ATTORNEY NEWSLETTER
Nursing Home Residents at Risk
Neglect and Lack of Supervision
Pressure Wounds/Bedsores Can Be Deadly
Neglect and abandonment of nursing home residents can be fatal. Pressure wounds/bedsores and infections can kill. Understaffing and lack of training and supervision are real problems within care facilities and the pandemic has not only put nursing home patients directly at risk of coronavirus but also vulnerable to other deadly afflictions like pressure wounds as staffing shortages increase. The Marin County elder abuse attorneys at Evans Law Firm, Inc. represent senior victims of nursing home abuse, overmedication (or missed medications), neglect, abandonment, sexual abuse, rape, or injuries from wandering off/elopement. If you or someone you know is suffering elder abuse in San Francisco, Alameda County, or elsewhere in California, call the elder abuse attorneys at Evans Law Firm today at 415-441-8669, and we can help.
In one recently reported case, a nursing supervisor at a care facility was arrested by authorities for elder abuse after allegedly failing to validate elderly patients’ medication records and failing to keep track of their treatment administration records. As the Nursing Unit Manager, authorities noted that the defendant had responsibility for overseeing the home’s Pressure Sore Program and the complaint issued by law enforcement listed 58 missing treatment records under the program during a one-month period alone. The Nursing Unit Manager faces criminal elder abuse charges according to the report released following the arrest.
Spotting Signs of Neglect and Abuse
Pressure wounds/ulcers/bedsores can be deadly for the elderly and persons confined to the bed need frequent turning and treatment to avoid development of these sores. If you have a loved one in a nursing home or assisted care facility, visit if you safely can during these times. If you cannot go in person try Zoom or FaceTime for communication or talk to some staff member you know you can trust about how your loved one is doing. When it is safe to visit, use all precaution and watch for signs of possible abuse or neglect:
• Bedsores/pressure ulcers or other poor skin conditions;
• Indication of rape, sexual assault, or battery;
• Bruises and scratch marks;
• Poor physical appearance or lack of cleanliness;
• Frequent infections;
• Falls;
• Injuries from wandering off unsupervised (known as elopement);
• Lack of equipment and supplies;
• Overmedication;
• Rapid weight loss;
• Dehydration;
• Abnormal or withdrawn behavior and unusual silence;
• Prolonged sleep or drowsiness;
• Agitation especially when certain caregivers are present or caregivers who do not want the patient to be alone with others;
• Reluctance to speak when staff is nearby;
• Unsanitary and unclean conditions, soiled bed linens and clothes;
• Fear of being touched.
Always report suspected abuse to the authorities but also call qualified counsel like the California nursing home abuse attorneys at Evans Law Firm to help you and the victim obtain all available remedies under California law from those responsible, including awards of attorneys’ fees and costs for bringing your elder abuse action.
Contact Us
If you or a loved one is or has been the victim of abuse or neglect from a caregiver or while residing in a nursing home or other care facility in San Francisco or Marina County or elsewhere in California, contact Ingrid M. Evans and the other nursing home abuse attorneys at the Evans Law Firm at (415) 441-8669, or by email at <a href=”mailto:info@evanslaw.com”>info@evanslaw.com</a>. We can help guide your case through a jury trial or toward an equitable settlement. We handle cases involving physical and financial elder abuse, qui tam and whistleblower law, nursing home abuse, whole life insurance and universal life insurance, and indexed, variable, and fixed annuities.
