What Can Happen?
According to the CDC, there are around 16,000 registered nursing homes in the United States. Unfortunately, we know that elder abuse takes place, but it is underreported.
What is elder abuse?
The CDC defines elder abuse as “the intentional act, or failure to act, by a caregiver…that causes or creates a risk of harm to an older adult.”
Elder abuse is horrible, done by those who want to prey on the most vulnerable in our society. Many times, the elderly are not able to defend themselves from abuse. Sometimes, due to dementia, they are even unaware it is happening.
The most common type of abuse is physical abuse. This includes any forceful contact by a nursing home staff member towards a resident in their care. It comes in many forms, including hitting, slapping, choking, scratching, burning, etc.
Sexual abuse is an atrocious form of physical abuse and involves any unwanted sexual contact between staff members and resident.
Neglect includes nursing home staff ignoring the basic needs of their residents. They may not feed them or bathe them when they should. It can include not tending to any wounds a resident may have. They may even neglect to give them their medications.
Financial abuse is becoming more and more common and is more than just stealing money from residents. It can include using their information to steal their identity as well as billing insurance for procedures they do not perform.
A nursing home staff member can also emotionally abuse a resident by taunting or intimidating them. They can put the resident in fear of reporting any abuse.
None of these abuses are okay and those responsible should be held accountable.
What Can You Do?
First, handle the emergency. Make sure your loved one gets to a safe place if you suspect they are being abused and call the police. Keep all reports and make sure to get medical records from the facility. After that, you need to seek legal assistance. When you need a Hallandale Beach nursing home abuse attorney, The Dante Law Firm is standing by to help. We will make sure you and your loved one are treated fairly and compensated for the abuse. You can contact us by clicking here or calling 305-949-2526 for a free consultation.
It can be an incredibly difficult decision to put your loved one in a nursing home, but sometimes their needs become more than we are able to handle. Every year, around 1.4 million people receive care in nursing homes. As medical advances have increased life expectancy, they have also increased the need to have registered facilities to care for the elderly.
(954) 365-0000
(954) 365-0000