Nursing Home Abuse and Neglect
In the United States today, the fastest growing population is the elderly. And with more Americans living longer lives, nursing homes are both something we need -- and something we rely on. We count on them to take care of loved ones who can no longer live on their own. But too many nursing homes have betrayed that trust -- often, when they are underfunded and understaffed. The stories have become numerous, and always difficult to hear: The people who were supposed to protect the vulnerable instead neglected and abused them.
Victims of elder abuse often can't communicate what's been happening to them. But warning signs can take many forms, including:
- Weight loss from lack of nutrition
- Loss of mobility
- Pressure sores, bedsores, and frozen joints
- Missing possessions or unexplained withdrawals from (or changes to) financial accounts
- Unexplained bruises, cuts, fractures, burns, and broken bones
- Staff refusals to allow visitors (or unexplained delays in permitting visits); a hesitancy to allow visits unaccompanied by staff
- Residents who appear to be kept in an overmedicated state
- Unsanitary conditions
Nursing home abuse can also involve the inappropriate use of physical restraints, joint contractors, and urinary catheters. Victims often seem fearful, depressed, and withdrawn; or display sudden, unusual behavior patterns.
Discovering that a loved one has been a victim of nursing home abuse or neglect is always a shocking, troubling event, but it is important to note that there are laws that protect those who have been injured -- and hold those who let it happen accountable. Having a case, however, is only the first step. Recovery and answers require the aid of a law firm skilled and experienced in this challenging, often emotional, practice area.
At Mary Alexander & Associates, we've been protecting, and vindicating, the rights of clients for more than a quarter of a century. We've made our name, and built our track record, litigating negligence and abuse case, whether they involve nursing homes, defective products, or even child sex abuse. We fight every day for those harmed by others, and we help them seek the redress, and the closure, they need -- and deserve.
