346-590-6665
Why Is Nursing Home Abuse and Neglect Rampant?
When you enroll a senior loved one in a nursing home facility, you expect them to be treated compassionately and professionally. Unfortunately, nursing home abuse and neglect commonly happen in many facilities, often fueled by various factors. Houston personal injury attorneys highlight some of them:
- Lack of professional worker qualifications
- Inadequate or poor training for the nursing employees
- Poor hiring practices
- Language barriers
- Understaffing that leads to chronic fatigue or intense stress
- Substance abuse on the job
- Elder vulnerability due to mental illness, physical limitations, and cognitive deterioration
Residents in nursing home facilities should be treated with respect and dignity. If your loved one has been abused or neglected in a place where they ought to have received care, don’t let them continue suffering in silence. Skilled elder abuse lawyers in Houston can guide you in addressing the injustice to protect your loved one’s rights.
What Steps Can I Take If a Family Member Has Been Subjected to Abuse or Neglect in a Nursing Home?
If you discover nursing home neglect against your Spanish-speaking loved one, it’s essential to take proactive steps to uphold their rights. Elder abuse attorneys in Houston say seniors in nursing homes have the right to:
- Be informed of all the services and the charges for each
- Receive information in a language they understand
- Participate in their own care
- Privacy and confidentiality
- Dignity, freedom, protection, and respect
- Be visited by family members, personal physician, and healthcare service providers
- Make independent choices on what to wear, manage their financial affairs, and spend their free time
Unfortunately, due to language barriers, your Spanish-speaking loved one may not be fully able to express or assert their rights. If you suspect any of these rights are being violated, consult experienced personal injury lawyers in Houston. They can guide you through the suitable legal action to fight for the victim’s rights.
Recognize the Signs of Neglect or Abuse
Before taking any legal action, it’s vital to establish that your loved one is indeed a subject of elder abuse and neglect. Some indicators include, but are not limited to:
- Poor hygiene
- Unexplained bruises and fractures
- Emotional withdrawal
- Sudden behavior changes
- Financial exploitation
It’s important to familiarize yourself with various forms of elder abuse, such as physical, financial, emotional, and sexual, to be better able to recognize the signs. Ensure you document your observations, any signs of abuse, descriptions, time, and, if possible, take photos.
Prioritize Your Loved One’s Safety
Your loved one could be in immediate danger or could be in need of urgent medical attention. If that’s the case, call 911 to seek help. You could transfer them to another facility as you pursue action against the liable parties. Ensuring your loved one’s safety should be a top priority to prevent the situation from getting worse as the abusers retaliate.
Determine Liability
When a nursing home resident is subjected to abusive or neglectful behavior, you can sue:
- The contract workers, caregivers, or third parties who are directly responsible for the harm
- The nursing facility, under the principle of vicarious liability for its employees’ negligent behavior
- Employers of responsible contract workers, caregivers, and third parties
In this case, third parties include food, cleaning, and security service providers outsourced by the nursing home. Other third parties that may have access to the nursing home facility include delivery and equipment repair companies.
File a Lawsuit
Your loved one should be compensated for the harm they suffered in the nursing home. So, you can file a civil lawsuit to collect damages or wrongful death damages if your loved one died due to the abuse. Skilled Houston elder abuse attorneys can help you file a complaint within the facility’s jurisdiction and guide you through the discovery process.
If the case reaches trial, your lawyers will help you prove the following crucial elements that are the pillars of a strong claim:
- Intentional wrongdoing by the abusers, such as locking the victim in a room, leaving them without mobility aids like crutches or a wheelchair, or threatening to withhold food, water, or medication
- Careless misconduct or negligence by the nursing home. You must demonstrate that the facility owed a duty of care toward your loved one, but it breached the duty, leading to the harm your loved one suffered.
What Damages Can My Loved One Recover in a Nursing Home Abuse Case?
If your case is successful, your loved one may receive compensatory damages for the injuries sustained due to the defendant’s wrongdoing. Houston elder abuse lawyers say the damages can be in the form of:
- Economic damages to reimburse the out-of-pocket expenses because of the abuse, such as medical bills to treat the physical injuries
- Non-economic damages for non-physical injuries, such as pain and suffering, loss of enjoyment or life, emotional distress, and trauma.
- Punitive damages serve to punish the defendant for their behavior and deter others from similar behavior. These damages aren’t often awarded, so you must prove a particular egregious pattern of neglectful mistreatment to win them.
A Skilled Elder Abuse Attorney Helping You Address Nursing Home Neglect
Residents in a nursing home must be treated with respect, dignity, compassion, and care. Unfortunately, most of them are subjected to neglect and abuse, especially if there is a language barrier that makes it difficult for them to express themselves or communicate their needs. If you or your loved one has been a victim of nursing home abuse, consult Houston elder abuse lawyers.
They can quickly act to protect your rights by investigating the case to find evidence of abuse and neglect. They can then put up a compelling case for trial to help you recover compensation for the damages. Our legal team at Moises Morales Law is skilled in helping personal injury victims fight for their rights. Call us at 346-590-6665 for a FREE consultation.
