legal resources necessary to hold negligent facilities accountable.
Tuscaloosa Nursing Home Abuse Lawyer
Neglect and abuse cases in Alabama nursing homes are rising, mainly because of understaffing, incompetent caregivers, greed, and stressed staff members. Even though the state has strict rules for mistreatment and neglect of the elderly, many nursing homes and assisted nursing facilities often prioritize their profits over the safety of the residents.
Were you or your family member abused or mistreated while living in a nursing home or assisted care facility? Our affiliate Alabama personal injury attorneys at Nursing Home Law Center can help.
Contact the Tuscaloosa nursing home abuse lawyers at (800) 926-7565 (toll-free phone call) today to schedule a free case consultation. All confidential or sensitive information you share with our legal team remains private through an attorney-client relationship.
How Does Negligence Happen in Nursing Homes?Many people who can no longer care for themselves move to assisted care facilities to have caregivers provide necessities like food, water, medications, and proper hygiene.
Every nursing home has nurses, caregivers, and physical therapists that perform different services for the resident’s care.
When the administration puts their profits over the elderly’s well-being it causes long-term injuries to the residents through nursing home neglect or abuse.
The Alabama Board of Examiners of Nursing Home Administrators checks the operations of nursing homes in the state. They license nursing facilities, investigate mistreatment complaints, and conduct proceedings. However, many incidents of abuse, mistreatment, and neglect are never reported to authorities becuase the victim never speaks out due to fear of retaliation or the inability to communicate.
Types of Negligence in Nursing HomesNegligence can physically, mentally, emotionally, or psychologically harm the resident. Therefore, family members should observe sudden changes in their loved one’s behavior and take the necessary steps to protect them from further mistreatment of nursing homes.
Physical AbuseThe use of physical force by a caregiver, visitor, family member, friend, worker, or another patient on the nursing home patients that results in injuries is physical abuse or neglect.
It includes:
- Pushing
- Choking
- Kicking
- Slapping
- Hitting
- Forced physical restraint
Signs of physical mistreatment are:
- Unexplained injuries
- Broken bones
- Bruising
Emotion trauma inflicted by caregivers, family members, friends, workers, visitors, and other patients can leave deep physcholical wounds.
Typical forms of this mistreatment are:
- Threats
- Insults
- Manipulation
- Isolation
- Humiliation
Common signs of emotional trauma caused by abuse include:
- Social withdrawal
- Elevated anxiety levels
- Fearfulness
- Anxiety
- Psychological distress
Unwanted sexual interaction, contact, or activity involving the resident and anyone else is not only a crime, but unacceptable behavior that leaves victims deeply traumatized.
Sexual abuse includes:
- Non-consensual sexual advances
- Obscene jokes
- Inappropriate touching
- Rape, sodomy, or oral sex
- Sexual harrassment
- Groping
The victim may have these symptoms:
- Social withdrawal
- Continuous shivering
- Unexplained sexually transmitted disease
- Mood swings
Financial exploitation could involve staff, employees, visitors, family members, friends and other patients gaining access to the residents finances and personal belongings without authorization. Theft of the victim’s personal items and monetary manipulation is abuse behavior and a crime.
Financial exploitation includes:
- Unauthorized bank account withdrawals
- Unpaid bills by those in charge of the resident’s finances
- Unexplained changes in the resident’s will or financial plans
- Loss of personal belongings
Neglect refers to the unfulfillment of the elderly’s health care and basic needs. Negligence can pose varying impacts on the residents of nursing facilities, including:
- Medication errors
- Poor hygiene
- Dehydration
- Broken bones
- Insufficient medical care
- Bed sores
- Malnutrition
- Wrongful death
Is your family member a victim of mistreatment? Did your loved on not report the abusive behavior of the staff due to fear or embarrassment. Take legal action immediately to protect them from further mistreatment.
Surviving families who lost a loved one through wrongful death at the facility can file a compensation claim to hold all responsible for the preventable death accountable.
How Can You Help an Abused Resident Living in a Nursing Home Facility?Identifying the signs of nursing home negligence is challenging. Many mistreated victims remain silent. However, there are steps that family members and friends can take to protect a loved one. These include:
Provide a safe environment to talk to your loved ones and listen to what they say about what happened
Report what you know to the facility administrator who was obligated by law to report the complaint to federal and state agencies for investigation
Pheil a complaint with the Alabama Department of Public Health and local law enforcement
Speak with a personal injury attorney from our law offices who will evaluate your case, set realistic expectations, and proceed with legal issues to the court. An attorney working on your behalf was behalf can ensure that you are compensated for damages.
How Can a Nursing Home Neglect Attorney Help?Using legal representation for civil litigation offenses can hold those responsible legally and financially accountable. Many claims and lawsuits are based on the abusive behavior and negligence of others, involving:
- Substandard nursing services
- Unsanitary conditions
- Failure to provide a safe environment
- Incompetent nursing staff
- Limited medical treatment
- Physical assault
- Sexual abuse
- Emotional and psychological trauma caused by others
- Financial exploitation
All necessary paperwork and documentation must be submitted to the courts before the state statute of limitations expires. An attorney working on the family’s behalf to protect a loved one from mistreatment and prevent a recurrence of the mistreatment.
Our attorneys investigate what happened and notify local and federal authorities when crimes have been committed. We evaluate orr potential client’s evidence and build a successful civil litigation case in court.
Our legal team seeks financial settlements, jury awards, and punitive damages for the suffering caused by the perpetrators and the nursing home facility. We work closely with our clients and handle every aspect of your case, allowing them the time and energy required to heal from their injuries.
Hire a Personal Injury Lawyer to Claim Your CompensationThe nursing home abuse and neglect attorneys at the Nursing Home Law Center, LLC have years of experience helping victims receive the compensation they deserve for their injuries, pain, and suffering.financially compensated for their pain and suffering.
We understand how sensitive elder abuse or neglect cases are, so we offer a free case evaluation to all our clients living in and outside the state.. All confidential or sensitive information you share with our legal team remains private through an attorney-client relationship.
Our contingency fees policy policy ensures you pay nothing until we obtain financial compensation on your behalf through a negotiated settlement or jury trial award. Contact our law offices today at (800) 926-7565 or use an online contact form to schedule a free consultation.
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