Sepsis can develop when the body has an extreme reaction to an infection. If a medical professional does not detect and treat sepsis quickly, it can lead to organ failure and death.
If your loved one had an infection while living in a nursing home and later developed sepsis, the facility might be liable for your relative’s injuries. A Savannah sepsis lawyer can help you file a personal injury lawsuit against the nursing home to pursue financial compensation. Call Pintas & Mullins Law Firm today to talk to a staff member.
Sepsis Explained
According to the Mayo Clinic, the body fights infections by releasing chemicals into the bloodstream. Sepsis occurs when the body responds inappropriately to those chemicals. That response produces changes that can lead to organ damage.
Any viral, bacterial, or fungal infection can lead to sepsis. Although anyone can develop the condition, people in the hospital or who recently received treatment— especially in an intensive care unit—are more likely to develop sepsis. Older adults and those who have weakened immune systems or underlying medical conditions, such as cancer, diabetes, and kidney or lung disease, are at higher risk of developing sepsis than younger and healthier people.
A person with sepsis will have a higher-than-usual respiratory rate, a drop in blood pressure, and a change in mental state. As sepsis progresses, blood flow to vital organs reduces, and blood clots can form. Those changes can lead to organ failure and gangrene (tissue death). If sepsis progresses to septic shock, a patient has an increased risk of death.
Patients with sepsis should receive treatment in a hospital. If caught early and treated with antibiotics, intravenous fluids, and other medications, a patient with sepsis has a higher chance of survival than someone whose sepsis is detected later.
Nursing Home Residents at Higher Risk of Sepsis
The National Institutes of Health (NIH) noted that nursing home residents are seven times more likely to develop sepsis than those who do not live in long-term care facilities. Also, adults 65 and older and frail patients are more likely to die from sepsis than younger and healthier individuals.
Nursing home employees have a duty to take steps to do the following:
- Reduce the risk of infections.
- Closely monitor their residents’ health.
- Provide appropriate medical treatment when needed.
Unfortunately, staff members often do not provide the level of care their residents deserve. Failure to provide necessary medical care to a disabled person, elder adult, or resident that jeopardizes the individual’s health or well-being is neglect, according to O.C.G.A. § 16-5-101.
Some actions that nursing home staff could take that increase a resident’s risk of developing an infection include:
- Failing to meet hygiene standards.
- Failing to take appropriate precautions when using needles to draw blood, administer medications and vaccines, and inserting or removing catheters.
- Failing to move bedridden patients as required to prevent bedsores or treat bedsores if they develop.
- Failing to regularly clean an open wound from an accident, surgery, or bedsore, including changing the dressing frequently and monitoring for signs of infection.
- Failing to treat an infection with antibiotics.
If employees do not take steps to prevent an infection, then do nothing to detect and treat one promptly if it occurs, the infection can progress, and the resident may develop sepsis. If this happened to your loved one, you might want to speak with a Savannah sepsis lawyer. Call Pintas & Mullins Law Firm today for a free case review with a team member.
For a free legal consultation with a Savannah Sepsis Lawyer serving Savannah, call (800) 794-0444
Why Nursing Home Neglect Occurs
Staff members in nursing homes may neglect residents for numerous reasons. Often, the neglect is not intentional. If employees do not receive the training they need, they may not know how to:
- Prevent infections
- Spot signs of infection
- Treat infections
- Detect sepsis if it develops
Understaffing is a problem at many nursing homes across the United States. The stress of the job, plus low pay, leads to high turnover rates. When facilities struggle to hire and retain adequate numbers of qualified employees, that often means the staff they do have must work long shifts and care for large numbers of patients.
If employees rush from room to room and feel overwhelmed, they may not have enough time to spend with individual patients to recognize signs of a problem. That can allow an infection or sepsis to go undetected and untreated, and it can then become severe and potentially life-threatening.
Savannah Savannah Sepsis Lawyer Near Me (800) 794-0444
How a Personal Injury Attorney Can Help Your Family
If a nursing home’s failure to take appropriate actions led to an infection, or if its failure to properly treat an infection allowed it to become septic, the nursing home may be liable for neglect. A Savannah sepsis lawyer may be able to help your family pursue justice.
Pintas & Mullins Law Firm has helped thousands of people who suffered abuse and neglect in nursing home facilities. We can investigate the following:
- Your loved one’s underlying medical conditions.
- When and how the initial infection developed.
- When it was diagnosed.
- How it was treated.
- When sepsis developed.
- How it was addressed.
Our staff might interview your loved one, other family members, nursing home employees, and fellow residents. We may consult with your loved one’s physician and independent medical experts. We will look into whether the nursing home has been penalized or sued in similar cases involving other residents.
Once we complete our inquiry, our team may file a personal injury lawsuit to seek financial compensation to cover your family member’s medical bills and pain and suffering.
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Get in Touch with a Savannah Sepsis Lawyer
Nursing home facilities have a duty to provide appropriate care to their patients, but unfortunately, that often does not happen. Whether neglect is intentional or not, it can have devastating and life-threatening consequences.
Pintas & Mullins Law Firm has helped families across the United States seek justice. A member of our team can travel to meet with your family to discuss what your loved one has endured.
If you worry about how much it might cost to hire an attorney, Pintas & Mullins Law Firm operates on a contingency fee basis. If you hire us to seek justice for your loved one, your family will not pay us anything unless we obtain compensation for your loved one’s injuries.
You often have a limited window of opportunity to seek justice. Under O.C.G.A. § 9-3-33, the statute of limitations to file a personal injury lawsuit is two years. The sooner you contact us, the sooner we can meet with you to discuss the case and begin gathering evidence. Call our office today to speak with a team member.
Call or text (800) 794-0444 or complete a Free Case Evaluation form