Family members depend on nursing homes to provide their elderly loved ones with full-time attention, care, and medical resources. Sadly, over 2 million cases of nursing home abuse are reported in the United States each year. Elderly nursing home residents are often vulnerable to abuse due to their advanced age and medical conditions. Unfortunately, most abuse cases go unreported because elderly patients are threatened and manipulated by their caregivers. Understanding the different forms of elder abuse is the only way to protect your loved ones.
General Neglect
Nursing home neglect occurs when staffers fail to deliver the level of care their patients require. Neglect can lead to serious injury, illness, and even wrongful deaths. Mistreated residents are often very anxious, and exhibit signs of dehydration, malnourishment, and poor hygiene.
Examples of neglect include, but are not limited to:
- Overlooking a patient’s needs
- Failing to prevent falls
- Ignoring signs of health complications
- Improperly administering medications
- Failing to provide necessary treatments
Physical Abuse
Physical abuse occurs when residents experience pain and injuries due to the actions of their caretakers or fellow patients. Abused nursing home residents have a 300% higher chance of suffering a wrongful death.
Signs of physical abuse to watch out for include, but are not limited to:
- Unexplained bruises, cuts, or broken bones
- A resident being terrified of a facility’s staff
- Staffers refusing to leave residents alone with their families
Emotional Abuse
Unfortunately, emotional abuse is extremely common in nursing home facilities. Emotional abuse is often difficult to identify because the suffering is psychological.
Elder emotional abuse includes:
- Humiliation
- Insults and ridicule
- Manipulation and gaslighting
- Isolation
- Threats and intimidation
Financial Exploitation
Financial exploitation takes many forms and is vastly underreported. Medical professionals, caretakers, friends, and even family members can prey upon vulnerable relatives while they are living in a facility.
Financial exploitation includes:
- Lending schemes
- Identity theft
- Forging signatures
- Using credit cards without permission
- Abusing financial account access
Pursue Legal Justice
Contact Pierce, Sloan, Kennedy & Early LLC if you want to file a claim against a person or facility that has abused your elderly relative. Our Charleston nursing home abuse lawyers can investigate your case and help you seek damages for your loved one.
Contact Pierce, Sloan, Kennedy & Early LLC at (843) 968-0886 to schedule a free consultation.