Is an elderly family member in a nursing facility? Here’s what you must know about nursing home abuse and neglect….

Nursing home neglect is often wrongfully assumed as being the same thing as nursing home abuse. As per fabulous nursing home abuse lawyers, they are both similar in several ways, but also different in some ways and are hence technically two different things from a legal perspective.

Nursing home abuse lawyers are there when you need one but you must make the call.You must call them. Take that initiation. No one should get away with mistreating an elderly person. 

By definition, nursing home neglect is said to have occurred when the care provided by a nursing home or its staff members is not up to the acceptable standard defined by the state law or when it is determined that the caregiver or nursing facility breached a duty of care that they owed to the resident or patient.

On the other hand, nursing home abuse is when residents of a nursing home are physically, mentally, emotionally, financially, or sexually abused. Therefore, nursing home abuse is more often than not, something deliberate and intentional and this is why this website Nursing-Home-Abuse.USAttorneys was concocted. The sheer brilliance of this website has saved lives and made a lot of people happier since they found finding legal help has been streamlined.  

What are the different types of nursing home neglect?

Nursing home neglect can come in many forms, explain astonishing nursing home abuse attorneys. The specifics of each nursing home neglect case obviously will vary and may even be unique, but in general, nursing home neglect can be broadly classified into four different categories as stated below:

1. Emotional or social neglect – This sort of neglect refers to when a resident is isolated from social activities, ignored, or scorned at by stressed out nursing home staffers.
2. Personal hygiene neglect – The nursing home owes the resident the duty of keeping them clean and hygienic and if this involves having to bathe them, brush them, or doing their laundry then they are responsible for carrying out these activities.
3. Basic needs neglect – As the name suggests, this kind of neglect refers to when the nursing home or an individual care giver fails to provide basic amenities to the resident such as food, drinking water, and a safe and clean environment.
4. Medical neglect – Failing to administer medication, failing to prevent bed sores, etc. are all examples of medical neglect.

Now if you want to see a situation where people are short on water you should watch the movie Three Amigos with Chevy Chase who plays Dusty Bottoms. In one scene, Dusty Bottoms and his two amigos are traveling through the desert on their horses and they all stop for a water break. Lucky Day (Steve Martin) has sand come out of his thermos and Ned Nederlander (Martin Short) has one drop of water come out. They both are dangerously dehydrated. But Dusty Bottoms has plenty of water in his thermos and fully quenches his thirst, washes his face, and throws the rest of the water with the thermos on the sand.

That may not be neglect but it certainly is selfishness. If your loved one is in a nursing home and is not receiving enough food or water, that is neglect. Three Amigos was a comedy, this situation is not!

Irrespective of the type of neglect, the resident and his or her family have the legal right to take action against the perpetrators by filing a civil lawsuit which they can do with the help of a fabulous nursing home abuse lawyer who is licensed to practice in their state.

Signs of Nursing Home Neglect

Given the age, frailty, and medical condition of the residents, they can be the perfect victim since they often are unable to even effectively raise the alarm bells about the abuse that they are being subjected to. Therefore, it is imperative that families of such residents keep an eye for some common signs of neglect such as sudden weight loss, bedsores, and injuries from falling, dehydration, malnutrition, change in behavior, environmental hazards, and so on.

If you suspect abuse or neglect by nursing home staff, it would be prudent to consult a nursing home abuse lawyer without delay.