Warning Signs of Nursing Home Abuse & Neglect
Many warning signs of nursing home abuse and neglect are overlooked or thought to be a common part of growing old. Undue pain, abandonment, and premature death should not be part of the nursing home experience. The following Six Warning Signs could save the life of your parent or prevent serious pain and harm:
Please Note: These six nursing home abuse warning signs are not presented in ranking order. All six are equally serious and warrant further investigation.
If you notice any of these warning signs of nursing home abuse or neglect, please contact us immediately.
Weight Loss
(Additional information on Nursing Home Weight Loss)
Both medication and advanced age’s deadening of senses can affect appetite. Negligent nursing homes often do not have the staff or the caring spirit needed to make sure their residents receive necessary nutrition and hydration. Without proper nutrition, the body begins to eat itself in a serious medical condition called “cachexia.” Additionally, susceptibility to disease increases with malnutrition as does your loved one’s suffering.
If you notice your relative in nursing home care losing weight, especially if other abuse and neglect warning signs are present, don’t wait—contact Consumer Justice Group immediately to begin an investigation.
Bruises
(Additional information on Nursing Home Bruises)
Families of nursing home residents should demand answers when they see bruises on a loved one’s body. Bruises (actually pools of blood from broken capillaries) heal slowly in people with poor circulation. Bruises often occur when a nursing home resident is struck by a member of the nursing home staff or when the resident is allowed to fall. Any bruise or cut requires both medical attention and an evaluation to determine its cause. Sometimes a bruise may support evidence of sexual abuse.
Falls
(Additional information on Nursing Home Falls)
Serious and/or frequent falls are a definite symptom of nursing home neglect. It is the legal responsibility of a nursing home to develop a nursing care plan for each nursing home resident to help prevent falls. Do not let what might seem like minor falls go undocumented, especially as they may lead to major medical expenses. Nursing home falls can result in lasting injury, sometimes fatal. Nursing home falls can and should be prevented.
If you suspect your parent or loved one shows symptoms of nursing home neglect, contact the Consumer Justice Group. Our experienced professionals will analyze cost-free this and other telltale signs of abuse and severe neglect and find a lawyer suited to your specific case if civil action can and should be taken.
Bedsores
(Additional information on Nursing Home Bedsores)
Bedsores are sometimes called pressure sores or decubitous ulcers. These sores are caused by poor nutrition and prolonged pressure on the bodies of patients permitted to lie unattended for long periods of time. Bedsores are painful. At Stage 1, bedsores appear as painful red inflammations on the skin. By Stage 4, a bedsore eats through skin and muscle to expose bone. There is no reason for a properly cared for nursing home resident to suffer this neglect and abuse.
Restraints
(Additional information on Nursing Home Restraints)
Nursing homes use both physical and chemical restraints on their patients. Physical restraints involve any method that the individual cannot remove easily and which restricts freedom of movement such as leg restraints, arm restraints, hand mitts, cuffs, wheelchair safety bars, bedrails, and lap pillows. Abusive nursing homes also restrain your loved ones by tucking their bedsheet so tightly that they cannot move or turn those under their facilitated care into zombies by forcing them to take heavy sedatives to make them more manageable.
Staff Inattention
(Additional information on Nursing Home Staff Inattention)
Nursing homes are businesses, and one way many business owners increase profits is by cutting labor costs. Many nursing homes are understaffed and nurses and care providers overworked. When the staff can’t respond in a timely manner, mistakes happen. Pills are given too often or not at all. Patient hygiene suffers. Signs of serious illness are overlooked. Staff inattention and failure to respond to patients’ requests is the number one complaint filed against nursing homes. Nursing homes residents need special care. Do not remain quiet if you feel your loved one is not receiving the attention or not being treated with the dignity by a nursing home. Speak up. Contact the Consumer Justice Group to learn what action you can take to get the justice your loved ones deserve.
Lawyers for Change
If one or more of these nursing home warnings signs is present in the care of your loved one, contact the Consumer Justice Group immediately before it is too late. No one, regardless of age, should spend their final years in misery. Speak with our qualified nursing home attorneys today.
The Nursing Home Abuse & Nursing Home Neglect News is a service of the Consumer Justice Group. |
