While the South boasts of its graciousness and generosity, the truth is that many of its elderly citizens receive no such warmth or hospital. In fact, it is actually the opposite. Many of this group suffers great injuries including bed sores, falls, abuse, and improper care. Commonly, they suffer these injuries in nursing homes but they can happen anywhere.
Following this kind of injury, the next step has to be obtaining zealous counsel to fight for your rights. If you have been the victim of elder abuse, you deserve justice and compensation. What follows is a review of the South Carolina laws that govern elder abuse and bed sore incidents.
The nursing home abuse lawyers from Nursing Home Law Center LLC are available to answer any further questions you may have.
South Carolina does not take elder abuse lightly. They afford their law enforcement and government agencies with broad powers to detect and deter elder abuse. Here is how they define the issue according to the Omnibus Adult Protection Act (§43-35-5): “Abuse means (any) physical abuse or psychological abuse.” This is a very broad definition that allows for significant government interpretation and intervention.
Furthermore, the protections given to the vulnerable and abused elderly population are equally broad as seen in section §43-35-10(9): “Protective services means those services whose objective is to protect a vulnerable adult from harm caused by the vulnerable adult or another. These services include, but are not limited to, evaluating the need for protective services, securing and coordinating existing services, arranging for living quarters, obtaining financial benefits to which a vulnerable adult is entitled, and securing medical services, supplies, and legal services.”
This puts the burden squarely on the shoulders of the state of South Carolina. Considering extensive the protections already provided for at the federal level, this is an exceedingly large commitment to make. However, they do not make it on their own, because they require certain persons to report elderly abuse and assist them in the reporting process. According to §43-35-25 , those people include the following: “(A) A physician, nurse, dentist, optometrist, medical examiner, coroner, other medical, mental health or allied health professional, Christian Science practitioner, religious healer, school teacher, counselor, psychologist, mental health or intellectual disability specialist, social or public assistance worker, caregiver, staff or volunteer of an adult day care center or of a facility, or law enforcement officer having reason to believe that a vulnerable adult has been or is likely to be abused, neglected, or exploited shall report the incident in accordance with this section. Any other person who has actual knowledge that a vulnerable adult has been abused, neglected, or exploited shall report the incident in accordance with this section.”
More than most states, South Carolina puts responsibility on ordinary people to stop elder abuse and this is most clearly seen in the last line of the above quotation. It says anyone with “actual knowledge” must act. Ordinarily, state legislatures simply require professionals to step up, not layman who may have witnessed the incident. This represents a very broad scope of liability.
Residents of the south receive no reprieve compared to those in the north. In fact, they often face elder abuse and bed sores at a rate and kind much worse than others around the country. To these clients, we always try and stress that they need to focus on the next step.
This next step is inevitably legal action because that is where they can recover compensation that will help them move on from these tragedies. Here are the kinds of compensation that you could receive recovery for if you bring a South Carolina bed sore lawsuit against the defendants that cause these injuries:
Here are some important statistics related to elder abuse and bed sores for South Carolina citizens:
South Carolina is viewed as a conservative state and this is not exactly reflected in its laws especially its statutes of limitations. Its citizens generally have a longer longer time window to bring a case to trial than citizens in other states and that helps victims of elder abuse or neglect. To understand the time by which you must file your lawsuit, look to the type of harm and the underlying cause of action that you are bringing:
These laws have various exceptions. Therefore, it is important that you speak with an attorney to understand exactly how much time you have to bring your case to court.
Victims of elder abuse and bed sores are all across South Carolina. You might know of one or even be on yourself. While the circumstances of the incident might change, one thing is constant: they all need a competent and experienced South Carolina bed sore attorney to fight for their side. Nursing Home Law Center LLC has worked with a lot of these kinds of cases and can make sure that you get the kind and amount of compensation that you deserve. For every client that we represent, here is what we guarantee:
So get in touch with us today. We can begin the process of recovery as soon as tomorrow. Unlike other law firms which may occasionally prosecute bed sore cases, the attorneys at Nursing Home Law Center LLC regularly represents families in nursing home negligence and medical malpractice cases involving bed sores. We have a nurse and physician on staff who can assess each case to determine who should shoulder the responsibility for the case. If your loved one developed a bed sore while at a South Carolina facility contact our office for a free case review. We have helped families from across South Carolina get the justice they deserve. Some of the cities we’ve served include: Charleston, Columbia, North Charleston and Mount Pleasant. Talk to our team before you consider taking any further action.
Approximate recovery of South Carolina plaintiffs in bed sore cases:
Approximate recovery of South Carolina plaintiffs in nursing home cases generally (where many bed sore cases take place):
CASE: BAILEY VS. CARRIAGE HILLS
STATE: SOUTH CAROLINA
INJURY: BED SORES; DEATH
YEAR: 2001
AWARD: $280,000
This case began shortly after a woman passed away while residing at a nursing home. Her family members brought a lawsuit against that facility and charged it with negligence and her wrongful death. They alleged that the nursing home failed to provide the decedent with proper care. Specifically, they contended that the defendant facility did not turn the woman over and that led to her receiving bed sores. Additionally, they argued that she suffered from dehydration and malnutrition because of its insufficient care. The defendant did not accept any of these claims and or any responsibility for the woman’s death. After a trial on the merits, the victim’s estate received $280,000.
CASE: FLOYD VS. EMMEL
STATE: SOUTH CAROLINA
INJURY: BED SORES
YEAR: 2003
AWARD: $500,000
After spending not more than two weeks in a nursing home, the victim in this incident had already contracted pressure sores that led to sepsis. She was only 46 years old and immobile when she was entered into the facility. To recover for her injuries, she sued the nursing home where she was staying at the chief nurse who was taking care of her at time. To both of them, she argued that they failed to meet the proper standard of medical and nursing care and that because of that she suffered injury and damage. She contended that they should have had a better plan in place to prevent bed sores as well as provided better supervision and training. To these allegations, the defendants cried foul and countered that there was nothing they could have done to avoid this outcome and that they acted appropriately. However, both of them preferred settlement to trial and so they offered her $500,000. She accepted the agreement.
CASE: CHASTAIN VS. ANDERSON
STATE: SOUTH CAROLINA
INJURY: BED SORES
YEAR: 2008
AWARD: $2,200,000
A victim in her early seventies brought this suit after she developed bed sores while under the care of a medical facility following a procedure. She argued that she had no sores prior to her time there and that because of the defendant hospital’s deficient care and supervision she sustained them. Additionally, she maintained in her complaint that they could have prevented the spread and complication of the sores had they provided more staff, supervision, and training. The defendant hospital disagreed and fought vigorously at trial for its innocence. The jury originally awarded the woman $2,200,000 but the judge lowered it to $300,000 (through a ruling known as a remittitur). Ironically, this was the same amount of money that the defendant offered the plaintiff prior to trial.
CASE: SIMMONS VS. LIFE CARE CENTER OF AMERICA
STATE: SOUTH CAROLINA
INJURY: BED SORES
YEAR: 2005
AWARD: $310,000
Here, a man was released from a hospital into the care of a nursing home. While at the facility, he developed bed sores that eventually had to be removed through an amputation. Subsequently, he filed a lawsuit against the nursing facility. He alleged that the defendant home did not properly care for him and that as a result he suffered bed sores and a below-the-knee amputation. He sought damages for medical bills, pain and suffering, and lost quality of life. The defendant nursing home denied that it was at fault and the amount of damages that the plaintiff sought. Eventually, the jury decided that the plaintiff was entitled to compensation from the nursing home and fixed the proper amount at $310,000.
CASE: MACK VS. MANOR CARE INC.
STATE: SOUTH CAROLINA
INJURY: BED SORES
YEAR: 2004
AWARD: $200,000
The victim in this case was a woman who was living at a nursing home during the time in question. While living there, bed sores began to grow on her feet and even developed into gangrene. She sued the facility because, as she maintained in her complaint, they did not adequately monitor her for bed sore growth and infection. Due to this failure, she claimed it was responsible for her injuries. In response to this, the defendant nursing home replied that she admitted to its facility for treatment related to bed sores and that they did the best they could. They even transferred to a hospital for further review and care. However, in the jury’s opinion, this was not enough. They awarded the victim $200,000 and found that the defendant nursing home was negligent in its care of the plaintiff.
CASE: STEVENS VS. SANDPIPER CONVALESCENT CENTER
STATE: SOUTH CAROLINA
INJURY: BED SORES
YEAR: 2003
AWARD: $200,000
This case centered on a man’s bed sores, dehydration, and malnutrition while he was a resident of a nursing home. Through his counsel, he brought a case against the home he was living at for negligence. It stated a claim for negligence and offered several reasons why the defendant facility should pay him compensation including the fact that they failed to hire and train adequate personal, that they failed to provide sufficient supervision, and generally ignored the growth and spread of his bed sores. The defendant denied liability but this did not stop the jury from a reaching a separate conclusion. It found for the man and gave him $200,000.
