Nursing Home Injury Lawyer FAQs

Nursing home neglect occurs when staff members fail to provide the necessary care and attention that residents require. This neglect can result in a range of physical, emotional, and medical issues. Some of the most common forms of neglect in nursing homes include:

• Failure to provide proper medical care: Residents often rely on nursing home staff to administer medications, monitor chronic conditions, and provide emergency care. Neglect in providing medical treatment can lead to worsened health conditions or preventable medical emergencies.
• Poor hygiene and sanitation: Nursing homes must maintain cleanliness to prevent infections and disease. Neglect of personal hygiene (such as not assisting residents with bathing or changing soiled clothing) and poor sanitation in a facility can lead to serious health problems.
• Malnutrition and dehydration: When nursing home staff fail to ensure that residents are receiving adequate food and liquids, serious and life-threatening health complications can occur.
• Failure to prevent falls: Elderly nursing home residents are at high risk of injuries when they fall while walking, getting into or out of bed, or in other situations. Falls can result in fractures, head injuries, or other forms of severe bodily harm. Nursing homes are required to implement safety measures to prevent falls, such as providing mobility assistance and removing hazards.
• Inadequate supervision: Residents with cognitive impairments, such as dementia, may require close supervision to prevent wandering or dangerous behavior. A lack of supervision can lead to injuries or residents becoming lost.

When neglect occurs, it is often a result of poor training, lack of staffing, or disregard for the safety of residents. If you suspect your loved one has suffered harm due to neglect, our nursing home injury lawyer can help investigate the situation and take action to protect your loved one's rights.

In addition to neglect, nursing home residents may experience various forms of abuse. Nursing home abuse can have devastating effects on the well-being of residents. Common types of nursing home abuse include:

• Physical abuse: This includes any form of physical harm, such as hitting, slapping, kicking, or excessive use of restraints. Physical abuse often results in visible injuries like bruises, cuts, or broken bones.
• Emotional or psychological abuse: This form of abuse may involve verbal assaults, threats, humiliation, or isolation of residents. While emotional abuse may not leave visible scars, it can cause significant distress and lead to depression, anxiety, or withdrawal.
• Sexual abuse: Non-consensual sexual contact with a nursing home resident can cause a person to suffer physical harm, emotional distress, and sexually transmitted diseases. This form of abuse may go unreported due to fear of retribution or because a person suffers from dementia or other issues that affect their ability to communicate.
• Financial abuse: Nursing home staff members or other people may exploit a resident for financial gain. This may involve stealing money, forging checks, or coercing the resident into changing their will or giving someone access to their financial accounts.

Recognizing the signs of nursing home abuse can be difficult, especially if a resident is unable to communicate effectively. If you suspect that your loved one is being abused, our attorney can help you take immediate legal action to stop the abuse and recover compensation for the harm caused.

One of the leading causes of nursing home neglect and abuse is a lack of qualified staff members to meet the needs of residents. Understaffing can lead to a range of issues, including:

• Overworked staff: When staff members are responsible for too many residents, they may become overwhelmed, and they may be unable to provide the necessary attention to each resident. This can result in neglect of essential care, such as turning bedridden patients to prevent bedsores or administering medications on time.
• Delayed response to emergencies: In an understaffed nursing home, response times to accidents or medical emergencies may be delayed, leading to preventable injuries or even death.
• Inadequate supervision: Without enough staff to monitor residents, particularly those with cognitive impairments, the risk of falls, wandering, abuse, or self-harm increases.

Federal and state regulations require nursing homes to maintain a minimum staff-to-resident ratio, but some facilities fail to meet these standards in an effort to cut costs. If understaffing contributed to your loved one's injury, our nursing home injury lawyer in Hagerstown can help hold the nursing home accountable for violating the standards of care.

In addition to neglect and abuse, other issues that may affect nursing home residents include:

• Infections and disease outbreaks: Poor hygiene and sanitation, combined with close living quarters, can contribute to the spread of infections like pneumonia, urinary tract infections, and COVID-19.
• Medication errors: Nursing home staff members may make mistakes when administering medications, either by providing the wrong dosage, the wrong medication, or failing to give medications altogether.
• Improper use of restraints: Physical or chemical restraints may be used inappropriately to control residents. This can lead to physical injuries and emotional distress.