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Nursing Home Burn Injury Lawyer

Many families make the difficult decision to place a loved one in the care of a skilled nursing home. While nursing homes can be safe residences for seniors with special care and nursing needs, staff negligence and a lack of proper training can also lead to resident injuries.

Burns are some of the most common causes of injuries in nursing homes. Injury is far more likely when a facility lacks proper safety rules or fails to monitor residents. The recovery from a burn injury of any degree can be expensive and emotionally challenging.

When you and your family are forced to deal with nursing home abuse or neglect, the Nursing Home Law Center is here for you.

Common Types of Burns in Nursing Homes

Burn injuries in a nursing home can arise due to various causes. Several potential hazards throughout nursing homes can cause burns.

Thermal Burns

Thermal burns are skin injuries caused by contact with excessive heat or fire hazards. These might include scalding from hot liquids, contact burns from hot surfaces or chemical burns from unsafe products.

Electrical Burns

Electrical burns occur when electricity flows through the body, usually after touching a live wire or faulty appliance. Contact with unsafe electrical outlets can also lead to electrical burns. An electrical burn can be described as high or low voltage, which primarily refers to the level of electricity that causes the burn.

Severity of Burn Injuries

Some burn injuries are surface-level, leading to minimal pain and discomfort. Others, however, are more severe burns that can leave the resident with significant pain and suffering. Nursing home burns are typically classified as one of the following:

First-Degree Burn: A first-degree burn is commonly referred to as a superficial burn because it only affects the outermost layer of the skin, the epidermis. First-degree burns may present as red and dry, without blistering. Long-term damage is unlikely with a first-degree burn.
Second-Degree Burn: A second-degree burn damages the epidermis and dermis, the two top layers of the skin. Second-degree burns present as a red to dark brown coloring, swelling, and with blisters. Permanent scarring is also possible with second-degree burns.
Third-Degree Burn: A third-degree burn damages all three layers of the body’s skin. It typically requires professional medical care, and chronic pain and permanent damage are likely.

Common Causes of Nursing Home Burns

Nursing homes are designed to provide your loved one with around-the-clock supervision, and if staff fail to do this, it can lead to injury, including burns. Nursing home residents may suffer severe burns due to many causes, including the following.

Negligent Supervision

Families will usually make the tough decision to move a loved one to a nursing home for the extra supervision it offers. However, when staff members are neglectful with their supervision and care, it can lead to severe injuries, including burn injuries.

Neglectful supervision may include staff members leaving nursing home residents unsupervised near hot liquids or objects. Failing to assist a nursing home resident with showers or baths could also lead to a burn injury. Improper use of heating pads or other heat devices could lead to an injury.

Understaffing

A nursing home requires sufficient staffing to properly care for and supervise its residents. Nursing homes that fail to provide ample staff are at an increased risk of nursing home neglect because residents may not receive the assistance necessary.

Inadequate staffing makes it challenging for staff members to respond promptly to emergencies. Nursing home fires are more likely when there isn’t sufficient staff to promote a safe nursing home environment.

Lack of Training

Proper care of nursing residents requires specialized training. When a nursing home fails to train its staff properly, neglect and resident injury are more likely to occur. Proper staff training includes first aid and burn prevention. First aid training will reduce the risk of further injury, while burn prevention ensures staff knows how to remove hazards.

The Impact of Burn Injuries on Elderly Residents

A nursing home resident who suffered severe burns may experience both physical and psychological consequences. Elderly burn victims may suffer from the following impacts.

Physical Consequences

The physical consequences of burn injuries may include severe pain and discomfort, temporary or permanent scarring and disfigurement, or infection. Burn injury victims may experience impaired mobility, which increases the risk of long-term complications. A burn injury can also exacerbate other medical conditions, such as mobility issues.

Emotional & Psychological Effects

The emotional and psychological effects of a burn injury can be just as life-changing. Burn injury victims may experience anxiety and trauma due to the severe injuries. Depression and withdrawal are common, especially if the resident suffers second or third-degree burns.

A loss of independence can make burn injuries more challenging to deal with. A decreased quality of life is also possible with burns of all types.

Holding Nursing Homes Accountable

Pursuing legal action following a burn injury may not take away the pain and suffering that the elderly person has had to endure, but it can help to recover compensation.

Through settlement negotiations, you and your loved one can hold the nursing home accountable for their neglect and receive financial assistance to access recovery resources. The funds collected can help you and your family cover medical expenses and rehabilitation.

Additionally, alerting the proper authorities and seeking financial compensation through a personal injury case can help illuminate a dangerous situation, hopefully protecting other residents.

Legal Rights of Nursing Home Burn Victims

Your loved one has a right to a safe environment and proper care and supervision. When nursing homes are neglectful, the injured residents have a legal right to financial compensation for injuries. Whether the facility ignored dangerous fire hazards or was neglectful in monitoring shower water, we help families explore their legal rights.

Potential Legal Claim

Our legal team helps nursing home residents and their families hold neglectful nursing facilities accountable. Our personal injury attorneys aim to build your nursing home burn injury case based on negligence, medical malpractice, premises liability, or product liability laws.

A negligence case may be brought when there is evidence of a failure to provide residents with reasonable care to prevent burns. In medical malpractice cases, a healthcare provider is responsible for worsening the resident’s burn, usually due to improper or prolonged medical treatment.

Premises liability cases cover unsafe nursing home conditions, including exposed wires or improper safety protocols, that could lead to a resident’s burn injury. Product liability cases can also occur when an unsafe or defective product burns a resident.

Each case is different, meaning the legal process we take will vary depending on the details of your case. However, if a loved one suffered burn injuries due to neglectful nursing home staff, you may be entitled to financial recovery.

Why Choose Us to Represent You

Choosing the right legal representation is crucial when navigating a nursing home burn injury case. Here are a few reasons to consider the Nursing Home Law Center.

Experience in Nursing Home Abuse and Neglect Cases

The Nursing Home Law Center has a proven track record in elderly and resident burn injury cases. We have helped multiple parties hold negligent nursing home staff accountable while recovering compensation to cover their damages appropriately. Our experienced team has in-depth expertise in elder law and personal injury cases throughout the United States.

We maintain professional connections, including medical experts and investigators who can help build a strong case. With a contingency fee basis, there’s no risk to you. You have enough going on when dealing with a loved one’s recovery, and our team is here to help alleviate some of the burden.

Compassionate and Client-Focused Representation

Finding out that a loved one has been the victim of nursing home abuse or neglect is extremely difficult. Each personal injury attorney you will work with at the Nursing Home Law Center offers compassionate, client-focused representation.

Our firm is committed to seeking justice through sufficient compensation. We’re here for you and your family members every step of the way, providing you with legal support and resources.

What to Do After Severe Burn Injuries

If your loved one was the victim of a nursing home burn injury, you must take a few key steps, including the following:

Seek Immediate Medical Attention: Many burn injuries are medical emergencies, meaning you should seek treatment immediately. Prompt medical treatment can lessen the pain and help speed up recovery.
Report the Incident to the Nursing Home and Authorities: Reporting the incident to the nursing home and local authorities can create official documentation of the injury, plus potentially help protect other residents from a similar injury.
Preserve Evidence: When possible, try to preserve any available evidence. Photographs, videos, or witness statements are all critical components of a burn injury case in a nursing home.
Consult with an Experienced Attorney: Consult with an attorney familiar with abuse and neglect in nursing homes as soon as possible. Most states limit how long you have to file a lawsuit, so it’s essential to be within that timeline.

Contact a Nursing Home Burn Injury Lawyer Now!

You entrust the care and supervision of your loved one to the nursing home staff, so when your loved one suffers a severe burn, it can be difficult. Whether your loved one sustained burns from scalding food, a too-hot shower water accident, or faulty wires, you need a dedicated legal representative on your side.

Contact a nursing home burn injury lawyer today at (800) 926-7565 for a free consultation.

Nursing Home Burn Injuries FAQs

What Is a Nursing Care Plan for Burn Patient?

Burn centers must develop a Nursing Care Plan to ensure that the burn patient has the best chance of recovery. The doctors and nursing staff will formulate the plan based on the Palmer Method estimations of TBSA (total body surface area) that might involve minor or significant burn care.

The rehabilitative intervention plan typically covers:

Full body assessment including vital sign monitoring and body temperature assessment
Interventions including humidified oxygen, pulse oximetry, breath sound assessment, mechanically ventilated monitoring, and IV lines
Metabolic stress reduction through pain control management and fluid resuscitation including IV fluid administered opioid analgesics and dressing changes
Frequent bronchial tree suctioning to remove excess secretions
Capillary refill and vital structure perfusion to maintain adequate arterial blood pressure

The plan should include a comprehensive clinical assessment followed by ongoing pain management, monitoring, psychosocial support, and wound care. At some point, the doctor will provide a home care plan with follow-up appointments to minimize many of the risk factors associated with burns.

What Are the 5 Signs of a Burn?

Most individuals receiving patient care for a burn suffer mild to severe pain, blisters, redness, and peeling at the affected site. Most burn patients experience sweating, flushing over the entire body, dealing with ongoing tenderness, and sensitivity to pain.

The five signs that you have been burned include:

First-degree burns affecting the skin's outer layer producing pain, swelling, and redness
Second-degree burns affecting the top layer of skin and underlying layers leading to extensive blistering, swelling, redness, and intense pain
Third-degree burns affecting the deepest skin layers resulting in extreme pain and requiring immediate medical attention
Fourth-degree burns where all sensation is lost in the affected area due to destroyed skin tissue, muscle fiber, fact, and bone
The common symptoms associated with extensive burns including going into shock, weakness, claiming skin, bluish fingernails and lips, and a loss of alertness/consciousness

What Is the Most Painful Burn?

According to the National Institutes of Health, there are four types of burns, including first-degree (superficial) burn, second-degree (partial thickness) burn, third-degree (full thickness) burn, and fourth-degree (muscle and bone damage) burn where the nerve endings are destroyed or damaged.

Typically, the extent of pain one experiences from a burn depends on the affected body area. Some burns have no blisters, by others have reddened and swollen skin or charring destroyed skin tissue.

The most common painful burns include:

Scalds caused by exposure to hot liquids and vapors
Chemical burns
Electrical burns

Should a Burn Be Kept Moisture Dry?

According to the Mayo Clinic, clean the burned area daily using mild soap followed by applying antibiotic dressings or ointment to ensure that the wound remains moist. Keep the damaged area covered with a Band-Aid or gauze and frequently apply antibiotic ointment to the affected burn skin that cannot be kept moist.

How Do I Know If a Burn Needs Medical Attention?

If the burned affected area is swollen or red with severe pain or exhibits a foul odor or oozing liquid, it could be infected. Without medical attention, the critical condition could worsen over time.

Any burn larger than the size of your hand's palm likely requires medical attention.

Why Do Burn Patients Die?

According to the National Institutes of Health, patients with severe catastrophic burns often suffer horrific secondary effects of their injuries that might include multi-organ failure. Any delay or deficiency in resuscitation could also increase the patient's risk of dying from their burn injury.

The victim often requires extensive complex wound care and pain control management during the initial healing process followed by physical therapy, occupational therapy, skin grafting, and cosmetic reconstruction.

Even with the best care, the burn patient might develop life-threatening problems from the fire or smoke inhalation injury that include:

Sepsis (blood infection)
Renal failure
Respiratory distress
Contractures
Edema
Hypovolemic shock
Degraded skin integrity
Functional impairment of the liver, kidneys, or heart

Client Reviews

Jonathan did a great job helping my family navigate through a lengthy lawsuit involving my grandmother's death in a nursing home. Through every step of the case, Jonathan kept my family informed of the progression of the case. Although our case eventually settled at a mediation, I really was...

- Lisa

After I read Jonathan’s Nursing Home Blog, I decided to hire him to look into my wife’s treatment at a local nursing home. Jonathan did a great job explaining the process and the laws that apply to nursing homes. I immediately felt at ease and was glad to have him on my side. Though the lawsuit...

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