If you suspect your spouse or parent is a victim of emotional abuse in their nursing home, our lawyers can help. Emotional abuse can be difficult to combat as your loved one may go without showing any signs or discussing it. A Stickney nursing home abuse lawyer can fight for the justice and financial award your family deserves. Call Pintas & Mullins Law Firm today.
The Right to Safety and Good Care
When your loved one moves into a nursing home, his or her quality of life and happiness are intended to be good. It is up to the nursing home and its staff to provide a safe environment and tools for your loved one to thrive. A successful nursing home experience is all about maintaining dignity and autonomy for its elderly residents. When nursing home staff infringe on your loved one’s right to a safe and positive environment by emotionally abusing them, they are breaking the law.
Emotional abuse is unique, because it can go undetected for so long. Emotional abuse includes any “infliction of mental/emotional suffering.” Examples of emotional abuse could include any of the following: “demeaning statements, harassment, threats, humiliation, or intimidation” of the nursing home resident.
Older people can also suffer from emotional neglect. This happens when a nursing home resident’s wishes or “needs for verbal and emotional contact” are ignored, and most of this abuse came directly from nursing home staff.
Why Elder Abuse Happens in Nursing Homes
Emotional abuse is often inflicted directly by nursing home staff. Reports from the Department of Health and Human Services show that there is not just one cause for abuse in nursing homes. It could include any of the following reasons:
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- High stress.
- Low staff to patient ratios.
- Inadequate supervision of staff.
- Lack of skills training.
- Cultural differences.
- Low wages.
This is not an exhaustive list of reasons that nursing home staff may abuse elder patients. None of these reasons excuse a nursing home staff member from abusing the elderly either. We want to hold the people and institutions responsible for the abuse accountable for their actions. If you suspect your loved one is being abused in a nursing home, a Stickney emotional abuse lawyer can help. Call Pintas & Mullins Law Firm today.
Building a Legal Case Against Emotional AbuseYour legal options for emotional abuse cases are nuanced, so speaking with a lawyer could help you make sense of them. You may have already contacted local authorities. The next step is to reach out to a firm that handles nursing home abuse, so a lawyer can fight for justice and compensation.
We can understand if you feel like you have exhausted your options for seeking help with an emotional abuse case. Know that there are still legal options for you to consider. Our lawyers do not shy away from tough cases. Plus, we work on a contingency basis, so we do not get paid until you do.
For a free legal consultation with a Emotional Abuse Lawyer serving Stickney, call (800) 794-0444
We Do Not Shy Away from Tough Cases
Emotional abuse can be hard to recognize, but it is considered a prevalent form of abuse. It is worth mentioning that although a nursing home staff member may not have the intention of emotionally neglecting your loved one, neglect contributes to personal injury, breach of contract, and more legal claims. Our lawyers will work to review your case and determine your best legal options, no matter the circumstances.
A nursing home abuse or neglect case will likely be resolved through civil courts, and you may not need to spend any time in a courtroom at all. In more rare cases, elder abuse can be considered criminal, with a burden of proof to show that the abuse was a criminal act, with an intention to harm your loved one beyond a reasonable doubt.
Stickney Emotional Abuse Lawyer Near Me (800) 794-0444
Evidence of Emotional Abuse
Evidence of emotional abuse lies in the day-to-day care of your loved one. In order to understand if emotional abuse is happening, it is important for you to proactively monitor and record instances of abuse. You do not need to work through the evidence-collecting process alone. The team at Pintas & Mullins Law Firm can help you get started when you give us a call.
Here are a few ways nursing home staff can emotionally abuse residents, according to the CDC’s report on elder abuse surveillance:
- Humiliation: If a nursing home staff member degrades your loved one by insulting them, infantilizing them, or degrading them, that is considered emotional abuse.
- Threats: If threats are made against a resident, no matter how serious, emotional abuse is occurring.
- Harassment: Harassment can happen when elderly residents are forced to do something against their will or forced to endure any repetitive behavior that is considered manipulative.
- Isolation: If your loved one is ever intentionally removed from social situations, restricted from phone calls, or relocated to different rooms without the ability to move independently, that is emotional abuse.
Do not wait until the “right time” to report elder abuse. If you suspect it is going on, there is no harm in defending your loved one’s rights.
Consult a Stickney Emotional Abuse LawyerWhen you work with the Stickney emotional abuse lawyers at Pintas & Mullins Law Firm, helping your loved one regain dignity and autonomy are at the forefront of our minds. We can protect the most vulnerable people by defending their rights within our legal system.
Emotional abuse is inexcusable; elder abuse in any form should not be tolerated. Call Pintas & Mullins Law Firm now for a free consultation.
Call or text (800) 794-0444 or complete a Free Case Evaluation form
