You can help prevent nursing home abuse by carefully observing the physical and psychological well-being of your loved one. There are signs generally associated with nursing home abuse that affect the individual’s emotional, social, and physical well-being.
Steps toward preventing nursing home abuse might require the involvement of a nursing home abuse lawyer if your loved one sustained injuries from negligent care or abuse.
Recognizing Nursing Home Abuse and Its Signs
Nursing home abuse manifests in many ways, but it primarily affects the victim’s ability to thrive and live a healthy life. The nursing home in which your loved one resides must uphold a medical duty of care towards him or her. Any deviations from this standard might result in catastrophic injuries or death. Therefore, you have every right to question and ensure that your family member is receiving the level of care that he or she needs.
Elder abuse in residential long-term care settings affects your loved one in the following ways:
- Emotional: Emotional abuse is challenging to recognize since there are no physical signs of its occurrence to the untrained eye. Take note of your family member’s behavioral changes. Look for symptoms of confusion, depression, withdrawal, and anger that they do not typically exhibit.
- Social: Social abuse occurs from isolation by staff and other residents at the facility. The most common forms of social neglect and abuse occur by repeatedly being left alone, ignored, or being on the receiving end of abusive language.
- Personal hygiene: Personal hygiene keeps your loved one well and healthy. If you notice stains on clothes, foul body odor, and dirty fingernails, the staff may not be monitoring and meeting his or her needs.
- Basic needs: Neglect of basic needs causes the foundation of well-being to deteriorate for the resident. He or she needs appropriate access to water, food, and a safe environment.
- Medical: Medical abuse occurs when doctors and other providers fail to diagnose, treat, and manage your loved one’s health. Look for signs of overmedicating, under medicating, and ongoing signs of medical conditions.
Other commonly associated signs of nursing home abuse include weight loss, dehydration, environmental hazards, and other unusual conditions. If you notice signs and symptoms of nursing home neglect, you should listen to your instinct. While the signs may be purely coincidental, you can continue to monitor him or her by following a few steps to help prevent nursing home abuse.
Steps to Help Prevent Nursing Home Abuse
If you believe that your loved one is the victim of nursing home abuse, there are steps that you can take to protect him or her from current and future occurrences. The National Center on Elder Abuse (NCEA) identifies the top five best ways that you can help prevent nursing home abuse:
- Take an interest in public policy: Public policy is the mechanism that protects nursing home residents from harm. Therefore, taking a proactive interest in existing and developing legislation contributes to solving important policy issues.
- Observing mental health: Monitoring your loved one’s overall mental health can help you recognize if it is happening to him or her. If you notice any differences, typical or not, you should investigate your suspicions to ensure they are safe.
- Providing care: Selecting a nursing home that carries a reputation for valuing the quality of life is essential for providing a safer environment. While cost may be a significant factor in your decision, that does not imply that affordable nursing homes do not meet the standard of care.
- Reviewing financial records: Financial abuse is prevalent among nursing homes. You can prevent it from happening by reviewing your family member’s financial records regularly. It will help you catch occurrences as soon as they arise.
- Seeking legal help: It is important to remember that you cannot take suspicions of nursing home abuse lightly. Your loved one’s safety and life may depend on it. You have legal options available in your state when dealing with nursing home abuse. Therefore, speaking with a nursing home abuse lawyer can help you navigate them.
Prevention methods can be achieved through is careful monitoring followed by quick actions. Actively preventing nursing home abuse is the best way to stop it.
For a free legal consultation, call (800) 842-6336
Call Pintas & Mullins Law Firm to Stop Nursing Home Abuse
Nursing home abuse is a devastating occurrence for its victims. If you believe that your loved one is the target of nursing home abuse, you must talk with a nursing home abuse lawyer in your state as soon as possible. Contact our Indiana nursing home abuse attorneys if the facility where the abuse occurs is in Indiana or get in touch with our Chicago office if the abuse is taking place in Illinois. No matter where you are, the most important thing is to seek legal help as soon as possible, as states’ statute of limitations and special regulations might help or impede your case. The legal team at Pintas & Mullins Law Firm is ready to help you and your family through the entire process to ensure that your family member stays safe. Contact us for a free, no-obligation case review by calling (800) 238-9774 today. We take clients nationwide and we work on a contingency-fee-basis, so you do not pay unless we win.
Call or text (800) 842-6336 or complete a Free Case Evaluation form
