As with nursing home abuse, nursing home neglect can cause residence serious injuries or even death. As a loved one or parent ages, living in a nursing home facility is often the best option. When we place our loved ones and nursing homes, we trust that their caregivers will diligently meet our loved one’s physical and emotional needs. Unfortunately, nursing home neglect is a common problem that can lead to pressure ulcers, slip and fall injuries, and malnutrition.
If your loved one is a victim of nursing home neglect, consult with the experienced personal injury lawyers at Stein & Shulman, LLC. Nursing homes have a legal duty to provide their residents with the attention and care they deserve. When nursing home residents suffer injuries due to neglect, the nursing home is liable for the costs associated with those injuries. Our team of skilled lawyers can help you hold negligent nursing homes accountable and recover compensation for your loved one’s injuries. Contact us today to schedule your free case evaluation.
Examples of Nursing Home Neglect
Nursing home residents are vulnerable when it comes to any type of neglect or abuse. Many nursing home residents are dependent on wheelchairs or walkers to get out of their beds. Some residents are unable to communicate because of advanced age, dementia, or Alzheimer’s disease. These characteristics make nursing home residents a uniquely vulnerable population for neglectful staff members. Many residents are unable to report the neglect they experience.
Nursing home neglect involves any instance in which staff members fail to provide the care and medical treatments that residents need. Nursing home neglect can take many forms. Every resident is unique, and staff members should become acquainted with their medical conditions and personal needs. When staff members are too busy to observe nursing home residents, neglect can result in serious injuries and even death. Common examples of nursing home neglect include:
- Failure to create a care plan for the resident’s unique needs
- Failure to effectively act on the care plan
- Failure to provide physical and emotional care to a resident
- Failure to frequently evaluate the medical and physical needs of each resident
- Failure to move bed-ridden residents frequently enough, resulting in pressure ulcers
- Failure to monitor patients who are at risk of choking or aspirating
- Failure to properly transport patients, resulting in dropped patients
- Failure to properly feed the resident, resulting in starvation
- Failure to ensure that the resident takes enough water to prevent dehydration
- Failure to provide the resident with the appropriate medication on time
- Giving one patient’s medication to another patient
- Failure to supervise at-risk residents to prevent falls
Investigating Nursing Home Neglect
Proving nursing home negligence can be difficult. The first step in bringing a nursing home neglect lawsuit is to thoroughly investigate the case. At Stein & Shulman, LLC, we have a large professional network that effectively investigates nursing home neglect cases. We will review your loved one’s care records, any available CCTV footage, and interview witnesses to gather evidence of neglect.
We will also work with medical experts who can provide an opinion on the cause of your loved one’s medical conditions and injuries. If your loved one continues to suffer from pressure ulcers, also known as bedsores, we will consult with medical experts to testify that a lack of attention by staff members caused the sores.
It can be more difficult to connect some types of injuries to nursing home neglect, however. Proving that a loved one’s weight loss was directly caused by nursing home neglect can be more complicated. Some nursing home staff members try to hide evidence of neglect by doctoring treatment records. Or staff members threaten residents for reporting neglect. Our clients rest assured that if there is any evidence for nursing home neglect, our team will uncover it.
Recovering Damages for Nursing Home Neglect Lawsuit in Illinois
After conducting an investigation, our legal team will file a lawsuit against the nursing home. In our complaint, we will identify the causes of your loved one’s injuries. There are many different causes of nursing home neglect, including:
- Chronically understaffed nursing home facilities
- Untrained staff members
- Violations of Illinois’ Nursing Home Rights Act
- Medication errors by nurses and aides
- A lack of staff supervision by management
- Failure to properly document each resident’s food and water intake
In Illinois, successful plaintiffs and nursing home neglect lawsuits can recover economic and non-economic damages. The damages include all of the past, current, and future costs associated with your loved one’s injuries. Economic damages include all of your loved one’s medical expenses related to the nursing home neglect, starting when the neglect happened and continuing until the injury is cured or the nursing home resident passes away.
A successful plaintiff can also recover out-of-pocket expenses, such as the funeral costs for the resident who died due to nursing home neglect. If you need to move your loved one to another nursing home facility after learning about the neglect, you can request compensation for the moving costs. Additionally, if you need to hire additional skilled nursing staff or aides to help your loved one, you can receive compensation for those expenses. Finally, plaintiffs can recover non-economic damages for the emotional suffering and physical pain that their loved ones endured due to the nursing home neglect.
Contact Our Chicago Nursing Home Neglect Lawyers
At Stein & Shulman, LLC, we have a long track record of success in nursing home neglect lawsuits. We’ve recovered substantial settlements on behalf of our clients whose loved ones were injured by a neglectful nursing home in the greater Chicago area. If you suspect that your loved one has been injured because of nursing home neglect, we can help. Contact our nursing home neglect lawyers today to schedule your free case evaluation.
The law office of Stein & Shulman routinely represents victims in Chicago, Cook County, Lake County, DuPage County, Will County, McHenry County, and Kane County.
