Was your loved one injured, abused, mistreated, or did they die unexpectedly from neglect while residing at a nursing facility in Virginia?
Contact a Virginia nursing home neglect lawyer at Nursing Home Law Center today at (800) 926-7565 (toll-free phone call) or use the contact form to schedule a free consultation.
Let our personal injury law firm review your case for financial compensation to ensure your family receives the monetary recovery they deserve.
Every year, nationwide statistics reveal that nursing home abuse continues to be a significant problem in society. The National Center on Elder Abuse reports that almost six million nursing home injury cases of elderly abuse occur every year.
Over 67 percent of victims of elderly abuse tend to be females. Even more disturbing, the Center reports that over 91 percent of nursing homes do not have adequate staffing to ensure that the needs of elderly people are met.
In Virginia, the statistics for nursing homes are just as disheartening. Over 40 percent of Virginia nursing homes were discovered to have severe issues maintaining a safe environment and food sanitation in 2008. Over 50 percent of nursing homes failed to maintain adequate professional standards that year.
Medicare routinely updates their data on the 287 nursing homes rated in Virginia based on identified violations and deficiencies found at the facilities through inspections and investigations. According to the federal agency, currently, 102 (35%) of Virginia nursing homes provide substandard care based on national averages.
Family members need to speak up about suspicions of abuse involving the Virginia nursing home staff or other patients. Patterns of abuse are usually common in nursing home facilities attempting to prey upon residents' financial assets. It is essential to stop abuse from occurring and remove your loved one from the situation.
Speak now to a long-term care and nursing home abuse lawyer to receive the help that you, or a family member, need to make a difference in the life of a loved one.
In Virginia, nursing home abuse and neglect are prohibited under the Adult Protective Services Act. The Adult Protective Services Act also establishes the procedural system for dealing with nursing home neglect or abuse reports in Virginia. It handles complaints reported for adults 60 years of age and older and complaints that involve abuse, neglect, and exploitation.
APS provides a wide range of services that may be available to remove an elderly person from an abusive situation and end any further mistreatment.
Some of the services that may be available include alternative shelter, transportation, nutrition services, legal intervention, adult daycare, or even foster services.
Those who suspect that a nursing home resident is the victim of abuse can get in touch with a department of social services to file an abuse report. The department maintains a toll-free hotline that can be accessed at 888-832-3858.
In Virginia, family members only have a limited period to file a negligence or wrongful death claim. They should be aware that the statute of limitations only runs for two years, which means that individuals must file a case within this time frame.
The statute of limitations begins to run from when an injury is discovered, or the individual's death occurs. Virginia laws maintain a $1.5 million cap on damages for acts that occur after August 1, 1999. Punitive damages are capped at $350,000.Several departments can handle reports of abuse or neglect in Virginia. These are the Virginia Department of Health, Adult Protective Services, Department of Health, and the Long Term Care Ombudsman. Nursing home negligence attorneys in Virginia can help you file a report of abuse or neglect with any one of these departments.
There are various forms of neglect that can occur in a nursing home. The first types of neglect that may come to mind may be those that directly impact a loved one, such as depriving him or her of food, water, and medication.
However, there are other more subtle forms of neglect that family members should also be aware of involving a lack of quality care, such as:
These forms of negligence can be just as harmful to nursing home residents' lives as other forms of physical abuse. It is crucial for family members to take action against care facilities when they realize that neglect is occurring in a nursing home. Contact your law firm today.
Nursing home litigation might involve compensatory and punitive damages for financial compensation, including hospital costs, medical expenses, lost wages, pain, and suffering.
Any family member who lost loved ones from abuse and neglect could file wrongful death cases seeking justice and compensation paid by the facilities insurance companies.
According to the National Institute on Aging the first stage and preventing elder abuse is to recognize how your loved one is being harmed.
While physical assault is typically apparent with bruising, broken bones, or other trauma, your loved one could be mistreated through financial, mental, and emotional means.
Practical steps to protect your loved ones is to play an active role in their daily living. Some of the best ways to prevent mistreatment includes:
State law should protect your loved one from mistreatment and substandard care. At the first sign of abuse, contact the nursing home administrator and local law enforcement.
Discuss your loved one’s poor mental or physical health and prove that they were sexually, physically, mentally, or emotionally harmed.
Talk to nursing home abuse lawyers to receive the help you need to end the abuse and neglect. Nursing home negligence attorneys in Virginia are available to assist you in the process of collecting damages.
Contact us today to schedule a free consultation. A Virginia nursing home abuse lawyer from our law firm is available to talk to local residents in areas such as:
Call our nursing home abuse lawyers to schedule an initial consultation and understand your loved one’s rights.
In many situations, placing a loved one in a Virginia nursing home is the last option available for the family.
Turning over their care and well-being to a medical team requires an exceptional level of trust in the nurses, nurse’s aides, and doctors who will be providing treatment to ensure their health.
Many families have a high level of expectation that nursing homes and assisted living facilities will do everything they can to maintain the loved one’s quality of life free from abuse while at the home.
Upon admittance to the nursing home, the family never expected to be notified that their loved one has suffered facility-acquired bedsore.
Bedsores (pressure sores; pressure ulcers; decubitus ulcers) are unfortunately a common occurrence for nursing home patients who are limited in their mobility.
Most bedsore injury and wrongful death cases could have been prevented had the nursing care facility followed established health protocols.
This often includes wheelchair-bound or bedridden patients or residents who are incapacitated due to a spinal cord injury, coma, or other debilitating condition.
All information you share with your nursing home abuse attorney from our law firm remains confidential through an attorney-client relationship.
Virginia Nursing Home Injury Attorney Nursing Home Law Center LLC Home