Discovering Nursing Home Abuse or Neglect

Nursing home abuse and neglect can have deadly consequences. Fortunately, there are signs that you can look for to see if your loved one, or anyone else in the facility, appears to be a victim. These signs oftentimes include the classic signs of abuse, which are usually consistent with assault. In some cases, sexual abuse, overmedication or other types of abuse may be being perpetrated. Unfortunately, the biggest barrier to discovering the abuse is oftentimes the elder themselves.

When you’re dealing with nursing home mistreatment, it’s important to remember that the victim is an adult. In cases where a child is being abused, it’s natural for the child to seek relief and shelter from further abuse from an adult they trust. Another adult, however, may feel much differently about the situation. Because the residents of nursing homes have lived a full life and are, in fact, among the most elder of adults, it can be humiliating to have to seek help from someone else to avoid being abused. Imagine if all of the strength and agility you have now were taken away from you and you were victimized because of it. This is how elders oftentimes feel. If they were younger, they’d probably deal with the abuser themselves, physically if they needed to. Not being able to defend yourself is humiliating at any age.

Elder abuse in nursing homes is sometimes a result of incompetence. In some cases, the workers at the nursing home may be inadequately trained to deal with difficult patients. In these cases, they sometimes start overmedicating patients just to keep them quiet. It’s not hard to figure out the risks of giving someone too much medication. If you suspect this, it’s a good idea to get a doctor involved. If they discover that this is the case, you can bet your money on the fact that they’ll make sure it stops.

A lawyer is your next line of defense. Nursing home abuse lawyers are familiar with both the complexity and the sensitivity of these cases. If you need to find out if you have a lawsuit option because of the abuse your elder has suffered, you should contact such an attorney. They’ll let you know if your case is worth pursuing. The most important thing, however, is to make sure that your loved one is removed from the offending facility immediately.

RASANSKY LAW FIRM
2525 McKinnon Street
Dallas, Texas 75201
CALL US AT 1 800 ATTORNEY
(214) 747-HELP (4357)