If you’re unable to be with your aging parent every day, you may worry about their health and wellbeing. 

What if they have an accident and can’t reach the phone? 

What if you can’t get there in time?

To prevent accidental injury, you may decide to admit your parent or elderly loved one to a nursing home. 

With good reason, you believe that the nursing home staff will constantly supervise your loved one, so s/he won’t get into an accident. 

However, despite our biggest wishes and even with the most watchful staff, it is possible for a senior to sustain an injury at a nursing home. 

What should you do if your loved one is the victim of nursing home abuse or negligence? Contact Bernstein| Polsky, personal injury lawyers in Boca Raton.

Nursing Home Accidents

Accidents can happen anywhere, even at a nursing home. When it does, the nursing home may be liable, as it’s their responsibility to care for the residents admitted into the facility. The staff is required to provide a level of care that follows the nursing home industry standards and the 1987 Nursing Home Reform Act. 

The objective of these reforms was to ensure the highest level of service. 

If your elderly loved one has sustained an injury at a nursing home, then the nursing home will most likely be responsible. This is especially the case if the accident occurred due to negligence, such as failure to provide medication, inadequate staff training, and exposure to health hazards.

If you want justice, contact Bernstein| Polsky, personal injury lawyers in Boca Raton. Accidents at nursing homes due to negligence can be serious. Unlike an adult home, a nursing home is a medical facility with staff trained to provide medical treatment. 

Failure to do so can lead to permanent disability or death.

The nursing home must sign a contract to provide your loved one with adequate care. If there is evidence that they failed to uphold high standards, you are within your right to file a personal injury claim. 

 

Common nursing home injuries: 

• Sprains and fractures from a fall: Falls are the leading cause of nursing home injuries.
• Bedrail Injuries: If bed rails aren’t assembled correctly, they can easily malfunction.
• Bedsores: When the nursing home staff does not sufficiently check for bedsores or provide appropriate treatment, the patient may experience bedsores.
• Unexplained lacerations or bruises: The patient may have been exposed to safety hazards or was the victim of intentional abuse by a staff member.

Nursing Home Abuse 

There is a difference between abuse and neglect. Nursing home abuse is when a member of the staff intentionally harms a resident, physically or emotionally. 

Even if it was caused by just one staff member, the nursing home can be liable. It was their responsibility to perform thorough background checks and properly screen the caregivers they hired. 

When cases of nursing home abuse go to trial, an eyewitness testimony may be enough to get justice. If more evidence is necessary, we will work to obtain any form of incriminating material to prove the guilty party is at fault.

Nursing Home Neglect

This is when a resident of the nursing home sustains an injury or is physically/emotionally harmed due to inadequate care within the nursing home. Neglect comes in many forms: bed rails are installed improperly; staff members don’t check their patients for bedsores; incorrect medication or dosage was administered and more. 

Although nursing home neglect is often accidental, it can lead to serious harm and sometimes death.

You can better prevent your loved one from becoming a victim of nursing home neglect or abuse by thoroughly researching the facility. If you have found a place you like, make sure it is adequately staffed, because understaffed nursing homes are a common cause of neglect. You should also make sure that the staff members are thoroughly screened before being hired to prevent nursing home abuse.

Contact Bernstein | Polsky

Any injury that your loved one sustained at a nursing home should be taken seriously. If you wish to file a lawsuit for nursing home neglect, abuse, or any other injury-related case, contact our personal injury lawyers in Boca Raton.