Abogados especializados en casos de maltrato en residencias de ancianos en Toledo

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Nursing Home Abuse in Toledo, Ohio

The Health Policy Institute of Ohio finds that there are about 12,000 reported cases of elder abuse in nursing homes around the state every year. However, these statistics may not tell the entire store since many cases likely go unreported due to victims moving out of the nursing homes or passing away, and their cases are not followed up by anyone.

The U.S. Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services found that about 41% of nursing homes in Ohio have a below-average rating of care. This is substantially worse than the national average of 35%. The Centers for Disease Control reports that over 50% of all nursing home residents suffer a fall each year, which is about twice the rate sustained by elderly Americans who do not live in nursing homes.

Types of Nursing Home Abuse

There are many ways that the staff of a nursing home can abuse you or your loved ones. Abuse can be the result of direct actions or of an employee failing to do their job and provide expected care and security.

Of the many incidents that our nursing home abuse lawyers have seen, some of the most common include:

• Failure to monitor residents – A confused or ill resident may leave the nursing home and wander into danger if staff fail to pay attention. A nursing home resident in Putnam County recently exited the facility without being noticed and froze to death after a few hours.
• Bedsores – Failure to provide a patient with sufficient movement can cause uncomfortable and dangerous bedsores to develop.
• Other Injuries – The beds at nursing homes can have many moving parts, and failure to protect residents could result in injuries from a fall.
• Careless handling of medication – Doctors and nursing home staff throughout Ohio often cause harm to elderly or disabled residents by providing improper doses or types of medication. This can result in making a person’s health worse, and many of these victims are killed.
• Failure in reacting to an emergency – Staff at nursing homes sometimes fail to call 911 or outside medical professionals in the event of an emergency or medical situation that they don’t understand. This may be due to cost-saving measures or to avoid getting in trouble for poor care being provided.
• Sexual abuse – Careless or malicious staff may allow or even perpetrate sexual assault on disabled residents. These violent acts can have permanent or even deadly consequences.
• Theft – Nursing home employees have been known to steal from residents or commit acts of financial fraud that involve residents’ monetary savings.

Signs of Nursing Home Abuse

Many victims of abuse or injury do not want to inform others of the harm they suffered, and they’ll sometimes keep their closest loved ones uninformed. Identifying nursing home abuse is sometimes difficult, and it can go unseen for a long time. Your loved one may already have health issues, and it can be difficult for you to notice that they are suffering from harm that was caused by abuse.

The victim of nursing home abuse has the right to take legal action to pursue damages from the negligent or malicious party. However, it’s necessary to first identify that abuse is happening.

Our nursing home abuse attorneys have worked with many families concerned about their loved one’s well-being. We understand the patterns and warning signs of abuse.

Identifying a situation of nursing home neglect or unacceptable care is the first step to fixing the situation. Some of the many warning signs of nursing home abuse include:

• Damaged items such as furniture or personal objects like eyeglasses
• Unexplained bruises, sores, or cuts
• An unusual change in behavior in the nursing home resident
• An unwillingness of nursing staff to leave you alone with the resident
• Problems with heat or water in the home
• Missing items or cash
• Residents improperly dressed for the weather
• Inconsistent medical care and medication use

What to Do If You Suspect Nursing Home Abuse?

Elder abuse in nursing homes often results in permanent or fatal physical harm. Incidents of nursing home harm or violence can sometimes be obvious, but in many cases, they are hard to detect. If your loved one is badly injured while in the care of nursing professionals, you need to act quickly.

It can be very difficult to know what to do. It’s important to get the victim away from the danger, and it may be necessary to call 911 to prevent further harm to your loved one or others.

After getting your loved one to safety, it’s important to:

• Contact a lawyer – A skilled nursing home abuse lawyer will know how to investigate every detail of care that your family member is receiving. We can help determine if physical or mental issues are due to unpreventable causes or due to negligence or abuse by nursing home staff.
• Ask questions – Asking as many questions as possible will help shed light on the details of your family member’s case. Seek to find information from other nursing home residents as well as staff and visiting medical professionals.
• Write down details – Keeping written details of everything you notice will help you remember facts and chronological events as time goes on. Discuss these details with your lawyer as you work to determine if the abuse took place.
• Speak with law enforcement – Your lawyer can help you report abuse to police as well as county or state of Ohio government agencies. In addition to bringing police attention to possible abuse, you may be able to receive helpful information for your case.

Who’s Responsible for Nursing Home Abuse?

Nursing facilities and their staff have a duty to treat and care for their patients in a way that conforms to accepted standard. When they do not—and injuries result, the party in question can be held liable.

Nursing home negligence can be caused by:

• Médicos
• Enfermeras
• Nursing Home Staff
• Nursing Home Administrators
• Other Residents
• Visitors

Our team or professionals will help compile the evidence, file the legal documents, interview witnesses, identify the liable parties, and conduct a thorough investigation. We’ll ensure you or your loved one gets the necessary care and develop a strategy, so no one else must suffer neglect, and you recover maximum compensation.

At KNR, our nursing home abuse attorneys will:

• Responder a tus preguntas y dudas
• Te mantendremos informado durante todas las fases del proceso
• Consigue los informes médicos y los documentos financieros que reflejen la magnitud de tus pérdidas
• Identificar a la parte responsable
• Calcula el valor justo y total de los daños y perjuicios que has sufrido
• Negocia para conseguir la máxima indemnización
• Lucha por todo lo que te mereces ante los tribunales si es necesario