When you trust a nursing home to care for your loved one, you can only hope that they will treat your loved one with the respect and dignity they deserve. Unfortunately, nursing homes do not always live up to this standard of care. It’s simply heartbreaking when this happens to a loved one, which is why if you suspect your loved one is being neglected or abused by his or her nursing home, you should continue reading and reach out to our experienced New Jersey personal injury attorneys to learn more about how we can help you.
How is nursing home negligence defined?
Nursing homes are responsible for caring for our parents and relatives as they would their own. In fact, they are legally obligated to do as much–nursing homes owe their residents a duty of care, and when they breach that duty of care in any way, those residents can be seriously harmed. There are various forms of nursing home negligence and abuse, including disregarding your loved one’s complaints of pain, discomfort, or otherwise, failing to ensure nursing home residents have clean and safe food and water, not helping your loved one keep up with his or her basic hygiene, and more.
What signs of abuse should I look out for?
If you suspect your loved one is being neglected or abused by his or her nursing home, you should look out for the following signs:
- Broken bones
- Improper medication dosing
- Unexplained accidents and injuries
- Frequent bruising
- Verbal insults or harassment
- Malnutrition
- Infections
- Reports of physical or sexual abuse
- Injuries from falls that would not have happened if it hadn’t been for nursing home negligence
- Dehydration
How do I report/sue a bad nursing home?
Once you suspect your loved one is being neglected or abused by their nursing home, you should start by taking pictures of the unsafe conditions, reporting the accident to the Nursing Home Complaint Hotline, The New Jersey Office of the Adult Protective Services Agency, and The New Jersey Office of the Ombudsman for the Institutionalized Elderly. From here, especially if you suspect your loved one is in imminent danger, contact local law enforcement immediately, who can most likely move your loved one to a safer place. Next, you should contact an experienced attorney who can subpoena security camera footage, gather witness testimony, and more on behalf of you and your family to help win your nursing home malpractice claim.
Contact our experienced New Jersey firm
Stathis & Leonardis, LLC is an experienced personal injury law firm in Middlesex County, New Jersey that is committed to helping clients who have been hurt due to another party’s negligence. If you have been involved in a motor vehicle accident or were injured on another person’s property, please do not hesitate to contact our firm today.