If you have a family member in a nursing home, you have likely put your trust in the highly trained nurses, and other medical professionals hired to help your loved one be comfortable in the final years of his or her life. You and your family likely poured a great deal of research into finding a nursing home that was highly recommended. For this reason, you are concerned when you arrive to visit your mother and her hair is disheveled and dull. You notice she has bruises on her arms and you ask the nurse how they could have happened. The nurse explains to you how bruise are more likely to happen because your mother is so frail.
For some cases, the story the nurse told you could be true, but there are over 2 million other cases of reported elder abuse each year and another unknown estimate that goes unreported. A study conducted by the Division of the House of Government Reform Committee found that 1 out of every 3 nursing facilities has reports of verbal, sexual or physical abuse.
Nursing homes have a responsibility to maintain a reasonable level of care for their patients. This means they are responsible for ensuring they are not injured, they have hygienic living spaces, access to their medications and enough food and water.
The most common instances of nursing home abuse include:
- Administering improper dosage of medicine
- Improper patient supervision
- Failure to monitor patient’s medical condition
- Failing to follow the doctor’s orders
If you or a member of your family were injured or developed further complications of your injury while under the care and supervision of a nursing home, you could have the right to contact a Charleston personal injury attorney to discuss your case. At Berthold Law Firm, PLLC, we have helped many victims of elder abuse and nursing home neglect receive compensation for their injuries.
Contact our Charleston lawyers to schedule a free consultation today.