin working on your case now. We understand the importance of acting quickly and keeping all parties well-informed about the litigation process.
A Savannah bedsores lawyer can help you protect and defend your rights, and keep your loved one safe from any further danger. Call us now.
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