Are you aware of the conditions in a loved one’s nursing home?
Elderly people are very vulnerable to abuse when they move out of their normal house and away from family. Nursing homes are typically places for older people to spend the latter years of their lives in peace and protection, but there are many instances that occur where staff workers at nursing homes take advantage of elderly vulnerabilities and either hurt them for fun or for financial gain.
Abuse in a nursing home is unacceptable and it takes the strength of one or multiple people to stand up and notify the proper people to claim damages.
Contact a lawyer if there are any hints of nursing home abuse. Go over this list to figure out whether or not you or a loved one is being abused in a nursing home.
Broken Bones or Bruises
This is one of the easiest ways to identify if a senior citizen has been abused at a nursing home. Injuries are more common in elderly people, so they can often be written off as normal, but consistent broken bones or bruises need to be addressed. If you notice repetitive broken bones or bruises on your elderly relative, ask them how they keep getting hurt. Make sure they know that they are in a safe environment and contact a personal injury lawyer if they say someone has been abusing them.
Behavior Change
If you put your elderly relative in a home and they immediately begin acting more passive or quiet, there is a chance they have been abused in the nursing home. Elderly people are often too proud to speak with someone about being abused. They frequently lived their whole lives standing up for himself, and now they might find it embarrassing that they are getting abused. Take note of personality changes and document them for a lawyer.
Weight loss
A common form of abuse at nursing homes is starvation. If it looks like your elderly relative is slowly losing weight you might want to check in to monitor the portions of food that are being distributed in the nursing home. There’s a good chance that workers will not starve your relative when you are around, so you need to get your relative to tell you how much they get fed. Monitor your elderly relative’s weight, and consider placing a recording device in their pocket to present evidence to a lawyer or judge. Weight fluctuation may also be an indication of drug misuse, which is another form of abuse.
Let us know in the comments whether or not any of these instances has happened to you in a nursing home. Have you witnessed or experienced nursing home abuse?
